Montreal is one of my getaway weekends. It's an escape! I can speak French, eat crepes at "Creperie…read moreChez Suzette, and soak up the ambiance on Rue Saint Jacques in the Vieux-Port de Montreal. Old Town Montreal is like stepping into a European city. It's picturesque neighborhoods and buildings dating back to 17th-19th century surround you at every turn., Cobblestone streets with flower gardens everywhere, history & science museums, shops you will not find in the States and a promenade along the Saint Lawrence River add to the Old Town Montreal experience.. This is where Montreal had it's beginnings with the fur trade in the 1600's. From Old Town Montreal you can access the Gates of Chinatown, the Latin Quarter and Mount Royal. These are neighborhoods with their own charms. In the summer there are boat tours, ziplines, a giant Ferris wheel and a man-made beach at the base of the clocktower.

We were here to attend the Festival de Street Food Festival and enjoyed the variety of options!…read moreThere was an entry fee to enter into the festival. They were many different types of cuisine, desserts and drinks available. A DJ was present as well. In the flip: Since this was an outside food festival, there were port-a-potty's available that ran out of bathroom paper so it helps to check the potty's guest and cone ready - have your own available in your purse ladies stocked for occasions like this. (Me 1 - port-a-potty = 0) There were water buffalos and soap available to wash your hands. It was a nice area for the festival. We had beautiful weather that day. There were various activities. There was a Ferris wheel and we saw someone do the bungee as well. Neat shops were around the port. Nice spot.

While walking from Old Montreal/the Old Port to Westmount recently, my kid and I walked through…read moreGriffintown and Ste-Henri and the outskirts of downtown. We encountered so many new city features and funky enclaves, it's so interesting to see all the changes in the city and to be present during the ever-evolving city scene. One of many cool and new features we stumbled across was this enormous sculpture/art installation titled "Dendrites", created by Montreal artist Michel de Broin and installed in 2017. The oversized work is located on Rue Nôtre-Dame at the intersection of the Bonaventure Expressway (or the local road, Blvd. Robert Bourassa). If you're walking or driving by this intersection, there's no way you can miss this piece, it's so large, and it resembles actual dendrites (for those of you who've studied anatomy and physiology). It appears to be two organic, freeform staircases comprised of weathered steel. The distressed patina of the metal along with the twisting shapes are reminiscent of tree trunks rising up and branching out from the ground. I love the interactive nature of art installations like this. To me, this is what makes them successful. I love that one can walk up the branched staircases integrated in this work and get various perspectives of the urban landscape surrounding us.

There's a Yelp entry for The Illuminated Crowd? I feel that Art is un-ratable, but not everyone…read morefeels this way, for example, my middle school art teacher who gave me a poor grade on my papier-mâché masterpiece (and in essence deterred me from going into The Arts. That's ok, I think I serve the world better as a scientist than as an artist anyway). But enough about my artistic potential or lack thereof, let's get back to this art installation. So The Illuminated Crowd is apparently the most photographed piece of public art in Montreal. The sculptor is Raymond Mason and material is resin. It was created in 1985. It's a crowd of people, and at the front it looks like everyone is staring and focusing on something in the distance, and as you go towards the back of the sculpture, things start to degenerate and people start attacking each other and some are on the ground wounded and mutilated. What's it all about? Well, that is up to you, the observer, to determine, no? The plaque at the base states that the artist is depicting "the fragile nature of man" and "the flow of man's emotion through space" but I feel that with art, the meaning is also up to the spectator, thus may mean different things to different people. I personally find this work haunting and creepy. I also see it as a sad commentary on humankind and of our potential for hurting each other. It's not the most uplifting of art pieces, but worth a view if you're in the area. It's on McGill College near de Maisonneuve.

Very moving and thought provoking - every human emotion in a concise space in the center of…read moreMontreal, Do not miss and do not overlook.

"Walking slow down the avenue Through my old neighborhood"…read more(Jackson Browne) Old Montreal is just a fantastic place to experience It's the oldest neighborhood of the city (1642) and is world renowned for its cobblestone streets, stunning architecture, and European charm. Key landmarks include the Notre-Dame Basilica, Bonsecours Market, the Old Port, and Pointe-à-Callière Museum. There must be hundreds of statues, memorials, monuments, and pieces of public art on every corner. As for shopping and dining, I think you'd be hard-pressed to find a better city for that. Boutiques, artisan shops, patisseries, restaurants, galleries, and cafes are everywhere. We had a crepe lunch at Chez Suzette, breakfasts at La Fabrique de Bagel and Le Petit Dep, a Polish dinner at Stash Café, and a late snack of coffee and pastries at a different Le Petit Dep. The quality of the food, and the smiling welcoming staff was consistently high wherever we went. Old Montreal is clean, safe, and devoid of panhandlers or vagrants. As we walked through the streets and visited the shops in Old Montreal, it was very cool to listen to all of the different languages being spoken -English, French, Russian, Chinese, and Lord knows what else. Merci and Au Revoir Montreal, we had a wonderful visit.

Vieux-Montréal, or Old Montreal, is one of the top tourist destinations in the city. A hub for…read moreshopping, dining, recreation, and scenery, I found myself here multiple times during my trip soaking in the aesthetics. The majority of attractions line Rue Saint-Paul; you can spend a fair amount of time browsing the shops or grabbing a bite to eat. One of the biggest attractions here is the Notre-Dame Basilica, as well as the Old Port which has several carnival rides, food trucks, and a beach. The area is also filled with historical architecture, monuments, and statues. I noticed they offer walking tours of the area if you are into that, but I opted to explore on my own. One of my favorite features of Vieux-Montréal is the fact that some of the streets are closed off to cars, so you can stroll along with peace of mind. Definitely take the time to visit here, especially if it's your first time in the city.

Great Jazz festival that happens every year late June to early July…read more Artists from all over the world come to several stages to perform for free or for a fee in some cases. This year, we saw many great artists along with thousands of other music lovers from all over. Metro Place des Arts or St Laurent for easy access.

Let it be known that you're going to Montreal in the summertime and the next thing you'll hear is…read more"Are you going for the jazz festival?" I was not. Regardless, when I realized my trip coincided with the festival I researched artists, venues, and dates only to come to the realization that a whole lot of Montreal's jazz festival takes place for free at multiple venues in a fairly concentrated area of the city. Assuming you can find the schedule (at staffed kiosks in the area) and locations and understand the program (no joke, it was a challenge), you can learn when and where everyone is playing and identify the free performances. Multiple nights on end I found myself at large outdoor spaces filled with folks there to enjoy the free offerings. Was it jazz? Let's just say that jazz is in the ear of the beholder because not once did I experience music that I consider to be jazz though that seems somewhat beside the point. Free live music is almost always enjoyable and this is no exception. The outdoor spaces are clean, the sound is good, and the large crowd is considerate even as they come and go. Were I returning to Montreal during another summer I'd most certainly plan my visit to coincide with the jazz festival and again attend several events.

These two statues that are opposite sides of the park are an interesting artistic take on some of…read morethe tension that exist between English and French Canadians. This artwork cleverly incorporates the surrounding buildings in its statement. Both the Notre-Dame Basilica and the Bank of Montreal play a part. The former represents the religious influence of French Canadians and the latter represents English financial power. When looking at the statues pay attention to the emotions of the man and woman. Don't forget their pets. There are many things going on with the choreography of this art piece with characters, but also the surrounding physical and cultural environment.

What a wonderful way to learn more about the city! We stumbled across one of the visuals and looked…read moreinto it to see what it was about. We also ran into a volunteer for the exhibit who was very helpful and provided a map. After that we went seeking them out at various times in the day or evening. The exhibits took us around corners we might have otherwise missed and helped us look at buildings - and those who occupied them - in new ways. I've since recommended this to every friend who is visiting Montreal.

My wife saw advertisements for this tour so we decided to walk around to some of the stops and…read morecheck it out. The visuals are stunning and the tour itself is extremely entertaining and enlightening. I have honestly never seen a tour of this kind so it really blew me away. There were a few times when we were taking this tour that we ran into volunteers (or people who work for the company who created this tour) asking us if we had any questions about using the app on our phone or if we had any questions about the tour itself. I thought this was a great touch. The one small complaint I had was the amount of time it took to download the audio at each stop within the app. There has to be a way to compress the audio file to speed up the download time.

I came here for the first time for the comedy fest in Montreal and I loved this theater! Extremely…read morespacious, there's helpful + friendly staff at every corner and staircase, and comfy seats. We were a group of 26 (you heard me) and we had no troubles finding our seat or grabbing something in the lobby bar before the show. It was so cool to be sitting watching rising stars doing their thing! Not to mention knowing all the iconic comedians who have been part of this very comedy fest in the past. Also it was nice to be sitting inside since some of the comedy shows were on the main stage outdoors.

The Place des Arts is an entire complex dedicated to visual and performing arts. Three great…read morecultural organizations make their home here. Place-des-Arts is a beautiful art venue nested in the middle of Montreal and a great spot to hang out as there is always something to see, do, or hear in there. It is the largest cultural and artistic complex in Canada. Place-des-Arts is Montreal's central entertainment complex. This fun entertainment area hosts many concerts, plays, festivals, parties, and many other events (Opera, theatre, or Broadway musicals).

This is probably the best Contemporary Museum I've visited. My friends and I have a tradition that…read moreevery year during the Jazz Festival we would travel down to Montreal. We've been doing this for about 5 years and this year we decided to go to this museum. I've been to many museums in Boston, NYC, and LA. However, besides the Broad in LA- this museum is very well curated. What I love the most is that many of them are interactive and keeps you curious. I highly suggest you visit museum when you have a chance!

It will be my pleasure to update this review at some future date, several years from now…read more As a fan of contemporary art I was looking forward to this museum only to learn - too late - that it's under renovation for the next couple of years. The site I was directed to (in Montreal's underground mall) is a tiny sample of their usual offering, so small in fact, that paying anything to enter struck me as an utter money grab. (My entry fee was waived as I had the Passport MTL). Even with essentially free admission for me, what was on view here was less than compelling and I had to work hard to engage my interest. My recommendation is to wait until they're back in their permanent home. Finding this place wasn't worth the time it took but, of course, I thought I was headed to the real deal, not a temporary exhibit.