Jim and Kim's Travels: Treasure Hunting in Montreal, Quebec

I was talking to my brother in August, when he commented on me going to see Pink in Boston. I mentioned that she was playing in Montreal in November, and before I knew it, tickets were booked and a new adventure was planned.

We had our first snow of the year and it did look rather pretty on our early start to Montreal.

The sunlight on the trees was so pretty.

Beautiful farmland in Quebec...it turned out to be a gorgeous day.

The jet trail looked like it had landed at the Olympic Park stadium. You can see the tower of the stadium (pretty much deemed a white elephant) in the background. It has not had a main tenant since 2004 when the Expos left. The tower itself was not completed until 10 years after the Olympics!

Trying to catch a picture of the theme park, La Ronde.

My brother, Chris, and his wife, Sylvie. I think they're excited!

Arriving in Montreal with the Jacques Cartier bridge in the background.

Having dinner...joining us on the left is their daughter, Nika, who wasn't about to turn down a road trip to see Pink. It was great to spend time with them.

It was after dinner that I realized my brother, who is a photographer, is also a "treasure hunter." He had a list of things to find in Montreal, which sounded like great fun to me.

After dinner, a little stroll to find the Leonard Cohen mural on Crescent Street. It took two muralists and 13 assistants to create the 10,000 square foot replica of a photograph taken by Cohen's daughter. Nika does not look cold!

You will easily distinguish Chris's photos from mine. His are in focus and in black and white.

We had a good sleep, and set out the next morning to find his other "treasures." First up, a milk bottle water tower on top of a building. It was built in 1930 on top of the Guaranteed Pure Milk dairy plant.

This is a very cool building nearby, which houses boutique condos. How I see it, and...

How Chris sees it...

This spooky looking house is Fulford Residence. It opened its doors in 1864 as a home for single women who were arriving in Montreal to work as governesses and school teachers. It remained a residence for women until it closed in 2021 due to low occupancy and COVID.

My take of the Grey Nuns residence...Chris and I laughed at this. Mom had a thing with the Grey Nuns. I think she might have had a few experiences with them during nursing training.

This was a lovely property...it was a French cuisine restaurant for over 50 years before closing in 2018. The chef and owner, Micheline Delbuguet, arrived in Montreal at the age of 32. She continued to work in the restaurant until her death at 87 years of age. It is now closed.

The Bar-B Barn, a Montreal institution since 1967, was known especially for the ribs. Sadly, it was also a victim of COVID, closing in 2020.

We all were puzzled over the sign outside...rolling tables? clackers? Turns out it is to let firemen know that there is a "Siamese coupling" fire hydrant nearby.

Our trek continued past the Bank of Toronto...

Past this cool cat mural...

And this grizzly bear at the Columbus cafe...

Next, it was a stop at the Dollar store for hats and gloves. It was cold! Thanks for the jacket, Nika! I was ill-prepared for outdoor treasure hunting.

Now, we were looking for a mirrored section of the subway.

And Chris managed to find it.

Success!

Nika has been posing for her dad for years. I think we were more interfering with him at this point.

Yup, that's pretty cool.

Go, Nika!

Back on the subway and looking for our next treasure...

I was never sure what we were looking for, but was happy to tag along. Exploring was fun! Statue of Queen Victoria...

And apparently this is what we were looking for...this architectural style dates back to the beginning of the Paris metro in 1900 and was installed in Victoria Square in 1967.

This statue is called Taichi Single Whip, and is one of 19 statues by the artist, Ju Ming, around Montreal.

Lovely photo of Sylvie...

And a pensive one of me!

Found this fancy Lamborghini...

It was time to stop for a coffee and to get warmed up...

A latte with honey...great idea, Nika. The chocolate chip cookie was the size of the plate, perfect for sharing and delicious!

And then we were back underground on our next quest...a curvy corridor. Sylvie would ask anyone for directions, which was awesome. But it was usually met with blank expressions. No wonder! We weren't exactly looking for easy things. One guy looked at the picture on my phone, and then we had a hard time getting my phone back from him!

But, success once again...we ain't no quitters!

I would definitely say Chris got a better angle!

With that latest discovery in the bag, it was back into the light of day.

Love the pink colour and the cat ears on the KPMG Tower. It has also been referred to as the Batman building.

This mural, by Ruben Sanchez, is located in the Mont Royal district, and was part of the 2017 Mural Fest.

We were in an Uber on our way to Chris's next destination...lunch! The Mont Royal Cross...by law, no building in Montreal can be higher than this.

We had great discussion about this statue of Nike, which had something to do with Nika's name. However, upon a bit of research, this is the George-Etienne Cartier Monument with the winged Goddess of Liberty. Ah well...it was a good conversation!

And arriving at our destination...Wilensky's.

This is what they are known for...a grilled salami-from-beef and bologna-from beef sandwich, with mustard on a kaiser roll, pressed flat from the grill. The mustard is compulsory! We had no sooner sat down before this was slapped in front of us.

The only thing made in-house are the syrups for the sodas. She was making up Chris's egg cream soda, which contains neither egg nor cream. He said it was delicious.

The prices through the years...

It was really delicious! A side of dill pickles and we were good to go.

The rules...shades of the Soup Nazi. No special for you!

That was fun!

Family 🥰

It was the day after Halloween...

I'm not even sure where Chris saw this...he would do a disappearing act only to emerge again behind us.

Also a landmark, the Fairmont Bagel...making bagels since 1919.

Strolling past the pretty Parc Saint-Michel...

This wasn't even on Chris's list, but he knew that Chez Claudette had been featured on You Gotta Eat Here on the Food Network. Not fancy, but apparently very tasty. Mural of Maurice "Rocket" Richard of the Montreal Canadiens on the side.