An Appetite for Montreal
Shoni Market Montreal
Much as I enjoyed the wonderful views from my perch high up on Mount Royal, I couldn’t wait to get back downtown and explore Montreal further.
It’s not often you get the chance to visit a city that has hosted both an Expo and a Summer Olympics, so I was quite excited when I heard we were going to see some of the Expo ’67 pavilions and Olympic venues which were built for the 1976 summer games. The Wingless Wonders took the underground, or in this case under-river, out to St. Helen’s Island.
I really liked the Biosphere – especially as it was located right beside Rue des Seagulls! This very space-age looking structure was originally the US pavilion at Expo ’67. The original acrylic roof panels went on fire while it was being repaired in 1976 and it has been ‘naked’ ever since. I was glad to see that, in spite of its fiery past, it has been keeping up with the times. Nowadays, it houses an environmental museum.
From there, we took the footbridge over to Notre Dame Island to see Circuit Gilles Villeneuve and the Olympic Basin. I don’t think the Oldies expected these venues to be chock full of athletes, but as luck would have it, the annual Esprit de Montréal Triathlon was in full swing that day.
The scale of the islands and of the Olympic venues is certainly impressive. We must have walked miles. Sure, the Olympic Basin alone is over two kilometres long. I could have bobbed along that lovely stretch of water all day! I thought that many of the structures looked rather past their best, however. I later learned that, due to a series of set-backs, delays and strikes, the entire Olympic project was a disaster financially, ultimately costing 13 times more than the original budget. The city only managed to pay off the debt 30 years after the event! It is no wonder that these venues looked a bit sad and sorry for themselves.
Her Ladyship had a more pressing issue on her mind. She was hungry, god help us all, and rather peeved that, in spite of the fact that thousands of spectators had turned up, there didn’t seem to be any catering facilities available. His Lordship searched all over in vain, eventually having to drag Herself away from the event altogether when she started drooling over the energy bars and bananas that were being handed out to the competitors. It felt like we’d walked a mini marathon by the time he finally tracked down a snack bar – all the way back where we’d started on St. Helen’s Island.
After that experience, Her Ladyship appeared anxious to stay close to food sources – which suited me just fine. Chinatown looked like it would fit the bill nicely, and the first restaurant I saw, ‘Mr. Fish’, sounded right up my alley.
The Oldies, however, looked rather shocked at the poor state of repair of this alley and, indeed, of the whole area, and even Her Ladyship appeared to lose her appetite. Sadly, I had to bid a tearful and fish-less farewell to poor old Mr. Fish.
The UQAM (Université du Québec à Montréal) area in the city centre, on the other hand, looked very promising on the food front, what with its dozens of quaint-looking eateries. As our visit coincided with the time of the rentrée – back to school time – the whole quartier was buzzing. Live music and street theatre added to the spirited atmosphere. The Oldies’ mood was doused somewhat by their rather poor choice of restaurant. Perhaps they’re getting a bit long in the tooth for student fare…
Back on the streets again the next day, the Dynamic Duo were very taken with the artworks on display in the area around the Museum of Fine Arts. There certainly was some interesting modern stuff dotted all around the place, although it was all a bit over my head. But at least my head is solid!
We had better luck on the food front at the Shoni Market, in the Shaughnessy Village. This annual Asian food festival promised to be a feast for the eyes, ears, as well as the tongue. The food certainly looked amazing and very, very tempting. After all the walking, however, the Wingless Wonders decided against eating on the hoof, opting instead to duck into a nearby Indian restaurant. They weren’t long in demolishing a feast fit for a couple of Olympians. Well, elderly Olympians anyway.
