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06/08/10
Well after spending the first night in the jail hostel (a hostel that used to be a jail) we set off to walk down to the Museum of Civilization. After I got us lost for a little while we finally made it to the museum and we spend a couple of hours walking round the exhibitions. The museum is all about how Canada was formed and the various people that help shape the country from the aboriginals to the government and police. We also went to the IMAX Theater to watch a 3D film about the Hubble telescope and space it was very interesting and cool. We then walked back into town to visit the Parliament Buildings that are very beautiful. We then spent a couple of hours in the hostel bar meeting people, chatting and swapping traveling stories which was a lot of fun.
07/08/10
Today we went to the Canadian Royal Mint to see how coins are made. The medals for the 2010 Winter Olympics games were also made here. Seeing the medals and how they were made was brilliant and it gave us so many interesting facts about the medals, such as all the medals when put together make a picture of a killer whale for the Olympics and every competitor got a scarf with the image on it so they could find their medal in the picture. We also got to hold a real gold bar which is worth £4.5 million and we also saw a $1 million dollar coin and there have only been five of these coins ever made. We then took a tour round the Jail hostel looking at the various cells and hearing all the scary ghost stories. The tour told us all about the different inmates that were hanged and how the conditions were so poor for the convicts. We got to go in the cells and read all about the cruel punishments that the inmates were subjected to before being released. We saw the gallows where only three convicts ever met their death which was creepy.
08/08/10
Today after the last few days in the jail it was time to head off to Montreal the next destination on our travels. Montreal is a French speaking city and neither Kirsty nor I speak French so it made for an interesting journey trying to get directions to the hostel. Once we arrived we had a little walk round the surrounding area just to get our bearings before having a relaxing night and an early bed. The very disappointing thing for us was we had to buy an umbrella because for the first time since we set off it was raining and raining hard :(
09/08/10
We spent today exploring the city and the many different areas that the city has to offer. The Old town was very beautiful with cobbled streets and classic French architecture. We were walking round the area soaking up the atmosphere and culture when we came across the magnificent Notre Dame cathedral. This beautifully designed building sits right at the heart of the old town and it has stood here for over 150 years. We then took a walk down to the water front, the harbour and through China town enjoying the sights, sounds and smells along the way. There were some interesting things going on in all these places and some interesting foods hanging in the windows of the shops in china town. On our way back to the hostel we got attracted to the giant games of Chess that was going on in one of the parks it was so funny to see these games going on. Chris tried to teach Kirsty the rules of the game, quite unsuccessfully!! We then went back to the hostel to cook some dinner and have a couple of drinks in the bar chatting with the other people staying there.
10/08/10
Today we headed out to the Olympic Park where the 1976 summer Olympic Games were held. It was quite an amazing sight with the tower above the stadium sitting at a 45 degree angle to the ground. This is the tallest tower in the world that does this. We then went into the swimming area and sat and watched the divers and synchronized swimmers practice. So many of the divers were very impressive doing front and back somersaults before entering the water with grace, however Kirsty and I enjoyed seeing the divers that made mistakes and belly or back flopped into the pool hee hee. After wandering round the Olympic park for a while it was time to head back to the hostel and get our glad rags on for a night out with the people from the hostel. So after a couple of drinks it was time to hit the dance floor and hit it we did (Chris tried to show some of his break dancing moves!!). After the dancing the group decided to go and get some food and there is only one type of food to eat in Montreal.........Poutine! (Chips, Gravy and Cheese Curds) there are various things that get put on it but that is the basic concept. So after some Poutine it was time for home and off to bed.
11/08/10
Today we went to the bodies’ exhibition, which is an exhibition all about the human body and how it works. However the bodies in the exhibit are real bodies of people who have died and they have donated their bodies to science. It was such an interesting experience with so many different artifacts showing how the body works and the different problems we can have if we over eat, drink alcohol or smoke along with other diseases. They also had a baby exhibit showing the different stages of development during pregnancy, this was freaky but very cool at the same time. I now see where the classic image of an alien comes from. The only rubbish thing about the exhibition was we were not allowed to take pictures so we can’t show you any of the exhibits. After this we went out to a local park to get some nice views of the city and see the Biosphere which hosts various shows throughout the year. Once we got back to the hostel and had something to eat it was time to head off to the Notre Dame Cathedral again for the light show. The show told us about some of the history of Montreal and how it was first founded and the various trials and tribulations it went through before it become a substantial town and finally a city. The cathedral has always been here in one form or another but the grand cathedral we were in was designed and build in the 19th century. It was amazing once they dropped the drapes and revealed the fantastic architecture and beautiful designs within the cathedral itself (see pictures). However we only have a limited number of pictures, note to self charge the camera at night. It was a certainly a brilliant sight to have seen and the light show was very impressive.
12/08/10
After getting up very early we headed out to the Four Ice Centre so that Kirsty could watch some figure skating being taught in Canada as it is widely known that Canada and America have the best facilities in the world. This was certainly the case here as it had four very large ice rinks with lots of skating practice taking place.(There is a video of a girl doing a double axel on a hand held harness!) It was time for TIMMYS!! Tim Hortons is the widely recognised coffee that all Canadians love! (The renowned Ice Hockey player Tim Horton set up a coffee shop many years ago as a place for him and his fellow players to grab some coffee after practice and it has become a very famous chain – you ask for a ‘double-double’! double cream and double milk in your coffee!! Delicious! ) And there was a wee sneaky donught in there as well! We then decided to hike through park Mont Royal and we also came across St Josephs Cathedral. We climbed the gazillion steps to get into the Cathedral but once there it was a very impressive sight!
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