Quebec (September 21-24)

As much as we enjoyed Montreal, our time in Quebec City was better. We took a rental car and arrived in the evening of Monday, September 21. (After some challenging road construction.) Some cornfields and agriculture north of Montreal; we were running alongside the north side of the St. Lawrence River with occasional views of the water; beautiful wooded country as nearing Quebec.

Quebec City (I'll just refer to it as Quebec from here on) is simply different. The city had celebrated its 400th anniversary a couple years ago - which is remarkable for North America. I read that it's the only walled city in North America. We had been looking forward to it because it's just that much more remote than Montreal; plus my imagination was stimulated by this Willa Cather book.

We were momentarily a bit put off on arrival - unexpected tourist concentration in the area of our hotel. And at first blush some of the old architecture almost feels Disneyfied (even if it's real). And some street performers are just committing crimes against music - with amplifiers. But we got over that quickly and I barely recall any of those distractions. We learned that by going just a bit farther afield, could bypass the bigger tourist concentrations, and the Disney effect was lost in a beautiful city that just exudes a most interesting history.

So we checked into the Auberge Place d'Armes upon arrival - had a great location across from the Chateau Frontenac. This is in the upper portion of old city (Vieux Quebec). Given lateness of the hour, we ate dinner at the hotel restaurant. It was good, but not up to the standards of our other dinners on this trip. Then we were upgraded to a much larger room due to some water dripping into our bathroom.

We ran into consistently excellent food the rest of the visit. French heritage or whatever, there is a shared assumption that food quality and the dining experience matter a great deal. Have to hand it to the French. Complex, sophisticated. Unhurried. Had dinner two evenings at L'Echaude - they had two lights-out entrees: a duck dish with duck gizzards, mushrooms, onions, reduction, bok choy etc.; and black cod with snail stew and leeks. Two lunches at La Brigantine - the table d'hote, including lamb shanks, a veal dish and a chicken sandwich that's difficult to even place in the same classification as what I normally think of as a chicken sandwich. And, of course, soup, dessert, coffee, a local wine.

We walked the city constantly. The weather was cloudy and rainy for a good portion of the time - but our last round of REI shopping left us well protected, and we never were limited by the weather. Sunny on the last day.

Visited the site of the famous battle on the Plains of Abraham; also walked around the Citadel - this is the highest point in town (Cap Diamante - where Cecile and Jacques went sledding). This is the battle that put the British into control of the area, for all practical purposes.

Visited interesting churches, as discussed in the preceding post.

Walked through the Chateau Frontenac, but lacked the patience to take the guided tour. We did spent lots of time on the Promenade of the Governors, and took every chance to look out over the St. Lawrence River.

The town is full of monuments and parks. Beautiful architecture; interesting old houses; narrow streets; hilly everywhere. We enjoyed walking into the lower town. And walking some more. French atmosphere more pronounced than Montreal - some folks with little or no English at all. Got to really enjoy the buzz of French conversation, the fun of working our way through the menus, etc.

Can't wait to get back.

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).