A Taste of Montreal at the Jean Talon Market

Montreal has several farmer's markets, but one of the largest is Jean Talon where there are even stalls open 24 hours a day to accommodate shift workers and students. While the "farm to table" movement in the U.S. is just catching on, it's always been a way of life here and all of the food at the market is grown within 50 km of the city. Even better, all of the stallholders put out samples of their wares so you can try before you buy. One of the most popular stalls is the "corn lady"...not only does she sell her fresh-from-the-stalk ears every day, but she cooks up ears of corn that you can purchase and has tubs of butter and salt shakers on hand. It was truly the best ear of sweet corn I have ever had...summertime on a cob...so tender and wonderfully messy with all the dripping butter. I could have eaten a dozen of those, and in fact, the vendor makes over 15 dozen ears a day for local corn lovers.

Bagel Smackdown

New York prides itself on having the best bagels on the planet, but ask any Montreal resident and they'll tell you that Fairmount Bagels are the world's best circle of dough. Since 1919, this local bagel boulangerie has used the same wood-fired ovens to produce 18 varieties of the breakfast favorite. I had one straight from the oven...crusted in sesame seeds and so hot I had to break it open and let it cool before taking a bite. The dough is much lighter (more of a bread consistency than its NYC cousin) and is sweetened with honey. I scarfed the whole thing down in a nanosecond with no additional condiments, and if I lived in Montreal, I would be a regular customer. My mouth is watering as we speak, just thinking of the possibilities of the other 17 varieties I didn't get to taste. www.fairmountbagel.com

I Can See It But I Can't Get There

The biggest challenge about staying at the Hyatt is figuring out how to get inside. It sits on the corner of Sainte-Catherine , the longest shopping street in the city, and is directly across from the Museum of Contemporary Art and the main festival plaza. During the jazz festival a couple of years ago, we sat out on the hotel balcony and had a birds-eye view of the main stage.

However, because of its location in the heart of the city and its situation on the side of a hill, you enter through the garage and take an elevator up to the lobby level. If you choose the wrong door, you'll end up either in a neighboring restaurant or the underground shopping mall that runs underneath most of Montreal. In fact, you can take an elevator from the Hyatt lobby level to the shopping mall and can sit on the terrace and look through the large plate glass window at the fountain that soars to the roof and the shoppers scurrying around on the levels below you. But once you get the hang of which elevator to take, this is the premier location for festival-goers. Since most of the performers and crew stay here, it's like having a backstage pass. www.montreal.hyatt.com

Ha, Ha, Ha

I just returned from a weekend in Montreal and the annual Just for Laughs Festival. I love this city for its urban energy and cultural diversity... Canada's version of New York you might say...but with the sensibility of a Parisian neighborhood. And while Paris may be the City of Light, Montreal is the City of Festivals. Throughout the warm spring and summer months the streets are alive with jazz, comedy, and art and the Place des Arts is festival headquarters.

Bright green and red banners decorated with the festival mascot, Victor, were hanging from every post and the streets were teeming with local performers and visitors. This year's headliners at the 10-day event included Bill Cosby, John Cleese, Caroline Rhea, Martin Short, and Whoopi Goldberg to name just a few.

And if you're attending any festival in Montreal and want to be in the middle of the action, you'll want to stay at the Hyatt Regency directly across the street from Place des Arts. I rode the elevator with Caroline Rhea and David Greer and eavesdropped on insider conversation among some of the other stellar comics who were sitting next to me at lunch. www.hahaha.com

Just For Laughs

If this Metro entrance reminds you of Paris, that's because it IS from Paris: a gift to the city of Montreal where urban energy meets French charm. Ricky and Mark are back home, and now it's my turn. I'm leaving at the crack of dawn for the Just For Laughs Festival and I can't wait! (www.hahaha.com). By this time tomorrow night, I will have shopped in the incredible, miles-long underground retail paradise beneath the city streets and I'll be on my way to see Whoopi Goldberg, one of the festival's incredible headliners this year. On Saturday, I'll head to the old city of Montreal for some French pastry and browsing at my favorite Provencal linen shop, and then catch more comedy at the Just for Laughs street festival. Au revoir...

Going Vertical

When Ricky and I travel together, one of the first things we do is seek out the highest points in our destination. We love cable cars, funiculars, tall buildings with observation decks, panoramic elevators, mountaintops and in short, anything that gives us a birds-eye view of our surroundings.

Quebec City is a great place to go vertical. From the cliff top where the Chateau Frontenac is perched to the Citadel and the old city walls, there are tons of opportunities in the city to get a 360-degree view.

Ricky and Mark rented a car and headed east of the city to Montmorency Falls for a spectacular vertical vacation experience. You can take the cable car to the restaurant at the top and watch the water rushing down to the river. In the winter, the adventurous residents of Quebec ice-climb the frozen falls.

Quebec City is easy to drive in, with great roads and good directions to attractions available at the official tourism website www.bonjourquebec.com

Location,Location,Location

The Auberge du Tresor sits right at the edge of Place d'Armes and is within walking distance of most of the Old City's top attractions. At night, views of the Chateau Frontenac are spectacular.

There's No Such Thing As A Free Breakfast

Ricky and Mark stayed at the charming Auberge du Tresor, which is in a great location across the street from the Chateau Frontenac and on the Place d'Armes. They had a fabulous view of the Frontenac and the park from their dormer window in Room 27 and the hotel staff went out of their way to accommodate them. They were originally going to have to switch rooms midway through their vacation, but the staff shuffled some reservations around so that they wouldn't have to move. They loved having breakfast each morning in the cafe below, looking out the window at the park. There was some confusion about whether the breakfast was included in the room rate, since they were given coupons to use. Whereas many hotels give out breakfast coupons when the meal is included in the rate, in this case the "free" breakfast coupon cost $10. Mark, who is a food and beverage manager at a popular resort in Florida, readily admitted they should have read the fine print on the coupon, but in the end, both of them were happy with the bountiful breakfast spread and to-die-for location of the Auberge. www.aubergedutresor.com

Get Down with Quebec City's Nightlife

Quebec City is a creative mecca for artists. Throughout the summer, the streets are filled with musicians and costumed mimes, face painters, and circus performers, giving every day a festival feel. As a matter of fact, the founders of the famous Cirque du Soleil hail from this province and Ricky and Mark got to see their free street performance, which they said was absolutely incredible.

Always on the hunt for the quirkier aspects of any destination, Ricky discovered what he calls "the holy grail of mirror balls". And although he and Mark didn't do much clubbing, they did take in several shows including the Proclaimers at the Summer Music Festival.
http://www.infofestival.com/index.php?lang=en&page=festival

Never Travel Without A John Lennon T-Shirt

In the years that Ricky and I traveled throughout the world with his rock band, we discovered a strange truth. The grungiest guy in the band, who looked like he probably had contraband in his guitar case, never got stopped at any security checkpoint, customs, or passport control. We are convinced it was because he was wearing a John Lennon t-shirt.

Unfortunately, neither Ricky or Mark thought to wear their John Lennon shirts, and they were detained by passport control when they first arrived at the airport. Ricky called me from the holding room and I tried to reassure him that the Canadian officials are just very thorough about security procedures. I always get the full search treatment every time I fly in or out of that airport, but everyone is always courteous. I've learned to always pack my nicest underthings since everyone in the security line is going to be seeing them.

But, as you can see, they did make it and got a gorgeous day to explore the Plains of Abraham and the Citadel.

Stairway to Shopping

Paris may be the City of Light, but Quebec is the City of Stairs. From the upper level of the city near the funicular, you can access the boutiques and cafes of the lower city either on the funicular or by walking down the appropriately named Break Neck Stairs. Both deposit you at the head of the main pedestrian-only shopping area called the Quartier Petit Champlain.

The streets are filled with mimes, musicians, and costumed characters and lined with tony stores selling high-end clothing, pottery, and Native American crafts. This is a great place to grab an outdoor table and people watch, and is generally packed with throngs of window-shopping tourists during the summer.

Charming Out the Wazoo

Ricky and Mark spent their first few days in Quebec City just walking around and savoring the European ambience. Ricky loved the flowering window boxes that line the houses, cafes, and restaurants throughout the old city, but lamented the hilly terrain. There is a price to pay for those fabulous cliff-top views, but look at it this way: it's the natural stairmaster. You can enjoy the scenery while you're getting your workout and then stop and have a drink at a charming bistro. Who wouldn't rather do that instead being in some smelly gym?

The guys took in some of the best of the Summer Music Festival shows and saw the Cirque du Soleil street performance among other things. As soon as I get Ricky's photos, I'll share more of their "first-time Quebec" experiences and observations.

Vicarious Vacation

My best friends, Ricky and Mark, are visiting Quebec City this week for the first time and I'm so excited for them. Ricky and I have been all over the world together, traveling with his band across the U.S. and to Japan, and on personal trips driving through Europe in a rented VW.

Ricky is also a better photographer than I am, so he'll be providing me with some great new pictures for this blog, along with his first-timer impressions of one of my favorite cities. He and Mark are staying at Auberge du Tresor on rue St.-Anne, right across the street from the fabulous Chateau Frontenac where Churchill and FDR held secret meetings with other world leaders during World War II.

They're also right on the Place d'Armes with tons of cafes, shops, and historic sites within walking distance so it's a great location to immerse yourself in the old city. Although they experienced a travel hitch or two on the way, and arrived in the rain, when I spoke with them yesterday they were just getting ready to go exploring so I can't wait to find out what they discovered.