Montreal Metblogs » mont_christelle

Canadiens finally won one at home…

mont_christelle — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 03:21:04 +0000

And it’s the one I went to… Cheering for the opposite team: the LEAFS! But yea, both teams really played well, a nice fast-paced game with so many great shots on goal (some that turned into goals, mostly for the Habs… 4-1 being the final score)!

A faceoff…

The final score board…

Pictures (c): Christelle

Shopping and cinema

mont_christelle — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 14:16:01 +0000

I arrived in Montreal last Friday, and until now I’ve done mostly my Christmas shopping! The verdict: not so bad… It’s all about choosing the right moment to go shop! Saturday and Sunday are nuts in malls, especially in the afternoon. I went to the Salon des Métiers d’Arts on Sunday at opening time and it was already packed! Yet… Going to shop on a weekday morning, the shops are empty! So that’s my favourite time. No bumping into anyone, no waiting at a cash register, the attention of workers… PERFECT!

I also went to the cinema twice… I saw Atonement at the AMC (really good) and Fred Claud at the Scotia Bank (a good low-thinking entertainment movie).

I’m running out of ideas of cheap activities to do… I thought about visiting the exhibition A Victorian Christmas at the Sir George-Etienne Cartier National Historic Site of Canada, but I don’t know if it’s worth it… What else is there to do that doesn’t involve shopping or cinema in this town a few weeks before Christmas? :)

Montreal as a tourist

mont_christelle — Mon, 03 Dec 2007 20:04:58 +0000

Since September I am no longer a Montrealer. I accepted a job offer back in my little home village, Blanc-Sablon. It’s where I will live until June. Still, I am excited about coming back to Montreal on holidays! For example, I’ll be there from December 7th to the 16th.

In this time, I am planning all kinds of activities… It’ll feel strange to be a tourist in the city I’ve grown to know and enjoy for the past 5 years!

I will…
-Go see the fireworks at the Bassin Bonsecours on Saturday December 8th (they are on every Saturday of the month).
-Go do some serious Christmas shopping. I can’t wait to see the neatly decorated malls!
-Enjoy a OSM concert, the Christmas Oratorio on December 12th.
-Go out with friends at a good resto… Here in Blanc-Sablon, there’s only one, a Pizza Delight. I can’t wait to be in the city and eat out and enjoy all of the great Montreal restos!
-Go see a hockey game, the Habs agains’t the Leafs on December 15th.

I’ll report on my activities and my week in Montreal as it happens…!

For now, still got to wait a week more… 3.5 more days of work and I’m off to the big city!

En marchant vers le travail

mont_christelle — Thu, 16 Aug 2007 09:14:06 +0000

Brian Hugh Warner en spectacle ce soir au Centre Bell!

mont_christelle — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 16:33:48 +0000

Il fait chaud!

mont_christelle — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 23:04:02 +0000

Ma mère au téléphone ce matin me conseille de ne pas trop sortir aujourd’hui… Il fait 40°C à Montreal me dit t’elle, (directement de Blanc-Sablon, sur la Basse-Côte-Nord, où il fait maximum 20°C l’été)! En effet, le site d’environnement Canada affiche une mise en garde pour Montréal: chaleur et humidité accablantes. Comment passez-vous une journée si chaude?

Il y a les endroits climatisés: centres d’achats, cinéma, bureau au travail…
Il y a les plans d’eau: plage du Parc Jean-Drapeau, piscines municipales…
Il y a les apartements à l’air climatisé ou ceux qui n’ont que des bonnes vielles fans.
Il y a aussi crever de chaleur dehors! Je pense à ceux qui travaillent dehors, tels dans la construction ou le nettoyage de la ville… Pauvres gens!

Présentement il fait 33°C, mais on ressent 42°C avec l’humidité. Demain il devrait y avoir de la pluie et la température redeviendra plus normale! Vivement l’été à Montréal!

Formula 1 Grand Prix weekend overview

mont_christelle — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 14:23:07 +0000

As André’s post mentionned, one of the highlights of this weekend’s F1 GP was Kubica’s crash. But really the whole weekend was amazing!

On Thursday I enjoyed the Open Pits day at the track. It’s an amazing chance to see mechanics work on the cars and get ready for the weekend. It’s also possible to see some of the drivers, for example we spotted Heidfeld, Sato, Albers and Sutil! On Friday it was the Free Practice day with two sessions. On Saturday the qualifications were exciting! Hamilton getting the pole made lots of fans happy. On Sunday the race! Full of excitement! Crashes, Safety Cars outing (the fourth of which was booed by the crowd in the grandstands), Black Flags for two drivers, etc. Really entertaining race.

F1 with Montreal city view, photo by Christelle.

Apart from the action on the track there was also lots of other activities! The Budweiser area with a concert stage and “babes”, the Honda World area where Asimo the robot came out to say hello…

Also I salute the work of everyone who make the race possible… For example the doctors who were amazing with Kubica, the police cadets working on the Cosmos bridge for the safety of the pedestrians, and so on.

See you all next year!

HMCS Halifax

mont_christelle — Sat, 21 Apr 2007 23:54:03 +0000

Today the attraction in the Old Port certainly was the HMCS Halifax, a Canadian Navy ship. It arrived in Montreal on Friday, leaving Tuesday morning. And it opened it’s deck to visitors! It’s quite impressive to visit such a boat.

If you’re interested, the boat and crew are welcoming visitors again Sunday April 22 and Monday April 23, from 13h to 16h.

Wii

mont_christelle — Sat, 24 Mar 2007 19:19:35 +0000

Apparently the Nintendo Wii is the new big thing. It’s barely impossible to get one, demand is huge and manufacturing low. The revolution comes in the wireless controller, which detects motion. So if you’re playing a tennis game, you use the controller as a tennis racket!

Today I was walking around in downtown shopping malls. I saw this Wii triout stand at Centre Eaton. People were enjoying different game, getting tips from pro Wii staff, etc. I liked this kid. Out of all the games available, he was playing the original Mario Bros! The game I grew up with. So cute…

I don’t know until when the stand will be there, but for gaming fans that haven’t yet had the chance to play with the Wii, now is your chance!

Underground Race, how’d it go?

mont_christelle — Mon, 26 Feb 2007 16:07:38 +0000

Me after the race, the finish line area, one of the friendly volunteers.

Well! The day after the Underground Race, my leg muscles are in pain! OUCH!

It was quite nice! I arrived at the Carrefour at around 7h10 and there were already many runners there! Everyone getting ready, stretching, preparing for the 5 kilometers! At 8h30 the race started.

The 1st kilometer went fine! Then I got tired a bit! I combined running with fast walking. At the 3rd kilometer I got some weird thing in my throat. In French we say “avoir un chat dans la gorge”. Something there, even if you cough it doesn’t go away! Grr! The 4th kilometer I was happy! Only 1 more to go! I can do this! I didn’t mind my time, my goal was to participate and do it for myself.

Along the way I enjoyed seeing my city! I ran in some places I’d never seen before. Like the upper levels at the CDP, wow! So pretty! And I didn’t know we had a piece of the Berlin Wall in Montreal!

Finally I arrived at the Complexe Desjardins! The finish line! YAY!

654 on 674 runners, total time 41:21.7, pace 8:17, 78 on 82 in my category of age (women 20-29) and 243 on 257 women. All of the results here.

I waited a bit for the medals presentation but apparently they were having technical problems compiling all of the results, so it was delayed. I decided to come home!

Matthew made a neat little video of runners at the Eaton Centre…