Author: Manon of MTL

Categories
Experiences French Musings and Observations Places

The French Flip

After six months in California laboring to reduce our load of possessions and make an all-encompassing list of them for the Canadian government (required for settling in Canada), weeks of getting our new tenant installed and repairing newly-discovered defects in the ADU, and days of cleaning, schlepping, and shuffling all our household and personal items around to pack and make way for the caretaker, we finally got to sit still for five hours on the plane flying us to Montreal for the summer.… [Read More]

Categories
History, Culture, and Politics Places

“The Little Homeland”

photo: Lise Gobeille

Hey kids, we’re heading back to Montréal next month, and we’ll be living in a new arrondisement (borough) called Rosemont-La Petite Patrie (“the little homeland“). According to one source, it acquired the second half of its name from a novel that was adapted into a popular TV show:

The name of this district comes from a soap opera, broadcast in the 1970s, created by Claude Jasmin: La Petite Patrie.

… [Read More]
Categories
Experiences Musings and Observations

Home Again, Jiggity Jig

What a weekend! Our grueling travel day back across the border was endured, the post-COVID-booster-and-flu-shot side effects weathered, and now it’s Monday and back to business for us both!

So much business–mountains to climb, tunnel through, and raze for new foundations.… [Read More]

Categories
Experiences Musings and Observations Only in Montréal

Au Revoir

We’ve been packing up and cleaning for several days now, but today is the massive push to pull out and fly home. I’ve been sad and wistful; said goodbye to one of my Montréal Facebook friends who became an IRL friend and got teary, and today feeling keenly all the “this is the last time” thoughts crossing my brain like shooting stars of sentimentality.… [Read More]

Categories
Experiences Only in Canada Places

Ought We To Ottawa?

We took our exploratory trip to Ottawa this past weekend. It was productive; we got a sense of the town and found some viable neighborhoods if we decide to spend our next residency stint one province over.… [Read More]

Categories
History, Culture, and Politics Only in Canada

National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

"Orange Shirt Day 2018" by BC Gov Photos is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.

Tomorrow, September 30th, is a statutory holiday in Canada called the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

This holiday is meant as a day of reflection on Canada’s colonization of its indigenous peoples and the devastating impact of the Indian residential school program on indigenous families and culture.… [Read More]

Categories
History, Culture, and Politics Only in Quebec Pictures

It’s On

Early voting started this weekend, leading up to Election Day on October 3rd. We’re relieved it’s almost over, but some Québécois are having fun with it.

Categories
Experiences History, Culture, and Politics Musings and Observations Only in Quebec

Fall Is Here + Updates

Technically the equinox isn’t until Thursday the 22nd, but last week Montréal definitely shifted gears into greyer, cooler, start-to-hunker-down mode. Probably just the shorter days, but it seems as if the arms of the sky are closing after the wide-open embrace of summer.… [Read More]

Categories
Experiences Only in Quebec Très Intéressant

It’s Magic!

"Mago // Magician" by eva.pébar is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

YIL that the world’s biggest magic competition is held in Québec! It’s run by the FISM (Fédération Internationale de Sociétés Magiques) and over 100 professional rabbit-pullers-out-of-hatters compete in eight different categories each year.… [Read More]

Categories
History, Culture, and Politics Only in Quebec

Vote Ramp

A couple Mondays ago I walked up to the local épicerie to do the weekly grocery shopping (I like to go early in the morning, when our nightowl party street in The Village is quiet).… [Read More]