I find what I seek in this unexpected church. Contentment. Peace. Gregorian chants fill the space. Slipping my shoes off, I listen, look, rest, and give thanks.
A fitting ending to a 12 day walk is a 2 hour train ride returning to the beginning, Ottawa.
The lowest level of the Montréal Museum of Archeology and History was built of clear plastic flooring exposing original foundations of some of its earliest buildings.
The current exhibit featured Vikings whose men and women were fierce fighters and excellent sailors. Their early religious practices included animal and human sacrifices. They took advantage of unstable and fragile European governments to conquer, plunder, exploit, influence, and rule.
Street art…
It was my second visit to Montréal Botanic Garden, the first being in fall 2019. The summer flowers were prolific. Irises, poenies, and roses of every color. Surprisingly the vegetable garden had all the varieties grown at Monticello in Virginia 700 miles to the south.
Double time to do double museums. The McCord Museum was a gem. Indigenous peoples’ and Alexander Henderson’s photograph exhibits were absorbing. Montréal Museum of Fine Art also had a superlative Indigenous peoples collection. Whale vertebrates with rich texture were used as the medium for some carvings. By afternoon, I was overwhelmed by too much visual stimulation. Eyes that become satiated stop seeing.
The closer you got, the more the earth shook. People packed together partied in the streets at Place des Arts for the week long gratis concert. Flicking cigarette lighters in appreciation was passé. Bright cell phone flashlights showed appreciation and gave the appearance of stars fallen to Earth.
Saint Joseph’s Oratory of Mount Royal was massive overlooking the city. It was crawling with tourists clicking pictures and buying souvenirs. They scurried, posed, clicked as though they were bees swarming a nest.
McGill University rented dormitory suites during the summer. Our two bedroom with sitting room suite seemed like the Taj after twelve days sleeping on air mattresses. Instead of climbing stairs, we took the elevator to the twelfth floor.
Linda Scandore 