General Question for Our Canadian Members

[Wee67]

Well, Québécois anyway.

I'm driving up to Quebec City and Montreal next week on vacation. A couple of simple questions from an ignorant Yank-

- any general recommendations if you're familiar with either city?

- any cool toy/comic/nerd stores I shouldn't pass up?

- am I correct to assume I need to get international coverage for my phone?

- is it pretty easy to walk about in both? I'm hoping to just park my car and leave it while I'm there.

I'm getting ready to break out my maple leaf Ed gave me at Mego Meet!

[samurainoir]

I just returned from Montreal Comic Con coincidentally. Montreal is my wife's home-town, and I can't get enough of it.

I think we gave Tom/WannabeMego a huge list of stuff to do during his visit to Canada last year... I'll see if I can remember where to dig up the contents of that discussion. I know Brian's not here right now, but message him elsewhere and I'm sure he'll hook you up with a wealth of paper maps and other tourist pamphlets.

Old Montreal is a must see, along with Notre Dame.

Chinatown isn't far and might be a nice place to stroll through, but I don't find it essential and never really feel like it's worth lingering there. At one point it might of been worth poking around for toys and novelties like various Shogun Warrior characters or Astroboy or whatever, but that is no longer the case for the most part. Although you can grab a bubble tea, chinese pastries, or waffle balls as a snack. DON'T EAT IN HISTORIC CHINATOWN RESTAURANTS (as a rule of thumb, they are tourist traps, although there are some good places not on the main pedestrian strip there, and avoid the buffet place like the plague)

St Laurent and St Denis for patios/restaurants/shops.
Fairmont Bagel for Monreal's unique chewy/sweet wood fired fresh bagels

http://www.fairmountbagel.com

Schwartz's for smoked meat (life-hack... try to eat there during off-hours if you plan dine in, there is almost always a line-up, so get take-out instead by buying a pound of meat, bread, mustard and pickles and have a picnic in a nearby park)

http://www.schwartzsdeli.com

There is also an amazing Portuguese chicken place next to Schwartz's

Montreal is a wealth of summer festivals almost every weekend, you just missed the Jazz Fest which is one of my all time favourite street parties. You also missed the circus festival (since Montreal is home of Cirque Du soliel). However, it looks like some of the Just for Laughs events are starting up.

http://www.hahaha.com/en

lots of free outdoor concerts for Nuits d'Afrique

http://www.festivalnuitsdafrique.com/en/spectacles-exterieurs

Fireworks!

http://www.tourisme-montreal.org/What-To-Do/Events/l-international-des-feux-loto-quebec

You are also going to be there during one of my all time favourite Film Festivals, Fantasia. Lot's of awesome genre stuff programmed there every year. Go watch something with Monsters or Kung Fu.

http://www.fantasiafestival.com/2016/en/

Montreal is a very pedestrian and transit friendly city. You will have no problem parking your car for the duration and walking or taking the bus/subway. I recommend biking!

Bike rentals are everywhere in the city... take advantage of them to get around. They are next to pretty much every transit stop and major tourist spots and are automated so that you can pick up a bike in one place and return it to just about any of the other automated racks spread across the city. Montreal Bike lanes are second to none, and wonderfully protected and safe from traffic. One of my favourite rides is to go from Old Montreal following the water all the way out to Jean Drapeau Park. terrific way to tour the city (and there is a subway station out at the Expo site park to return to downtown if you didn't want to do an out and back).

http://www.parcjeandrapeau.com/en/

if you like Hiking or just strolling through a park there is Mount Royal

http://www.lemontroyal.qc.ca/carte/en/

Montreal has an amazing Latin Dance scene, and I always find it's a nice date-night, especially since most places have free lessons earlier in the evening.

http://www.mtlblog.com/2015/03/probably-the-best-places-to-go-salsa-dancing-in-montreal/

[samurainoir]

for Vintage stuff, Montreal has great toy shows and comic cons and lots of dealers. Off the top of my head though, no real brick and mortar stores spring to mind.

New Toys and collectibles there is Toys on Fire, but IIRC, you would likely want to pull your car out to get to there.

http://www.toysonfire.com/toonfisthoan.html

Comics? I don't think there any stores that really stand out in my mind, although there are certainly a great deal of bargains to be found on comics in Montreal.

at one point I would have recommended Capitaine Quebec Les Livres Comiques as the best in town, but for the past decade it's kind of been a shadow of it's former self in terms of the depth of stuff they used to stock back in the day. Although they usually have some great deals at any given time. Especially with the low Canadian dollar for you guys.

https://www.yelp.ca/biz/capitaine-quebec-les-livres-comiques-montréal-2

and it's right across from a used book store with some back issue bins called Librairie Astro

http://www.astrolib.com

and one million comix is just down the street.

https://www.yelp.ca/biz/1000000-comix-montréal-7

I'd hate to send you to that part of town just for those stores. If you are in the mood for chinese food, check out Restaurant PM in that neighbourhood.

https://www.yelp.ca/biz/restaurant-pm-montréal-3?osq=Best+Chinese+Restaurant

I also like a fajitas at 3 Amigos, also nearby, if you don't mind the live music they have there on weekend evenings.

http://www.3amigosrestaurant.com

Not sure if they are of interest to you but, French hardcover comics, BD, is pretty much everywhere and I always go searching in those places for rarer stuff by Moebius, Manara, and other Eurpoean artist.

[samurainoir]

Phone: Yeah roaming can get expensive when you cross the border depending on coverage. Not sure if it's reciprocal, but we have a five dollars a day package of talk/text/data that kicks in automatically whenever we cross the border. Check your carrier to see what packages they can offer you.

The Maple Leaf Flag is generally fine BTW, but I'd say get yourself a Fleur de Lys instead if you want hang with the Quebecois. or better yet, a Habs or Expos hat/t-shirt. Speaking of which, if hockey is your thing, the old Montreal Forum isn't far off from Captaine Quebec either, it's now a retail outlet (Future Shop last time I checked, but they just went out of business).

Also, driving tip: on the Island of Montreal, you cannot turn right when stopped on a red-light like you can in other parts of Canada.

[Wee67]

Wow! Thanks so much. Great stuff!

[samurainoir]

Museums/Galleries etc.

Biodome! you'll likely want to take your car out there. it's in the former Olympic Dome.

http://espacepourlavie.ca/en/biodome

Bodyworlds isn't for everyone, but there is currently an animal exhibit at the Science Museum

http://www.montrealsciencecentre.com/temporary-exhibition/animal-inside-out

Loulouse Lautrec exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts. (Wednesdays are discounted)

https://www.mbam.qc.ca/en/exhibitions/on-view/toulouse-lautrec/

cinémathèque québécoise might be of interest to you Bill, since you are in media. I think there is usually a collection of posters/artwork on display as well this time of year that ties into the Fantasia film fest.

http://www.cinematheque.qc.ca/en

[samurainoir]

as for Quebec City, I've only been there a handful of times, and I NEVER have enough time to fully explore the old city/citadel etc. I do recall spotting a comic shop within the walls of the old city last time I was there. If your hotel is near the old city, then you should be all set. It's really fun to just explore and walk around.

In general, I've found it a bit more difficult to get by with just English outside the touristy areas of Quebec City. Always been fine in Montreal though.

[Toyman_Chris]

Dear Mister Samuraunoir,

We are happy to announce that you have been selected to fill the position of Canadian Ambassador/Information Specialist for the CICIC (Canadian Information Centre for International Collectors) branch of the Mego Museum.

This job includes a salary of $1.00 per year to be paid out annually at Mego Meet. The position is also incentive based and offers $0.01 per apology given while at Mego Meet.

Please get back to us at your earliest convenience about your decision to accept this position. Actually, there is no need to accept....Resistance Is Futile. Welcome to the Mego Museum - CICIC

Regards,
Toyman_Chris
Occasional Front Door Welcomer Dude - Mego Meet

[samurainoir]

^^^
I'm in a great deal of trouble in that case if anyone asks about anywhere between Vancouver and Windsor, or between Quebec and Halifax, 'cause I've never been to any of those parts of my country. I'm just going to make up a bunch of stuff.

Little Known Facts: Calgarians are born right out of the womb wearing Cowboy Hats. The entire province of Saskatchewan is frightening to me in that Children of the Corn kind of way, except with wheat. PEI is just one GIANT Potato. Seriously. Think of the biggest potato you can imagine. It's BIGGER than THAT. Anne of Green Gables lives atop a Giant Potato floating in the Atlantic Ocean, which appeals to the Japanese 'cause... fetishes.

[Brazoo]

Wow — next time I go to Montreal I know what I have to do — beg samuainoir to be my guide. I've only been a few times and Montreal is beautiful, but aside from Schwartz's (a MUST) I don't think I know what to do there to make my time there awesome.

[cjefferys]

Wow — next time I go to Montreal I know what I have to do — beg samuainoir to be my guide.

That's for sure, he has everything covered! Although I've done a lot of traveling in the world, I'm ashamed to admit that I've never been to any other Canadian province outside of Ontario. I really need to change that...

[samurainoir]

Wow — next time I go to Montreal I know what I have to do — beg samuainoir to be my guide. I've only been a few times and Montreal is beautiful, but aside from Schwartz's (a MUST) I don't think I know what to do there to make my time there awesome.

Do you even remember the conversation we had where I threatened to take you to Montreal for the stag party you didn't have? I'm not entirely certain your wife would approve of my idea of what an awesome time in Montreal consists of. Heck, I'm not even sure your sense of hygiene and boundaries would approve of a Montreal based Hangover re-enactment either. 8)