Montreal Jazz Fest & Steely Dan

* This is a huge blog. If it takes forever to load, try clicking on December 2008, at the bottom of the Archives menu on the left side of the screen. It should help (at least a little).

Okay, so despite my best intentions, there isn't much writing to go along with this blog and its many pictures. I think that at this late date, it would be best to let the photos tell the story of our crazy week in Montreal...

After much anticipation, we're on our way. Simon is not the biggest fan of long-distance driving, but managed to make the best of it.

In our car: Me, Jamie, Simon, Eliza and Jessica.

In the other car: Mom, Dad, Jean Paul and Janet.

The walkie talkies provided hours of entertainment. So did the New York Times crossword. So did Simon...

We arrived in Montreal at 2:00 a.m. after 16 hours of driving. Tired but pumped, we explored our awesome apartment, then settled in to relax with some drinks.

Morning number 1. On the menu: eggs, bacon, toast from the bakery around the corner, cheese from the fromagerie (brie, havarti with chives... sooo good), fresh fruit, juice and lots of coffee. :)

Heading out for the very first time...

One of the first bands we saw at the Jazz Fest. They were a band from McGill and they were awesome.

Smoked meat sandwiches, poutine and beer... yummy.

After this meal, we split up and I went to meet Joe MacLeod and his friend Tony who drove down from Toronto to spend a few days with us.

Joe, Tony and I were standing on the street talking when the wind came up. Suddenly, hundreds of people with apparent psychic abilities LOST IT and started running and screaming down the street (very strange).

Five minutes later the sky opened up and the absolute worst rainstorm I have ever witnessed in my life came spilling down. Sheets and sheets of rain, and no cover to be found. People were screaming and climbing onto restaurant patios where people were eating under canopies and generally just losing their minds. It was kind of fun.

Not ready to let a little rain ruin our night, we met up with everyone else (also soaked) and carried on...

Our lovely little patio. We spent a lot of time out here, especially at night. I'm sure the neighbours loved us.









JP's chair. As a result of his fabulous persistence, this chair defeated him not once, but twice, sending him crashing onto the deck. After the second time, I think he kept his distance.

This is a crazy Montreal squirrel (they are huge) that visited us every day. We fed him a lot.

French toast, scrambled eggs with gruyere and fresh basil in them, fruit and coffeeeeeeee.

Classic Simon.

Vieux Montreal and Notre Dame.

This was the beginning of a truly, truly insane day. In this photo, Jean Paul is being his usual self :)

Double fisting already Joe?

Jessica's uncle Mike and Gassan were out with us too, and the 13 of us spent hours roaming the crazy streets and listening to amazing music.

Check out my Mom in this picture... she is so cute :)

We (drunkenly) lost (drunk) Joe and (also drunk Tony) in a crowd of 100,000 people and somehow (with the aid of my mother's people tracking skills) found them... twice.

Leaving our mark on the Jazz Fest wall.

In the wee hours of the morning we went back to the apartment where we spent more hours banging on the piano and singing Beatles songs until almost daybreak. Considering that the group was made up almost entirely of musicians, it sounded pretty great. One of my favourite nights of the trip.

Omelettes, toast and more fresh fruit.

It took us a little while to get going some days...

We were sad because we couldn't get our tattoos... Joe and I got our first tattoos together in Vancouver many moons ago...

EEEEEEEEEEKKKK!!!

This is just before Steely Dan!!! This concert was incredible. It was what got the ball rolling for this entire trip to Montreal. While I didn't hear everything I was hoping to, I knew and loved every song except for one, which is pretty damn good.

Here is what I can reconstruct from the set list:

1. The Royal Scam

2. I Got the News

3. Show Biz Kids

4. Everything You Did
5. Two Against Nature

6. Hey Nineteen

7. Godwhacker

8. Babylon Sisters

9. New Frontier

10. Home At Last

11.Parker's Band

12. Josie

13. Aja

14. Peg

15. FM

16. Kid Charlemagne


Amazing music everywhere, at all hours of the night.

Post-concert munchies. I had the best calamari I've eaten in a long time.

Janet had no problems with the chair.

We split up one day, and the girls spent the day shopping. We came home to an amazing dinner, courtesy of JP. He made pasta with homemade pesto and pinenuts, two beautiful salads (one full of avocado - my favourite) and bought three chickens cooked Portugese style from the restaurant down the street. It was FABULOUS.

Dessert

On our way to the casino around midnight... everyone looks pretty hopeful, don't they?


...And on our way out around 4 a.m. Not looking nearly as impressed as we did earlier. The irony is that every one of us, except from Jess, worked as a dealer at some point in time :P

We spent our last day at the Botanical Gardens, which was so relaxing and lovely, especially for a bunch of people who love plants, trees and flowers.

The Chinese Gardens, which is the largest Chinese garden in the world, outside China.

Koi.

One more reason to love my camera: it can take cool underwater pics.

I think he was trying to eat it.

Jess always looks great but I thought she looked so beautiful this day. I must have taken 100 pictures of her. I'm sure she wanted to kill me.

Before we left, Mom, Dad, Simon and Eliza went to the Biodome and Jessica, Jamie and I took a quick ride up to the Olympic Stadium's observatory.

Into Chinatown for dinner on our last night... and it was soo good. We ordered a ton of great food.

Montreal bagels to take home, courtesy of Jessica's uncle Mike. There were so many of them that they were all over both cars - practically in our laps for the entire drive... but they were so tasty once we got home, it was worth it.

Homeward bound...