While in Montreal, I had two days to tour and enjoy the history. On my arrival day it was a beautiful, sunny Sunday, so I walked the 10 minutes from my hotel to the waterfront to see all the merrymaking at the Old Port. After a week of meetings, I stayed on for a Guidatour walking tour of Old Montreal. After having been out in the area each evening for dinner with my group, I thought it would be a waste. But the stories of the guide were great, and I highly recommend the tour.
First stop was a block from my hotel. The city square in from of the Notre Dame Basilica was an interesting contrast. Beautiful church facing the Bank of Montreal (which our guide said is beautiful inside but was closed on a Saturday). The statue you see in the bottom left of a French woman holding a poodle (facing the bank) is contrasted with the English man holding a bulldog (facing the church) and is relatively new. The guide said it was a church versus state statement and she wasn't very thrilled to have it there. Both statues have pig noses.
The light colored pavement is the outline of the original church. The current church (which is 200 years old) is oriented toward the water and the aisle to the altar slopes down following the natural curve of the city toward the river. Celine Dion was married here.
Chapel - which was rebuilt after arson - stands behind the main church. This is where most people who aren't Celine Dion would get married since the basilica is too large.
