TRAVELS (and more) WITH CECILIA BRAINARD: Montreal

Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Montreal - The French Connection!!

Bonjour,

The dish, Poutine, is big in Montreal, and here's a recipe:

Servings: 4

Units: US | Metric
1 quart vegetable oil (for frying)
1 (10 1/4 ounce) can beef gravy
5 medium potatoes, cut into fries
2 cups cheese curds

Directions:

Heat oil in a deep fryer or deep heavy skillet to 365°F (185°C).

Warm gravy in saucepan or microwave.

Place the fries into the hot oil, and cook until light brown, about 5 minutes.

Remove to a paper towel lined plate to drain.

Place the fries on a serving platter, and sprinkle the cheese over them.

Ladle gravy over the fries and cheese, and serve immediately.

~~~

Seriously, we only had Poutine once, although it's the National Food in Quebec Province (of which Montreal is the largest city.) Be vigilant! It may soon enter the Philippine market in no time at all, when Evelyn Morales Del Rosario moves to Manila. Remember you heard about Poutine for the first time from this blog.

Today, the four of us set forth and dared take the bus to get into the city proper. Montreal is an island with a lot of construction, and so we were actually glad not to drive into town because many exits have been closed off (Barre Sortie!).

The saying here is that Montreal has only two seasons. Can you guess?

No?

The answer is: Winter and Construction.

In town we got on the Hop-on-hop-off sightseeing bus and took the full two hour tour for orientation. Montreal swept us off our feet. The gardeners with us noticed the clean and well-landscaped gardens in full spring bloom. Truly pretty!

We rode through the old city with its impressive landmarks -- the cemetery, the Oratory, the Notre Dame Basilica and Cathedral, Westmount, McGill University, the Ghetto, the Papineau, and many others. Montreal shows wealth in its impressive huge old buildings dating from French and English days. There are modern buildings as well, blending nicely with the old buildings.

We like Montreal!

It has a lot of character, judging from the architecture, the organized zoning, the beautiful landscape, the solidly constructed edifices, all of which carry a strong French influence. We still have to visit the underground city but have heard it is quite an interesting place to visit. (Watch out for tomorrow's release.)

We lunched at the Sauvagine Restaurant at rue Saint-Paul near Saint-Vincent, a very trendy street with restaurants, shops, and further down there are street performers (clowns, musicians, and so on) -- very alegre!

After a bit of shopping, we walked to the Basilica Notre Dame and were awed by the midnight-blue colors that dominate the interior. The ceiling has this dreamy blue with gold stars. And the feeling in the basilica is most serene and conducive to prayer. In the back of the main altar is a smaller and newer altar that is also worth a visit, so don't forget to check that out.

We had wanted to do more things today but after Notre Dame and visiting the square in front, it was time to return to Nun's Island where we are staying.

We ended today with a sumptuous dinner prepared by our hostess, Evelyn, who had the best spread of salad, sliced steaks, sausages, cheeses, smoked salmon, various flavored baguettes, wine, and cherimoya. (We feel our waists thickening by the day!) Let's not forget the chocolate goodies that were served after dinner.

Tomorrow, we will have more stories, so stay tuned.

This blog entry is written collectively by the five of us: Chit and Albert Acayan, Guia Lim, Cecilia Brainard, and Evelyn Del Rosario.

Au revoir until tomorrow from Montreal.

tags: travel, tourism, Canada, Montreal, Cecilia Brainard

Cecilia Manguerra Brainard

Cecilia Manguerra Brainard's official website is ceciliabrainarddotcom. She is the award-winning author and editor of 22 books, including When the Rainbow Goddess Wept, The Newspaper Widow, Magdalena, Selected Stories, Vigan and Other Stories, and more. She edited Growing Up Filipino 1, 2, & 3, Fiction by Filipinos in America, Contemporary Fiction by Filipinos in America, and other books.. Her work has been translated into Finnish and Turkish; and many of her stories and articles have been widely anthologized. Cecilia has received many awards, including a California Arts Council Fellowship in Fiction, a Brody Arts Fund Award, a Special Recognition Award for her work dealing with Asian American youths, as well as a Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate, 21st District, and the Outstanding Individual Award from her birth city, Cebu, Philippines. She has lectured and performed at UCLA, USC, University of Connecticut, University of the Philippines, PEN, Shakespeare & Company in Paris, and many others. She has served in the Board of literary arts groups such as PEN, PAWWA (Pacific Asian American Writers West), among others.