Back to Duluth...

My trip home took me through Oakville Ontario where I got to visit my very great friends Bob and Jo and spend 3 nights with them.  Took the train into Toronto one day and did some sight seeing where I ended up at the REAL Hockey Hall of Fame.  Of course I had to get my photo taken with the Coupe Stanley which will be awarded to the Penguins in due course.

It was a fun trip.  I got to see places I haven't had much exposure to in the past and of course, it's nice to be back home in spite of the crappy weather...

Life is Good.

Coupe de Grass...

Well, before I got to Montreal I had been bitchin' a bit about the cold weather and the "brown" spring.

As you can see from my photos the past few days, green has definitely taken over from the brown. The folks here have a huge double lot and a nice little ride around mower.  Of course there are gardens and trees everywhere so it's not really that easy to cut with the ride around..

I had decided that if it wasn't raining today, I'd mow the lawn. John and Wendy are back tomorrow so it's time to get the place shipshape.  It was raining this morning but unfortunately, for me, the sun came out for a few hours this afternoon and I was able to crank up the push mower and do the complete lawn.  It only took a couple and a half hours.  I'm beat.. but it looks good.. n'est ce pas?

Life.. C'est Bon!

Hiking in Oka National Park.

This morning I headed out to the Oka National Park which is just outside the village of the same name (Oka).  This park is known for its cultural and religious heritage and the trail I chose was about 5km and passed by four Romanesque - style oratories and ended near three chapels overlooking the village.  These buildings were build between 1740 and 1742.

It was a very pleasant and peaceful stroll even though it was rather busy as there were lots of locals out enjoying the morning.  Unfortunately, the mosquitoes also seemed to like the trail and they were ravenous to say the least.

Now, Oka's other claim to fame came in the summer of 1990 involving  a showdown between native people, Quebec police and eventually the Canadian army. One police officer was killed and the conflict lasted 78 days. The Oka Crisis drew worldwide attention, casting native land rights into the spotlight. 

Anyways, I finished the tour with a lunch stop in the village.  It is on the shore of Two Mountains Lake (also known as a widening of the Ottawa River), and is quite a touristy.  This is such a pretty and peaceful area and I am sooo happy that I was able to visit.

Life is Good.

Parc de la Riviere Mille Isles.

Took today's stroll in a park nearby.  Le (that's french) park consisted of a huge number of maple trees that are partially submerged in the high waters of the river.  The walkway consisted of a network of bridges to access the park with several viewpoints.

Lots of water wildlife in the area.. turtles, little fishies, and muskrats busy building their homes.  The river is called Mille Iles which means one thousand islands... it's a pretty area .. the weather was nice and it was good to get out on a bit of a hike..

Life is Good.

Strolling around the old city of Montreal...

Today started out rainy and cold and I considered canceling my plan to go down to the old city of Montreal and do some sight seeing.  The rain stopped by noon and although it was cold and windy, I decided that I shud check it out.

Now... driving worked out fairly well but parking is a very expensive proposition... like $3.50 per half hour... no limit in many of the lots.. I was lucky to find a meter that gave me 2 hours max for $6 so I just couldn't stray toooo far as I had to go back and feed the meter.

My first landmark that I recognized was while still driving. I encountered a very old Hudson's Bay Store on a busy corner so I had time to take out my camera and take a pic.  One of the first businesses I noticed was a Ben and Jerry's ice cream shop in a lovely old building.

There are several streets that are blocked for auto traffic.. had to take a pic of one that had a Northern Images sign beckoning me.  The next photo is of the Notre Dame Basilica - very imposing amongst the other old buildings.

I had to include photos of Montreal's culinary gems... the first being a Poutine shop and the other was the second half of my lunch.. Montreal is known for it's smoked meat sandwiches and after stuffing myself with this one, I know why.. I was delicious.

The last picture here is the Hotel St James... probably named after moi??  When I was taking the photo a local guy came up to me and started telling me about the hotel's claim to fame as Madonna appears to be a regular customer when in town... as are the Rolling Stones.. apparently Mick likes to book at least two floors of the hotel for his entourage.. I guess it would be interesting if the walls could talk.

A beautiful city.. lots of bad roads and traffic problems... not quite as charming as Quebec City but a fun place to visit..

Life is Good.

I see your Pierre.... and raise you one....

The signature hole at Le Versant Golf Club is #15 on the Seigneur course.  It's a great par 5 looking down on the course with the city of Montreal and Mount Royal in the background..

Ok, but here you can't see the background coz it was about to start pissing rain and - well -  take my word for it.. it was there in the background and it was nice.

So, the two guys I golfed with today were both named Pierre.. One of the three yesterday was a Pierre also.  Just goes to show you that you can't get enough Pierres on your platter .. uhhhh... whatever that means.

They were very nice guys.. fun to golf with, and with my new wonderbar putting stroke.. why.. Jimmy almost broke 90 today.. hitting balls in a strong wind, I shot a 90 and it really made me happy..

Jimmy likes 90..... Life is Good.

Oh.. my pic makes me look like I'm totally bloated but I did have a 50 KPH wind blowing up my arse and my pants are too big so they were fulla air!

Today's golf game...

I just had to post a little note to let you'all know that today's golf game started out with a birdie on the first hole (I rolled in a 60 footer).  And to top it off, I lipped out a putt on 10 that would have been a birdie to start the back nine as well.

Oh well, the final score was still 96 so there had to be a few bad shots as well... Like that efffen 8 on the 17th hole.

It was fun.  I played with three local guys.. Pierre who spoke little english but expressed himself quite clearly on the course when he hit a bad shot.  Then there was Ron who plays a mean foot wedge... And finally Raymond - he was very nice but hands of stone!

Tomorrow I play at Le Versant... about 10 minutes away and the weather - which was very nice today - will be even better as we're expecting the low 20's starting tomorrow.

Life is good.