Where's Waldo? (or Chrissy and Jill)

July 4, 2002, America's 226th birthday. What better way to celebrate our fine nation's independence than to visit our friendly neighbors up north? O, Canada! Montreal's 23rd annual jazz festival, held from June 27 to July 7, provided to perfect excuse to check out a new and exciting city. (Well, I had been there for one night in 1998, when I crashed on the couch of a McGill frat house, but it was new for Beth, Chrissy, and Jill--my three traveling companions.)

Montreal Jazz Festival

The four of us displayed our patriotism by boarding Chrissy's new Grand Cherokee for the 380-mile trek north of the border. Besides a 150-minute delay at customs, we had a relatively uneventful trip to our hotel--the Crowne Plaza on Sherbrooke and Berri. The trip gave us just enough time to grab dinner on rue St. Catherine, Venus and Mars, and head to the Métropolis for Medeski, Martin & Wood--with guests Trilok Gurtu and Charlie Hunter for the second set. The addition of Hunter's sweet jazz guitar gave MMW a richer, more complex sound, and it was a refreshing change from the usual DJ Logic appearance.

I didn't bring my camera to the show, but you can view my MMW photography by clicking here.

We had a most pleasant Independence Day and were looking forward to the rest of the long Canadian weekend--especially with our ol' friend Ernest Herskowits to give us the hometown tour. We spent the first few Saturday hours being tourists: roaming Old Montreal, checking out the waterfront, and cruising the magnificent Notre Dame, below.

Montreal's Notre Dame - outside
Montreal's Notre Dame - inside

Ernie picked us up on the corner of Bleury and Sherbrooke in his green stationwagon, and he led us off to the far reaches of the city for our tour. Our first stop, Saint Joseph's Oratory of Mount Royal, gave us a grand bird's-eye view of Montreal. Below left, Ernie and Jill trot down the steps of St. Joseph en route to the oratory's gardens.

Ernie and Jill by St. Joseph's L' Oratoire Saint Joseph du Mont-Royal
Below left, Beth and Jill pose with a golden goat. Below right, Ernie shows the three American girls his hometown . . .

Part of Ernie's grand gastronmical tour included stops at several of the city's finest eateries. As a native New Yorker, I was wildly impressed with the quality of Montreal's bagels. And when Ernie dropped us off at a yummy (and bizarre) restaurant with a delightful garden in the back, I was in heaven. I ordered a sandwich with cream cheese, cottage cheese, peanut butter, raisins, bananas, and honey. Strange? Yes. Fun? Yes. Delicious? Sort of. We're enjoying ourselves, below.
Beth and Chrissy are Obviously Sisters
Jill and I are Acting Stupid
 

Click here or below to see some more photos of our trip to Montreal '02. (Jazz Fest/night pictures)
More Montreal Photos

Go Home!