We knew it would be fun, a great long-weekend getaway, but we hadn’t expected Montreal to be so … well, enchanting. Don’t get me wrong. We certainly encountered the unexpected and downright quirky in Montreal, including but not limited to Darth Vader, Predator, and some very creative and expressive street art. But overall, this city [...]

It’s known the world over as both the “city of festivals” and the “city of a hundred steeples,” with enough character and culture to compete with any European city. But did you know that Montreal, located in the Canadian province of Quebec, has quite the rich history as well? We’ll be the first to admit [...]

New York has its corned beef. Philadelphia, its cheese steak. But what to eat in Montreal, you may ask? That’s easy — smoked meat! What exactly is “smoked meat” ? Smoked meat is a Montreal tradition dating back well over 80 years. It’s pretty simple, really. It’s a kosher-style deli meat that is salted and [...]

Celine Dion got married there. Pope John Paul II celebrated Mass there. But pop star romances and papal visits were not exactly why we wanted to visit Montreal’s Basilique de Notre Dame. Located on Rue Notre Dame in the heart of Vieux Montreal (the Old Town), the Basilica of Notre Dame is one of the [...]

How awesome was this??? Two 300 pound steel statues of some of my favorite intergalactic characters? What kind of store was this? I looked up. Above the door in bold yellow letters standing against a green background: Surplus International… So while I can’t claim that army surplus stores usually catch my fancy (and certainly I [...]

This must be what it feels like on the top of Everest … Slowly and stiffly, I placed one frozen foot in front of the other, frosty gusts of wind zipping past my ears. I had never been so cold in my life. Other random thoughts began running through my mind: “I wonder what frostbite [...]

It’s like love… yes… difficult to define… easy to recognize. Yes, every city seems to have its own character… something that makes it truly special. While difficult to put your finger on, it is still distinguishable nevertheless. New York has that energy. Cairo has the feel of the present colliding with an illustrious past. And [...]