Downtown Montreal
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Stumble It!Downtown Montreal
A welcome edition to the many guides pertaining to Montréal is Alan Hustak's slim, 90-page pocket tome entitled Downtown Montreal. As Hustak indicates in his introduction, the principal objective of the book is to allow you "to discover downtown Montréal's quirky charms by exploring several of its main public squares, both above and below ground, its churches, night spots and restaurants, but above all it is designed to be a handbook to the sense of fun that is a hallmark of the place."
There is no doubt that this compact fact filled guidebook accomplishes what it set out to do and more.
Realizing that Montréal is essentially a collection of neighbourhoods, Hustak pinpoints the essential cultural and historical elements that contribute to their uniqueness. Furthermore, as Montréal is a wonderful walking city, the guidebook conveniently divides itself into 8 short sections each presenting a distinct promenade. We are directed to Dorchester Square and Place du Canada, Peel Street, The Underground City, Chinatown, Downtown Churches, Phillips Square, Crescent Street, and Cabot Square. A clear, crisp writing style presenting a wealth of interesting information occupies each section's write-ups, and we almost feel as if the author is tagging along as our host.
Black and white maps and photos accompany each of these chapters. The photos depict well-known landmarks, office structures, monuments, as well as some vintage scenes, such as a picture of Windsor station in 1940. Although the maps are may be considered simple, they nonetheless place the neighbourhood into context.
Another excellent feature is the subway map as well as succinct information providing phone numbers and web sites pertaining to entertainment listings, tourist bureaus, airports and airlines, airport bus shuttle, trains and inter-city buses and railway info.
There is little doubt that Downtown Montreal captures the heartbeat of this great metropolis and will prove to be invaluable to the tourist as well as the local inhabitants.
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