The Lighthouse

Cave on Flowerpot Island

Back at the cottage we chilled in the warmth of the end of the day. We sat around another fire as the darkness gathered around us, playing 20 questions and watching the spectacular sunset as the sky rotated a kaleidoscope of colours before descending into darkness via deeper and deeper shades of gold.

Sunset in Warner Bay

Val imitates the guard outside the Governor General's residence

Rideau locks

Son et lumiere

We all made our way up towards the citadel and high town but found it crowded; there was a carnival procession winding its way through the streets. We decided to return early the next day.

On Wednesday morning we took the car into town and parked near the harbour. We walked up through the old town to the funicular and disembarked outside the Chateau Frontenac Hotel, walking through the lower level of the hotel which had a shopping arcade, to the old fort and round this to battlefield park with the heights of Abraham. We had a good view over the city and river from here. Back to the town, via the parliament buildings near which there was a large size Inuksuk as well as statues of former luminaries, the French influence in the architecture was unsurprisingly very strong. You could be in any old French town. We wandered the quaint centre for a while taking in the sights – one alleyway could easily have been on the right bank in Paris. Then re-embarking for our trip to Montreal.

Our hotel was in a good, pretty central location. It took us a little while to find it, located above a nice Indian restaurant, the owners of which ran the hotel. The rooms were nicely furnished and comfortable, although rather on the small side. After settling in with a quick drink, we went for a walk into the restaurant area to find somewhere to eat. After some debate we settled on a nice place called the Three Brewers, which had some nice brews of their own. There was a good menu with something for everyone and we all had a good meal.

We were woken at about 3am by much banging in the hall. Some lads had obviously been out on the town and had too much to drink, coming back and shouting at one another and banging their doors. It went on for too long to be funny, then as I was finally dropping off to sleep, there was a knock on our door. In my befuddled state I thought it may be Ollie, so I got up and answered it. A young man in a state of some intoxication asked for his shoes back. I thought I had misheard, so asked him to repeat it. He wanted his shoes; I told him I didn't have his shoes which caused him to explode with 'You're xxxxing lying!'. Briefly, I thought of discussing the matter with him, then realised I didn't need to and cut him off in mid flow by slamming the door in his face.

Day 2 in Montreal started with a split of forces, with one group going shopping and the other going to the tourist office to find out about caleche tours. We were waylaid by a stern woman on entry, having a ticket thrust upon us with instructions to wait until called. We explained that we just wanted some information about caleche tours (like where they start) but she instructed us that her colleague would give us the information we needed then resumed her stance behind the desk waiting for the next victim. After a wait of about 15 mins we were called and told that the tours started in the old town, the rates were set by the city and were published for all to see at the head of the queues. There were 3 tours; 30 mins 45 mins and bespoke.

While waiting for the shopping party to rejoin us, we walked around the green space in front of the office. There was a memorial for the boer war and a replica of the Lion of Belfort, commissioned by Sun Life whose offices also face the square. The Sun Life building was apparently where the crown jewels were held during WWII; it was also apparently the largest building in the city for many years. Whether one of these facts is significant in the relation to the other is unknown.

Once together again, moved on to the old quarter and stopped to have a look at Notre Dame. From the outside it looked much like any other cathedral but inside it was astonishing. I found myself with the familiar dual pull of admiration for the craftsmanship, imagination, history, the deep richness of the scene and the puritanical; was this really done for the glory of god or was it done for the glory and comfort of the incumbent – wouldn't the money have been better spent and god be more glorified by the church alleviating the suffering of the poor of the parish? Having said that, if the money had been spent on the poor, the edifice would not be still stunning people some 200 years later while many generations of poor would have come and gone, the benefit to them largely invisible. Just as wealthy people over generations have used their wealth to self-advertise by supporting artists – but if they hadn't, we wouldn't have had the great wealth of art to enjoy today; an interesting paradox.

After grabbing a quick bite of lunch, we found a caleche and took a tour with Kris, Dave and Val. Whenever we went over some cobbles, the caleche rattled like a snare drum and I jiggled around much to the amusement of Val. It was interesting though Montreal doesn't have quite the same wealth of history or atmosphere about its old town as Quebec. The French influence is noticable but much less marked here than in Quebec; it is its own city. My impression is that the real heart of Montreal is in the newer parts, where its vibrancy, energy and optimism appeal strongly to the young. Certainly around the university area, where Sue & I stopped for a coffee after viewing the statue of the crowd it is palpable.

Taking our leave from Kris, Dave & Val at the end of the tour, Ollie, Ang Sue & I went on a hunt for somewhere suitable for our end of holiday meal/Canadian 60th Birthday celebration. We saw several possibles, but then found Gilly's and the choice was made.

Ollie and Ang then left us to get ready for her meeting at the university and Sue & I wandered off to do a little retail therapy go to look at the aforementioned 'crowd' statue. This fascinating piece is quite provocative and it struck me forcibly that at one end the people are portrayed optimistically, while as you move further down, man descends into violence, anarchy and despair. An interesting and insightful perspective on the nature of the masters of this planet.

I booked a table at Gilly's and we had an absolutely fabulous evening there; the quality of the meals were superb – and everyone was defeated by the generosity of the portions. Dave had organised a birthday cake, which was presented at the end of the meal. But we were too full to enjoy it, so had it packed up to enjoy the next day. Poor Dave had to be careful of his alcoholic intake as he was driving us back to the hotel. There were no such constraints for me.

On Friday, feeling a little fragile, personally, we packed up and hit the road for the long trip back to London with Dave and Ollie sharing the driving. While we unpacked and then re-packed ready for our trip tomorrow, Kris got us a lovely meal and afterwards we toasted the holiday and friendship with a glass of champagne. Then bed for our last night in Canada, after a wonderfully exciting and full holiday, courtesy of the Nyhout family, to whom we are deeply grateful.

written by  rickandsuejohnson on August 8, 2008 from London, Canada
from the travel blog: Two Thumbs up for the Canucks
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At the airport we had to say goodbye to Ollie; it was as tough as always despite knowing we would be seeing him again in a matter of weeks. We had had a marvellous time and it was coming to an end.

It didn't take long to clear through security, though my checks took a little longer than Sue's for some reason. Once in the departure lounge, we thought we had better eat though neither of us felt like it much.

Transat boarded us a bit early; it was still raining hard and as we all settled down the Captain announced that because of lightening strikes near the airport, the baggage handlers had had to be stood down in the interests of safety, so as our hold was still open, we could not take off until they returned. It only took about 15 minutes but it seemed quite a while. Watching the aircraft take off in these conditions was interesting; the spray coming from the undercarriage would put several juggernauts to shame – with take-off speeds of over 100mph you have to admire the technical qualities of the tyres that allow this not to mention the skill of the pilots in dealing with the difficulties inherent in the situation.

We had good seats immediately aft of the business section and had plenty of legroom, although it was still a little difficult to get sufficiently comfortable for sleep because of the narrowness of the seats.

After a trouble free and pleasant flight with a lovely lady who had emigrated 40 years ago sitting next to us, we landed about 6 hours later at Manchester. It was a bit strange taking off mid afternoon, flying through the night and landing in daylight, all within 7 hours. It took some time for our bags to come through but the concourse was relatively empty at 06:30 and it didn't take us too long to go through controls and out. They were trialling a new passport recognition system for chipped passports like mine, presumably to speed up passenger throughput. Needless to say it didn't work well for me and Sue was waiting for me on the other side, the human intervention process being quicker!

It didn't take too long to get to the car and waiting for the bus in relatively warm and sunny conditions was a bit of a novelty. We had a good trip home, collected Dad and then went to bed for 2 hours (as recommended by the lady we had met on the flight to combat jet lag) before getting up and cooking Sunday dinner.

written by  rickandsuejohnson on August 11, 2008 from Shrewsbury, United Kingdom
from the travel blog: Two Thumbs up for the Canucks
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We found Canadians are incredibly generous and hospitable; with the exception of the security guard at the Prime Minister's residence and the Customs Officer at Toronto, we were made to feel welcome everywhere.

There is a perhaps surprising definite language difference. Last year down under, we noticed a few idiosyncrasies and some unique local vocabulary but broadly, we seemed to be speaking the same language. Canada has followed the same route as its neighbour, the US in using a number of different words to those we would normally use. Highway and sidewalk are two well known examples, but others would include GPS instead of satnav, purse instead of handbag and bathroom or washroom instead of ladies, gents, toilet or loo. While the differences are small, usually self-resolving and amusing, it meant that conversation did require more energy than usual. (Though it was useful to have an expert at translating from one to the other in Val, to hand.) It is also well known that ordering food or drink at a fast food outlet is a far more complex than in the UK because of the range of options that are invariably available and the sms type language employed to get through the menu without keeping the next customer waiting too long. We got caught on this early on when ordering a tea being asked 'baggin?'. Not being familiar with the expression we asked the girl to repeat the question – 'baggin?'. We had heard right then but were no nearer being able to answer until Ollie translated - 'Do you want the tea bag left in the cup?'. Those early orders were certainly possible only because we had guides!

In addition to brewing a number of lagers, Canada also brews their own ales which are very good; although for my taste, there is too much emphasis on freezing the living daylights out of some of them. I found that Rickards Red was very refreshing, especially as the glass warmed a little and allowed the flavours to develop. The Honey Brown was exactly what it claimed to be with a lovely rounded and full body. The Unibroue Trois Pistoles that we had in Quebec was an exquisite Barley wine with an extraordinary chocolately flavour that worked – and carried on working for some time afterwards! In Ontario, the LCBO (liquor control board of Ontario) operates its own stores and controls locations that sell alcoholic drink; I'm sure that this works well to control alcohol but less sure how any state monopoly benefits the consumer. Having said this, prices didn't seem exorbitant.

Although Canada hasn't escaped the fuel price rises, petrol is about half the cost in the UK, diesel is not as common as here and as we found down under last year, engine sizes tend to be larger and gearboxes automatic.

At a national level Canada has decided to publish everything in both English and French, to which the anglophonic part adheres in stereotypical style. Of course with typical gallic panache, the provincial government of Quebec has decided that they will ignore national government and issue everything in only French, officially – although pragmatically, many businesses are making provision for anglophones. Clearly the Francophones are worried that their language is under threat – and not without some justification. However, I think it sad as a broadly francophilic person that the typical french stick is used instead of the typical gallic charm. It seems to me that there are other better means of achieving the preservation of the french language and traditions (leading to cultural richness) within the greater Canada with a sympathetic anglophone community than by separation and alienation.

written by  rickandsuejohnson on August 31, 2008 from Shrewsbury, United Kingdom
from the travel blog: Two Thumbs up for the Canucks
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