Montreal

Is it me or does my friend Simon appear an odd colour in this picture?
No he hasn't just had a St Tropez Spray treatment .
I think he's just been caught in the reflection of an odd neon light.
I went to Montreal to catch up with my friend of 20 odd years and to revisit a few places I used to frequent when I lived there.The first stop as ever was Schwartz's Deli on St Laurent Blvd.
Before I went to Katz's deli in NYC this ruled the sandwich roost as far as I was concerned.
Smoked meat in Montreal is serious business and there are many pretenders to the throne, but only one king.
When the anglophones decamped to Toronto in the 80s many had such severe smoked meat withdrawal that Schwartz's was shipping 100s of pounds of brisket by mail order every week.
That's how the myth goes anyway.
Not a bad sandwich but I still have to say Katz's wins by a nose.
I also caught up with another old friend who I hadn't seen in 12 odd years, and boy those years have been good to her. As like old times she was full of fun and quick to laugh.
Great to see you again CJ!
Catch ya in another dozen years or so. The heart of a shrinking English Montreal is Crescent Street. Well, it was English 15 odd years ago, but today the bars are full of French as well.
When I left Montreal all those years ago, the city was going through what felt like an never ending back and forth, petty linguistic tussle.
The English were disliked and discriminated against, in much the same way they had stuck it to the majority population for so many years.
Quebec politics has always been very provincial (pun intended).
I think in 2007, its settled down a bit and the French political intelligentsia has reached a place whereby populist paranoia has been replaced with pragmatic horse sense.
License plates in Quebec bear the slogan " Je me souviens" ( I remember)
I always wondered what the nirvana they were referring too was.
The smothering dominance of the Catholic church?
The indifference of a Colonial mother country?
Every 4 years or so the spectre of a referendum raises its head and the Quebec nationalists confidentially predict a new independent future.
Every 4 years or so their hopes are dashed.
Quebecois think with their hearts and vote with their wallets.
I think French Canada (which isn't restricted to Quebec) has become confident in the strength of its culture and the robust health of the language within Canada.
That attitude has translated into a more relaxed and easier vibe.
That's what I felt anyway. Another stop on the Montreal culinary trail ,not Michelin guide but interesting enough, is the Montreal Pool room (St Laurent and St Catherine street).
Since 1912, they've been serving up steamed hot dogs .
All dressed means mustard, relish, coleslaw and onions.
95 cents each.
I ate 4
Simon ate six and was burping up hot dogs for the next 3 hours.
The place burn down about 5 years ago but they moved next door and didn't miss a beat.
In neither the old or new premises were/is there any sight of a pool cue or table.
That's it for today.
I head back to the UK soon and fairly shortly after getting back head on to South Africa.
Hope all is well and your summer is going well.
Love
T