Day 2 - As we had no tickets for concerts tonight JB and I were to meet up with Coglero who was driving in from Ottawa to meet us for "cinq a sept" and then dinner at Gibby's and golf on Friday. We decided we would spend the morning/afternoon walking through Old Montreal checking out the shops and going for lunch at Le Jardin Nelson (above photo). The restaurant is situated in Place Jacques Cartier, in Old Montreal. At the top of the square is a statue/column erected to Lord Nelson. The Nelson Column, installed in memory of Admiral Horatio Nelson. Dating from 1808, it was erected by the English merchants of the city. The 8 foot statue is the world's first Nelson commemorative and precedes that in London by 33 years. To many it represents a reminder of British imperialism. JB likes to go to Le Jardin Nelson each time we are in Montreal as he does have a fondness for their crepes. Their terrace is a very pleasant place to sit and relax and have lunch. They always have live jazz music playing in the back terrace. Check out their website for some great photos and of course their menu.
With lunch over we ventured out into the streets of old Montreal. I made my usual stop at Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel. Each time I go to Montreal I make a stop at this old church. It was founded in the 17th Century by Marguerite de Bourgeoys. She was one of the founders of Montreal. In the 19th century, the chapel came to be a pilgrimage site for the sailors who arrived in the Old Port of Montreal; they would make offerings to the Virgin in gratitude for her "good help" for safe sea voyages. There are model ship votives that hang from the ceiling of the chapel that sailors had made as offerings. It is incredible to be in this church in the evening when it is a bit darker and the ship votives light the chapel with their candelight. The ceiling of the church is painted in muted lavenders and I could just sit in there all day and look around at the paintings and that ceiling. Trivia - Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel is mentioned in Montrealer Leonard Cohen's famous song "Suzanne"
The Chapel is located across from Bonsecours Market.
This heritage building has a long history and was once going to be Canada's Parliament building. The site also played host to the Théâtre Royal where Charles Dickens and his band of amateur actors staged a production. It is now Headquarters of the Conseil des métiers d'art du Québec and the Institute of Design Montréal, the Market houses 15 boutiques featuring top-quality Quebec creations: crafts, fashions, accessories and jewellery, design items, reproduction Quebec furniture and more. I picked up a nice bracelet made by a local artist and JB and I then continued our walk through Old Montreal and headed up to Ste Catherine street the mecca for shoppers in Montreal. We headed back to our hotel to meet up with Coglero and we headed out to the Winston Churchill pub on Crescent street for drinks. We had 7pm reservations at Gibby's. Now, those of you who know me, know my fondness for Gibbys. It is a steak house that is housed in an 17th century stables. They are known for their steaks. It is a must on a visit to Montreal. JB has a funny blog about our cab ride to Gibbys. Coglero had never been to Gibbys and was not disappointed. JB had made our reservations the week before we left and I was worried that we would end up in the main dining room as I actuall prefer the downstairs Salon D'Youville where you are normally seated if you don't have reservations. I love it down there. You sit in a room surrounded by stone walls that are hundreds of years old.
Dinner over we ventured out into Old Montreal and found a nice terrace and sat and watched all the folks walking through old Montreal along with the tourists in the Caleches
We then headed back to our Hotel as we planned on an golf game on Friday morning.
No comments:
Post a Comment