Montreal - Quebec: old churches

As we walked the old areas of Montreal and Quebec, we much enjoyed visiting some impressive old Catholic churches.

Here are the ones we visited, in order:

1. St. Patrick's Basilica (top three photos) - we read this opened in 1847, focused (as you might guess) on the Irish immigrants (who apparently were flooding Canada as well as the US). It is "Gothic Revival." We encountered this church while on our very long walk on Sunday 9/20. We saw several very beautiful churches, but the experience here was our favorite.

Our timing was pure luck - encountered the last half of a Latin Mass. One forgets how solemn those old phrases sound (especially compared to the prosaic (or worse) stuff now ascendant) -- fiat voluntas tua; sed libera nos a malo; Corpus Christi; Agnus Dei. Etc. Also, it was a sunny day and the Gothic style permitted the place to be absolutely flooded with light. And neat artwork of the North American martyrs (Isaac Jogues et al). Old copper roof staining the exterior walls. So this was delightful.

2. Notre Dame Basilica (Montreal) (photos four through nine counting from the top) - the wikipedia article has a good summary: "The church's Gothic Revival architecture is among the most dramatic in the world; its interior is grand and colorful, its ceiling is colored deep blue and decorated with golden stars, and the rest of the sanctuary is a polychrome of blues, azures, reds, purples, silver, and gold. It is filled with hundreds of intricate wooden carvings and several religious statues. Unusual for a church, the stained glass windows along the walls of the sanctuary do not depict biblical scenes, but rather scenes from the religious history of Montreal." It was a sunny day, but somewhat dark inside. I am a big fan of the scenes of the French church in Canada. This place packs in the tourists. There is a wedding chapel in the back - quite large; unfortunately destroyed by fire in the 20th century and restored with hideous 20th century artwork.

The basilica was just a block or two from our hotel so we had the pleasure of walking around it from all different directions at all different times of day and night.

3. Notre-Dame-des-Victoires Church (second- and third-last photos) - this one is in the Place-Royale, a great spot in old Quebec. Sits across from a small bust of Louis XIV, who supposedly chipped in a few louis in support of the project. It was built way back in 1688, with some connection to an earlier building that Samuel Champlain put up. Much smaller than the other churches mentioned here. We read that it is a restoration - the old church was leveled by British cannon balls during the famous "Plains of Abraham" battle in 1759. So how neat is all that? The square is very picturesque; the artists focusing on the tourist trade do charming little paintings of snow scenes with children enjoying winter in the Place-Royale. Maybe 10 minutes from our hotel, we walked past it constantly.

4. Notre Dame Quebec (last photo) - stopped here on our last morning in Quebec City. Less than a block from our hotel so we had walked by numerous times. Church for the very oldest parish in North America; original building from 1647. This also is a restoration (another victim of British cannon in 1759, and then it burned down again in 1922); so it looks relatively new. Interesting write-ups inside about the resentment toward the "Protestant conquerors," who eventually supported rebuilding after 1759. This is where several governors of New France are buried. We liked it.

Montreal (September 19-21)

Montreal was a wonderful place to visit. Just the kind of place we like: history, galleries, shopping, endless walking, interesting restaurants, clean, safe, controlled hassle (i.e. park your car and set off on foot). Plus this town makes an Arizonan feel like you've left your home territory - completely different feel. Enjoyed the French language dimension.

Our hotel (Hotel XIX Seicle) was located in the Old Port area of town - which, as one might expect, is one of the oldest areas in Montreal and situated right alongside the St. Lawrence River. This part of town shows its age in countless charming ways, and I don't think this was all tourist-oriented restoration. Or if it was, I didn't care. Narrow streets, old buildings, thick walls, cobblestones. The buzz of French conversation everywhere (along with street signs, menus, etc.) Rue St. Paul was the hub of activity in this part of town; plenty of tourists but not to the point of annoyance.

Our Saturday mostly was spent enroute; upon arriving at the hotel, we did walk the area a bit, did not have much of a feel for the restaurants. Eventually sipped a bit, and decided to stay and eat at Movaido - good food, big crowd, very appealing jazz.

The hotel breakfast on Sunday (with repeat on Monday) was a pleasant surprise. It is labeled as "continental" - conjuring up images of awful waffle mix that you pour out of a paper carton; processed pastries, instant oatmeal. But food receives a different emphasis here; they offered pretty much everything we like - excellent coffee, breads, pastries, fruits, cheeses, ham, juices, etc.

Sunday featured beautiful weather. My excellent companion and I did our walking thing; covered a big chunk of the area from mid-morning to early afternoon, then a bunch more in the Old Port area toward evening. Well over five miles for the day. Covered big chunks of McGill University; stopped at St. Patrick's church (will write about this separately); mingled with fans going to the Alouettes (CFL) game at Molson Stadium; headed for the MontRoyal Park area but missed the entrance so circled back; stopped into a museum; walked past the Bell Centre (later saw preseason Canadiens game televised from there).

Back to Old Port area. Late lunch at Holder - chicken tartarine, eggs benedict, local beverages. Circled Rue St. Paul a bit, then rested at hole. The quite a bit more walking - down to the pier area overlooking the St. Lawrence. Walked up toward Jacques Cartier place and the Cathedral; just a gorgeous evening, including wonderful weather.

Then to a restaurant named Pyrenees for dinner (named for the region(s) from which menu items are based). PJ dressed up nicely and this place was really quite wonderful. We had a great appetizer - snails in a puff pastry; I had the cassoulet (supposedly a Toulouse recipe), PJ had the filet. A drawn-out process in a busy, buzzy restaurant; just as we like it. Proprietor comp'd a Muscat after-dinner drink (I'm a sucker for those little gestures).

Had a repeat of our breakfast; walked a bit and toured the Cathedral (Notre Dame Montreal); then a delightful lunch at Le Boulenguer. Ordered off the "table d'hote" menu - a beef/carrot stew for me, PJ had salmon and red cabbage. Followed by desserts (poached pear for PJ, some cake for me) and coffee. As in the evening before, a delightful old building, warmly decorated, ridiculously thick walls.

Next: Quebec . . .

We liked Quebec province

Back in town after a short trip to Montreal and Quebec City.

These are wonderful destinations. Still hearing echoes of French conversation. Will post on various trip topics shortly.

Also need to remark that autumn in AZ is a fine thing.

Choral Union - year five

Much change as year five begins in ASU Choral Union.

1. Conductor is on sabbatical.
2. Rehearsal accompanist left.
3. Perhaps related to #1, quite a bit of turnover in the choir.
4. PJr and Nedda have faded out of the picture, allegedly to study.

So CPG and I continue on. All seems to be going smoothly.

Fall concert is on November 1; we're mostly doing works by Anton Bruckner (Austrian). I always like his works, but didn't realize he was composing in the late 19th century (assumed it was earlier). Info on Bruckner is here.

1885 - 2009

I was sorry in a nostalgic sort of way to see this item regarding an August 25th meeting of the Kossuth County (Iowa) Board of Supervisors:

"The board also held a public hearing on the possibility of closing the bridge straight north of St. Joseph on 110th Street.

The bridge, constructed in 1885, has served its purpose for well over 100 years.

Miller said replacing the bridge would cost the county over $750,000, and with the department working on a tight budget, they couldn't find the money in the near future.

The board unanimously voted to close the bridge. Signs will be posted within the next two weeks to close the roadway access to the bridge to the public."

Photos are courtesy of EMG (with his assistant Emily Haag), circa 2004 I believe. I like the fall color and composition.

Old bridges evoke old days; this bridge particularly makes me imagine old St. Joe. We drove this route many, many times over the years. It sits right north of St. Joe, and therefore very close to the EJ Gales farm on the hill (per satellite image below).

Hard to imagine the type of traffic the builders were planning for in 1885 - no doubt they tried to think ahead. No doubt they couldn't imagine the monster vehicles lumbering around the area in the 21st century.

In the satellite view below, EMG's house is the first house south of 105th street on the west side of the road (Highway 169, aka S. Phillips Street). 110th street heads east off of Highway 169 just a bit north of St. Joe; you can move the image around (and zoom in) to see where the bridge spans the river. The EJ Gales hill farm is just west of St. Joe on 105th Street.

This bridge was in place five years before (my Grandpa) Mike Bormann was born; or 15 years prior to EJ Gales arriving on the scene.

Now it's done, too.



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Nearly finished

Remaining tasks = installing slate on patio, doing something about 23 year old patio furniture, finishing off a few punch list items, and watching all of the new plants grow.

Chicago, 40 years ago

We are back and forth into Chicago fairly regularly what with Nicole and our O'Donnell relatives residing there (among other connections). Paul Jr. and Nedda recently visited, including a trip to Wrigley Field.

That made me remember when my brother Steve and I had our first opportunity to travel to Chicago - this was courtesy of Romie & Joy. It's been basically 40 years to the day since that trip.

It was a pretty stimulating experience for a 13-year-old kid who had about zero travel experience (as you can tell by clicking on the diary excerpt - I was impressed by things like an "underground parking lot").

And there was a lot to absorb. Some thoughts:

1. We traveled to Chicago in Romie's excellent Ford Country Squire station wagon. (Their family was heading back to Glenview after summer vacation, including a stop in Iowa.) I'm thinking the car was pretty full, what with eight of them and two of us. And no doubt some luggage. Don't remember if Tippy was along.

2. These were rather boisterous times in Chicago. This was just a year after the riots at the '68 Democratic convention; just a month before the famous Chicago Seven trial was convened. I had a couple diary references to "hippies."

3. As far as the Cubs - they were in the early stages of the famous 1969 collapse, in which they blew a big lead to the Mets. The linked article provides some details. Including indicating attendance at the game we attended (8/22/69) of 19,897. That number would be remarkably low by today's Wrigley Field standards, especially with a first-place team in a tightening race involving a New York franchise. (Back then, a franchise that drew a million fans in a year would have been considered quite successful.)

4. I mention in my diary entry that Ron Santo gave us autographs; he was a pretty big star back then (even if he can't get into the Hall of Fame now). By pure happenstance a photographer from the Fort Dodge (Iowa) Messenger (daily newspaper) was at the game, and the paper published a photo of Santo signing for some fans. Back home in Iowa a couple days later, Grandma Gales (FDM subscriber) somehow spotted her grandsons in the photo. I think that qualifies as a small world story.

5. I noted that Romie & Joy went out for dinner one evening to celebrate their 13th wedding anniversary. That sounds like "long ago."

6. We went to the top of the tallest building in Chicago - but it was only 39(?) stories, the once-famous Prudential Building.

7. Had my first plane flight on the way back to Iowa. In hindsight, what an unusual flight - this was pre-deregulation. A tiny plane that stopped in Iowa City, Clinton and Des Moines before landing at Fort Dodge. Four stops in less than 400 miles.

8. The very next day was my first day in eighth grade, with a new teacher - one Sister Consilia.

Fuego Bistro

I generally don't remark on restaurants we patronize because typically they aren't all that remarkable. But we found one that is.

The recent burn-down of Richardson's was a sad event. (Even if two sister restaurants provide similar food.)

Last night we ate at a more than worthy replacement - Fuego Bistro. Just delightful. Tucked away just off seventh street, just south of Bethany Home. A small interior dining space, maybe 8-10 tables. An attractive courtyard with a few more tables (where we sat). Not a chain. Owner/chef walking around, very personable. Home-made sangria.

Of course this wouldn't do it without good food. And this was the best meal we've had in 2009 except perhaps what we ran across in Jerome.

We recommend based on personal experience: "Scallops de jalapeño - Pan seared sea scallops with a jalapeño cream sauce, spanish balsamic reduction and organic corn salsa" (PJ); and "Pollo Ajedrea -Chicken breast stuffed with goat cheese, apricot, basil, spinach, shrimp and crimini mushrooms finished in a balsamic reduction glaze" (me). But there are other dishes that need testing. Truly remarkable.

Taking shape . . .

More back yard progress.

Top picture was July 28 - starting to put out the concrete forms. If you click to enlarge, you'll see two concrete squares - samples intended to help us decide on the look of the concrete patio area.

Middle picture was August 11 - same viewpoint as the top picture - but now with concrete poured, metal planters in place, some of the plants installed.

Bottom picture also August 11. Taken from opposite (NE) corner of yard.

Quite a bit of progress from this stage, let alone this stage.

Another item laid to rest

On a note somewhat related to the post below, Kelly's ashes were put to rest in a shallow backyard ditch in the evening of August 10, thanks to the ministrations of CPG and EPG. PJ provided brief remarks. Pat kicked some dirt into the ditch. And I got a bug bite during the otherwise unremarkable ceremony. Stern family represented by MB and Mark.

After this brief interruption we returned to Paul Jr.'s birthday dinner.

Kelly was a good dog though provided just a bit less than the Bonneville's 15 years of unreliable service. Her obituaries were written back in 2006 and appear here, here (NMG version) and here (KHG version).

Photos courtesy of NMG. Who seemed to have as much fun with boxed Kelly as with real Kelly.

Onto year five

Today ends four years on this site.

Initial post was the Gambel's quail item found here.

Neighborhood blight gone

After 15 years of intermittently reliable service, a horrific looking 1994 Pontiac Bonneville was dispatched via trade-in on August 9, 2009. Primary operators over the years included PMG, NMG, KHG, EPG. Maybe PJr used it for senior year high school but I'm not recalling.

It failed operationally the same day that EPG filled its large gas tank, had the oil changed and gave it a car wash. As a final insult, it couldn't even qualify as a "clunker" in the infamous "cash for clunkers" boondoggle.

Its final days were spent in a hospice-like setting in the backyard of Chris and Jon's house (as shown).

Initial plantings, etc.

"Interesting" times indeed . . .

I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that the country is going through some unusually interesting times from an economic standpoint.

Very recent housing bubble and consequent "fixes" by our government. At staggering cost.

Timed frighteningly closely to the ascension of huge Democratic majorities and a president with supreme confidence in himself and in "government by experts." (I'm pretty sure it would be most difficult to find any useful evidence to support this confidence, but that's another story.) Empowered in large measure by Bush backlash (I often hear "if you think this is bad, consider how much Bush screwed up" - but even if true, I was hoping for better reasoning than that in support of these policies.) Cap and trade, health care "reform," permanent and drastic program expansion masqueraded as "stimulus," taxes, spending, amnesia about campaign commitments; you name it, we have it.

As best I can figure it, the goal is to pass as many laws and regulations as possible while media adulation persists and before the public wakes up to the cost and/or policy implications. If the initiatives continue to be as poorly conceived as other major initiatives in the last few months - well, that's tomorrow's problem. Yet I think the prez has some skills . . . I don't understand the continuous headlong plunge.

But enough of that. The purpose of this post is to list a few bloggers that I find helpful in sorting all this out. Right or wrong, the discussions are pithy and interesting. Typically it's professors musing, but not always.

These folks are definitely crowding out other news/information sources that I previously looked at - much higher value.

Recommended:

1. Don Boudreaux et al.

2. Econlog.

3. Greg Mankiw.

4. John Stossel. (Of all people - but he (or his writers) has a pithy way of repackaging items covered in more detail by 1-3 above. Plus he comes up with a few original things.)

5. Stephen Bainbridge. (law professor)

6. Larry Ribstein. (law professor)

7. Then there is Paul Krugman - but unfortunately I don't get much out of his writings. (I do try to stick with it given that it isn't ideal to live in an echo chamber.)

Blank slate

Our backyard is undergoing change we can believe in.

Plus we are using our own $$ to pay for it.

Pool removal (Day 1)

At long last, my nemesis is literally being broken and buried.

This was interesting to watch (but not so fun to listen to) - starting with early morning fence busting, followed by punching out huge holes in the bottom of the pool, breaking up the cool decking, then working along the top of the pool.

More fun coming tomorrow.

Time for action

We emptied the pool over a year ago. Finally are getting to the point where it will be blasted out of existence and replaced with a eventually-to-be-shady sitting area.

In the meantime, the water level has fluctuated. It's at an all-time low now. Super concentrated guk, probably weapons grade. Resident frog hasn't been seen in a couple months. I think all the mosquitoes have moved on. Ugh.

Couldn't resist, this reminded me of Kelly

(Also reminded me of a certain person who sat in a LaZ-Boy upstairs and crinkled a pretzel bag at the risk of Kelly snapping her neck.)

(Click to enlarge, as always)

(I think - certainly hope - no government funding was used for the Dare County "officials" to figure this out.)

Father's Day dinner

My dinner was late by a week due to schedule conflicts. But it turned out well worth the wait.

We were watching some show about German food a couple weeks ago, and they were discussing "sauerbraten." Which made me remember that PJ was quite successful with the dish way back when. (We don't remember whether she's made it since we moved to Phoenix.) Anyway, I had also enjoyed this mightily at Karl Ratzsch's in Milwaukee, as well as her previous successes.

The beef had marinated since Wednesday. I was reading wikipedia while she cooked; the name translates literally to "sour roast meat." (But wait; sauerkraut translates to "sour cabbage." So when you call a German a Kraut you are calling him or her a cabbage? I thought Russians loved cabbage. Confusing.)

We also learned that this originally was prepared with horse meat back in whatever century.

Authentic and awesome sides: red cabbage, spatzle, homemade bread. I went out and found some German beers (the double bock selected by CPG was best in show) and a nice Reisling.

Beyond that: apple dumplings for dessert.

I also have to note that PJ bought some Belgian beers for me, as yet unopened. Best in show appears to be Cuvee van de Keizer Blauw - brewed once per year on the birthday of Charles V. I had to chuckle because I was in the midst of reading this book's recounting of Charles V's activities just when receiving the gift - including his competition with Suleiman for the title "Caesar" ("Keizer"), as commemorated on this bottle. Which I almost hate to open up.

Jerome, Arizona (May 24 - 26, 2009)

Patricia and I always enjoy visiting Jerome, Arizona. Most recently in September 2007. The kids had given us a Christmas gift in 2007 for Jerome adventures - and it being our 29th wedding anniversary on 5/24 - it seemed like a good time to take advantage.

So we took our usual route (after coffee) on May 24 - drove up through Prescott and had lunch there (Gurley Street Grill). Walked around an art show on the Prescott courthouse grounds, and eventually drove up to Jerome. Checked into the Jerome Grand Hotel - a marvelous place. Relaxed, watched a movie about the Enola Gay (Memorial Day weekend), walked the town just a bit, and eventually had dinner at The Asylum. I don't know how they're doing it - this place is simply fantastic. I had the "grilled achiote rubbed pork tenderloin, with chipotle apricot glaze, brown rice and steamed vegetables;" my dining companion had the "mesquite bacon wrapped filet mignon with a cabernet demi-glaze" (same sides). These dishes are not all that unique (well, maybe chipotle apricot), but the execution is flawless. This also is the one place I regularly drink wine - nice flights of Arizona wines. Wow.

Spent Monday (May 25) eating and walking. Big breakfast at the Mile High; walked the town continuously; big lunch at Grapes; then took a hike on the Wood Chute Trail. The weather was almost monsoon-like, though it's a bit early on the calendar. Drizzly rain at certain points; lightning and the threat of actual storms. But we made out just fine. Repeat performance for dinner - everything the same, it was that good.

Tuesday (5/26) - town was much quieter as the weekend was over and most tourists gone. Breakfast, some shopping and walking, then up to Sedona for lunch at the Hideaway; walked around a bit there and then headed for home. Our one mediocre meal was at The Spotted Donkey in Carefree. The trip was v. fun.