Montreal so far

So we've been living in Montreal for about 6 months now, although, actually it still feels more like I've been regularly vacationing there with the amount of time I've spent working in Saskatchewan. Genevieve could probably give a better idea of what daily life is like in Montreal. What I can do is share a bit of how I've found the city, and province, so far.

I spent a week in Montreal when I was 20, so before this move, like London, I had some idea what to expect while Genevieve was going into it completely blind. At least when you tell people that you are moving to Montreal everyone has something great to say about the city, or at least they've heard good things and want to visit. That was a nice change from the sympathetic looks you get telling people you are moving to Alberta.

Montreal is a very beautiful city, the European influence is more obvious than anywhere else I've been outside Europe, and it does make it an exciting place to be even when you’re just running errands. The Old Port is the most obvious example but the entire city really reflects this style. I really love how much of the city streets are lined with 2 and 3 story rowhouses with the wrought iron staircases. It’s a stark contrast from the urban sprawl of most other cities in Canada to see so many people actually living IN the city they choose to live in. The endless miles of cookie cutter homes and 2 hour commutes does not do it for me, and living in the Plateau in Montreal is the perfect alternative to that.

I read a stat that said a person could eat at a different restaurant every day for 13 years in Montreal, and I believe it. The population density means that in every neighbourhood there are countless options for dining, shopping and entertainment. There are so many bars and restaurants within a 5 minute walk from our door that we won’t even scratch the surface. The city parks are lively, ice skating and tobogganing in the winter and picnicking with beer and wine in the summer, especially the Sunday phenomenon of Tam-Tams with thousands of people gathering at Mont Royal park for drum circles, larping, circus training and general lounging in the sun. It’s so pedestrian friendly that weather permitting you can walk or ride a bike to pretty well anything you need to do, I think I drove or took the metro maybe 5 times before the snow came. When Chris and Phil came to visit in September we rode the bike share Bixi’s all over the city, to skate spots and bars, without ever riding more than maybe 15 minutes.

Unlike the “Festival City” we moved from, Montreal actually has a ridiculous amount of events going on year round. Every time I walked around a corner this summer a street would be blocked off for another event I hadn't heard of. We only got here in August last year so I’m really looking forward to seeing what else the city has to offer this summer. Montreal considers itself to be mentioned in the same breath as London, Paris and New York, and while I wouldn't agree with that if it means they keep trying so hard to be relevant and exciting that’s fine by me.

One of the main reasons I was excited to come here was to have a home base on the other side of the country. It’s pretty cool to have so many new options for road trips, which we've already taken advantage of with a couple trips to New York. I've wanted to visit NYC for a very long time but I never expected I’d first see Manhattan by driving straight into it. I absolutely loved both my trips there and can’t wait to go back. I can see why people would draw comparisons between New York and Montreal, they’re both very exciting and vibrant cities with endless options for entertainment thanks to their population density. One of my parallel lives could definitely be living in New York.

We've also gotten to ice skate the Rideau Canal in Ottawa and explore the old walled city in Quebec. There are a number of new cities to see near us, as well as friends in Toronto, and family in the Maritimes. I also bought a Backroad Mapbook for Southern Quebec that looks like there will be a lot of options to get out and explore some lakes and ‘mountains’ north of the city.

Now I couldn't write this blog without venting some frustrations about Quebec, but I’ll try to keep it brief. I moved here with an opinion of this province and that hasn't changed. I don’t agree with a province that has little to offer the country, aside from Olympic athletes, making so many threats and demands, especially the spoiled brat mentality that it wants to move out from its parents’ house and keep the credit card. I don’t agree with a government exploiting its own racism and oppressing minorities to push for separation because they feel their culture is oppressed. I don’t understand why the road signs at Tofino’s national park, over 5000km from any New France claim or French speaking Canadian, are in French but when I’m 1km from Ontario’s border important road signs pertaining to construction or lane closures are not in English.

As a white male growing up in BC I have been fortunate enough to never really experience prejudice, it’s been a very strange and eye opening experience to live where there is the chance that somebody is going to be a total asshole to you for no reason. Of course this is not the norm, but it’s happened on enough occasions that it isn't exactly rare either. I actually kind of appreciate getting a small idea of what it feels like to have someone’s pre judgment affect how they treat you, but at the same time it would be nice to deal with people that didn't treat you like shit for being Anglophone. It’s true that you can get by in Montreal without French, but there is a huge difference between the fluent English you get from a McDonalds employee and the broken English and snarky attitude you get from a government employee when you’re trying to sort out your vehicle registration.
I do appreciate how hard it must be to preserve their language in an English speaking continent. Quebec wouldn't be as foreign and exciting if it wasn't for the language. I think the important thing for me is to stop expecting this place to feel like Canada, it may have the same money but the similarities dwindle after that, a trip to the US feels like going home.
They’re also fighting a losing battle so it would just be petty to make a big deal about it, I give it another hundred years, tops.

Growing up in BC I always ranked the provinces by their natural beauty, but after living in 4 of them now I am starting to appreciate that there is more to a province than scenery. I know I've talked a lot of shit about my time in Edmonton, but there is something to be said about a province that has lots of well paying jobs and opportunity for a good quality of life, and the fact that income tax and sales tax are so much lower is not something to be ignored. I still have no desire to settle in Alberta or Saskatchewan, but I can at least see now why people do. The people in Edmonton and Saskatoon are also the most genuine I've come across. Vancouver is full of yoga hipsters, Montreal is full of artiste hipsters and Calgary is full of cowboy hipsters. People seem a lot more concerned with image in those cities, but there is no bullshit in the cities that aren't as cool. People are just themselves, for better or worse, they aren't trying to impress you. I still like BC best, it will always be home, but I am really enjoying gaining a little more perspective.

It’s no secret that I wasn't ready to leave London and moving to Edmonton was kind of a shock to the system, I was still feeling a lot of wanderlust. Montreal is the furthest you can get from home in Canada and for now that’s still what I’m after. I might rant occasionally about Quebec but in reality it’s none of my business, I don’t even work here. Montreal itself is a fantastic city, in my opinion the best city in Canada, and this is the perfect time in our lives to be here.

-Justin