October 10th turned out to be a beautiful Thanksgiving day. The streets were packed with people out for the day and there was a definite holiday air about the city.
In the afternoon, some old friends who had been out in the city for the day stopped by and filled our apartment with smiles, children, noise, and visiting. Dad and mom and Kelsey and Julia also showed up around that time so we were about fourteen people squashed in here:}
After our friends headed out, we started making supper. We rented this apartment unfurnished so all that was here when we moved in was the fridge. We decided that seeing as we have no oven, stove or microwave to heat or warm things it might be better to skip the traditional Thanksgiving and go with something more simple. So we decided on crepes instead and dad and I made them together on the plugin griddle while everyone else got the toppings ready. I didn't mind, a Thanksgiving spread isn't really my favourite food anyway. No pumpkin spice lovers, I don't even like pumpkin pie.
Keenan arrived for supper around 5:30 with a surprise guest, Liv! She was with him the first few times we met him and we haven't seen her in a long time so it was so much fun to have her over too. They brought us some lovely cookies they had made that day.
Supper was a lively affair, everyone ate too much and we all had a really good time catching up and getting to know each other better.
Tuesday was a catching-up day for us. I cleaned the house (you know how stuff looks the day after a party) and we got the dirty laundry together and headed over to the laundromat just around the corner from us to do our washing. We loaded up four washing machines and then entertained ourselves by reading Space Boy comics while we waited.
In the evening we went for a long walk and stopped at a bakery where we shared meat pie for supper. Of course, we couldn't leave all the fruit pies there so we took home a rhubarb one as a souvenir.
We have really been hitting the bakeries since we got here, but we don't have this chance all the time! We want to get up early one morning and go bakery hopping while the bakeries still have a lot of fresh goods. But how will we plan our route? There is way too much good food here. I knew this before we came here, but living here and walking all the time helps you see more and you realize how many places you actually missed while driving past. There are double the amount of places to eat than you realized.
Wednesday we decided to explore our nearby streets more, so we walked up Mount Royal Street in the opposite direction than we usually go. We found a few gems. One place called Tres Normale that Julia and Kelsey had told us about, a shop where they do screen printing right in the shop on hoodies, t-shirts, pillows, bags, etc. If you wanted a truly unique and well-made Montreal memento, this would be a great place to stop. Tourist traps usually offer mostly junk with a few nice things sprinkled here and there. They are also expensive and who really feels like wading through all the shirts that say things like, I came to Quebec and got drunk , just to finally hit upon one that sports a maple leaf with the inscription, Montreal, that costs fifty dollars?
This place was so cool. Not too expensive and actually Montreal. T-shirts sported screen prints of the classic houses with all the stairs, a bike tire locked to a parking meter post, powerlines, highway signs, etc. All the prints are done in simple black or white and they look like they come from photos. If you've been here before or are visiting now, or have already left Montreal but still love it, you can find some great treasure here. Their website is tresnormale.com.
By the time we got quite a way down the street, I noticed that Gary seemed to be dragging. I asked him if he was ok. Well, he admitted that he felt like he was getting a bit of a sore throat. And that's when I noticed, so was I. We decided to call it a day and head for home. On our way back we stopped at the grocery store for apple cider vinegar to help stave off the cold that was getting a hold on us. Too late though. Within a couple of hours, we were both sneezing, stuffed up, and feeling pretty rotten. Not so rotten that we couldn't laugh at each other now and then though.
Thursday we slept in and tried to rest up. While Gary was so stuffed his head felt full of wool, my nose was literally dripping.
In the mornings when I get ready for the day, I often hear the neighbor on the other side of the bathroom wall getting ready too. While I lean into the mirror to apply face cream, he leans toward me into his mirror while shaving. Sometimes we brush our teeth together, or run the taps at the same time. I could hear him on the other side of the mirror this week sneezing and blowing. I guess he caught the same thing. It hit us with so much force and so fast that we wondered if it was covid. I'm glad it's turned into the common cold.
We were both feeling a bit better so we decided to go out and explore. We bought chocolates, found a yummy doughnut shop, and sat on a bench to drink bubble tea from Deux Saisons to let a dizzy spell I was having pass.
Coming here was a really good thing for us. The first week we were here was fun but exhausting. The physical effort of getting out as well as the mental effort of just trying to stay afloat above all the sensations of dizziness and nausea are taxing beyond anything I've ever experienced. But this week, the dizziness is abating as well as the sick feelings. Where I would have experienced a throbbing almost painful amount of dizziness for the day, I now have unpleasant dizzy spells that I can get under control and make disappear by simply taking a break and sitting for a bit. This is a huge step for me because there was pretty much no way to get rid of it before. It's like my brain is beginning to gain confidence and is realizing that, going out isn't going to hurt me. Being dizzy for a bit is ok, we have this under control. I figure, the more I go out the more it will click in the hidden chamber of my head that this is ok, and the less dizzy I will become.
On our way back to the house, we came across a family from Tunis who had locked their keys and also their one-year-old in the car. The baby was calm, strapped into his car seat quietly entertaining himself. Father was getting help from a taxi driver, little sons were curiously looking on and Mother was not doing so well.
We milled around close by for quite a while trying to decide how we could get a hold of a coat hanger to slide inside and unlock the doors. The taxi driver meanwhile was attempting to smash the front passenger side window with a very small wrench. Finally, Gary walked up and told them that we didn't live far and he could go get the hangar from home to help out. So, off went Gary with the taxi driver and I sat on a bench to wait. Things went from bad to worse. Mother beat her fists against the window, tried to pull the door handle off, shoved her weight against the car, and rocked it on its tires. After some time she sat back and began to cry bitterly. I think she was a little hysterical and I felt really bad for her but I wasn't sure what to do. Hug her? Let Father take care of her? In the meantime, he had flagged down a pick-up truck with three young people inside and asked if they could break the window. They had a golf club in the bed of the truck and seemed willing to help if they could although a little uncertain as to if they should really just smash the window or not. I told them Gary was on the way, but in the end, they opted for the window-breaking idea.
With an extremely loud smash, the window was shattered. The surprised baby screamed lustily and instantly a crowd of frightened and curious onlookers gathered. I called Gary and told him he could come back.
Saturday was a beautiful day so we packed up some boxes of edible mushrooms we had picked before moving here and headed for some of Gary's regular customers in the city to see if they were interested.
We stopped at Nestor's to grab a tea before continuing onto Saint Laurent Street and heading in the direction of one of our favourite spots to deliver, Menu Extra.
It was a hive of activity when we got there, with tables being set up, and chefs running. But there was still time for hellos, handshakes, kisses, and a little catching up. Franky, Camillo, and Alexi were all there, they are three of the four owners of Menu Extra and the people we know the best. It's funny where chefs will pop up. For example, one week you'll see someone at Le Mousso and the next week he will have quit and will now be working at Menu Extra. A lot of them know each other. Franky (Francis Blais*) and Massimo are very good friends and worked in the same kitchen together for a while. And when Franky competed and won Top Chef Canada in 2020, Massimo was his friend of choice in an event where you had to invite someone to come cook with you.
This year it is Camillo Lapointe-Nascimento** who entered Top Chef Canada. The show and contest were actually filmed in summer but has only started to air in the last four weeks. Every Monday, Gary and I glue ourselves to the computer and read what happened next. So far Camillo is still in and seems to be doing well. The suspense is killing me!
After we visited Menu Extra we split ways. Gary went to Alma and île Flottante to sell the mushrooms while I went into a paper store to look for supplies for projects for the business.
Later that evening, mom sent me a message to see if it worked for us to get together on Sunday. Of course!
Sunday was a beautiful sunny day. I decided to do the local thing and picked up croissants from the bakery on the corner and tea from the cafe just a few steps from the bakery. We listened to church while we made a mess of the table with our flaky pastries.
We went walking after brunch and came back to meet mom and dad (and Toast!) who had arrived at the house. It was such a nice afternoon we went out walking again in the nearby park before coming home to a fondu supper. We all enjoyed each other's company a lot and had a fine evening together.
*Interested in Franky and his story? Look up Francis Blais, Menu Extra, or Top Chef Canada Season 8 to find out more.
**Want to follow Camillo and see if he wins Top Chef Canada this year? Follow his progress by looking up Top Chef Canada Season 10. New updates every Monday or Tuesday.
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