Seein' Dah City

For Larger views, click on the images.

The Olympic Stadium = purty dang cool building, I say! My first glimpse was from the air and later on, we could see it across the water from the marina. Up close? the place is phenomenal. One thing I noticed, the older apartments around Montreal, many have spiral staircases outside, leading to the upper floors. I asked around as to why this is (there are reasons for everything), and I even accidentally found stuff about this very subject online - The Reasons: with the very COLD winters in Montreal (not that I know yet from experience, but I'm from IOWA, so I KNOW COLD), these staircases are built outside rather than waste interior space and high heating costs on having interior stairwells. They're very different, but they give everything a very unique syle and an artistic appeal, regardless of any practical argument. I still can't imagine trying to maneuver a couch up those stairs though, moving into an apartment, nor do I see how it could be safe at all to scale such stairs during an ICY, SNOWY winter?!?

Ahhh, and the subject of gasoline costs... For our trip, we had a Dodge Durango for our driving use/pleasure - a.k.a. - TOTAL GASOLINE NIGHTMARE! Gas is priced by the LITER in Canada - it was at least $1.14/liter while we were there = yes, DO THE MATH PEOPLE! Well OVER $4 bucks per gallon!?!? PLEASE NOTE: No where on this earth does anyone outside of the U.S.A. care or sympathize with our whiney woes over increased gas prices, unless it will effect their economy (which it does). AMERICA - QUIT YOUR BITCHING!!! AND JOIN THE REST OF THE WORLD IN THE REALITY THAT IS HIGH GAS PRICES!!! - Conservation is the ONLY answer and this is why I drive a Toyota Echo - 43 mpg on the highway, baby! and Yes, if I lived in a city with a semi-halfway decent Metro system, my butt would so be on it! I would catch up on my reading each and every day instead of suffering through HWY traffic, stuck behind a steering wheel, staring at someone else's bumper for an hour - I love NPR, but sometimes I just wanna GET TO WORK!!! Now, I must offer a correction here: I haven't yet really had to "suffer" through major traffic with any real regularity, but I'll be in Cali next year and so, knowing this? I'm already saving up for psychiatric care. On to the next subject...

See the church pictures angled up toward the sky? The facade of this church is all that remains of the original structure - if you walk around it, to the side, you can see plain concrete, red bricks and modern utility windows = a totally different building built right onto the back of the church front, now serving as a University building.

See the old building with archways and lots and lots of little windows, streaked with age? I took this shot (and several others, quite blurred) from the window of the car as we drove by - I just thought it looked cool. Have I mentioned I love architecture? Yes, I know I say I "love" a lotta stuff, but I do!

See the church with the big, black set of exterior doors? This church has an oh-so lovely "god-light" breaking down through the tree branches, down toward the inner courtyard. Our Defition of God-light: Sun rays that either streak down and/or break through tree branches or from above/behind parting clouds. My honey-man will even produce the accompanying "angels chorus" vocals whenever we see this kind of light ~ I giggle like mad whenever he does this.

The pic of me with the crazy whisps of hair blowing, was taken in the parking lot of the Metro railway station in Longueuil. On our 3rd day, after lunch with Grand-Papa, we took the angel boy-O to downtown Montreal via the Metro, so he could experience a subway system. It was there that we crammed ourselves together in a blk & white photo booth for a 4-frame photo strip of our silly faces... Also there, the angel boy-O later saw a color-shot photo booth and we had to spend at least 5-10 minutes explaining why he had to "be happy with what you have." And it was there that the angel boy-O saw a crippled and twisted man in a mangled wheelchair begging for food. With big puppy-dog eyes and a clear interest and desire to help out somehow, my honey-man's angel boy-O asked if he could please give the man some money. Watching him then run over to that man, to stand in front of him so earnestly, a look of fascination, pain and pity upon his little face, and then see him give what he had to give ~ I thought my heart was going to burst! Brings tears to my eyes recalling the moment.