I checked out Tam Tam Montreal. People were drumming, people were dancing, then a greek acrobat team jumped on each others shoulders. It started raining so I went for coffee then headed home.
All in all it was a pretty great day.
The other day I jumped on a bus with no destination in mind. The plan was to get to the metro and blindly pick a station to jump off at to explore the surrounding area. I picked Atwater. Being hangry likely had something to do with this choice since the Atwater Market would be a few minute walk from the station and I could grab a bite to eat there.
After filling the void in my gut I started floating around the market looking for photo opportunities. Just so you know. If a sandwich looks huge in a menu photo, it will most likely be a quarter that size in real life. Not many photo ops where yelling at me so I headed to... you guessed it, Saint Catherine Street.
I hit the Quartier des spectacles, had a seat and watched dancer Caroline Laurin-Beaucage dance for an hour. It was intense. Here is the audio track that plays as she dances.
After watching a fierce game of chess I was exhausted from all the watching of the people doing the stuff. I headed home.
The end.
My wife and I had a day with no plans and I had recently read there was a bike fair going on. Since we have been talking about getting bikes we thought we'd check it out. We jumped on the metro and headed to the west end of the island. Well technically we jumped on a bus then a metro then another metro but that's too long to type and doesn't sound that glamorous. Wait, what just happened. Anyway, the bike fair was winding down by the time we got there so it was slim pickings. Neither one of use were familiar with the Verdun area—which appeared to be very quaint and I will make another trip to explore it more—so we sat on a bench to make the all important decision of what to do next.
Forgetting, I mean knowing, my wife loves books I told her I had seen a pretty cool used bookstore in Mile End the other day. Her eyes lit up and BAM we were back on the metro headed to S.W.Welch Bookseller.
As we walked from the metro toward the bookstore I became fascinated by all the Jewish families walking around. I know, no big deal but for some reason on this day I couldn't get enough. I was most interested in the Shtreimels a majority of the men were wearing and found myself dying to have one. If I was a kid I would have thrown myself on the ground and cried until my mom gave me something to cry about.
After a successful trip to the bookstore we wondered over to La Lumiere du Mile End for a bite to eat. Being our first time to this restaurant we were not sure what to expect. We sat in the outdoor garden to soak up some of the quaint atmosphere and excellent food. If you find yourself in Montreal's Mile End and are looking for a vegan place to eat, drop in this place.
And lastly, since we were in the area we stopped at St-Viateur Bagel Shop for some fresh-out-of-the-oven-bagels which are arguably the best bagels in the world unless you're a Fairmount Bagel fan—then they're not. You see, Montreal has two bagel shops that claim to be the best. I personally love whichever one is closest when I have a bagel craving.
Just so you know, all the images below were taken on Saint Catherine Street except one. First one to send me their guess as to which one was not taken on Saint Catherine Street via the contact form could receive something from me via snail mail. Use the subject line "Bitch that photo wasn't taken on Saint Catherine Street" and tell me which photo and why.
Take a walk down Saint Catherine Street and you'll never be the same. On this trip into the city I had no agenda. I just wanted to explore and clear the head. I started on Saint Catherine Street and then wondered over to The Old Port and back over to Saint Catherine Street.
I have always enjoyed a walk down Saint Catherine Street. Walking from one end to the other is like experiencing several cultures without getting on a plane. This street in Montreal has it all. The shopping, dining under the rainbow in the Gay Village and all the people you'll experience along the way make this a very special street. One of my favs.
I hope to share more on The Old Port in the future.