Celafete
Update!! I have discovered that not only am I under a time constraint but for some reason I cannot seem to get on the comment sections. I managed to get on two, but one ditched me partway through, sorry 668 and Deb and Allison it was a no go altogether. Grr!! Oh, and Allison pack light! But, the cup sounds like a plan because you will need a wee bit of home when you are so far away. Any extra room and I may try and sneak my way into your luggage.
I have pictures and I will eventually try and post some. I`m not sure that I can actually do so from here and at the moment I don`t want to waste my precious little time on trying something that might not work.
On Canada Day I wandered into Old Montreal for the evening`s festivities. Countless people told me Montreal doesn`t do much for Canada Day. They could not be more wrong. I thought Montreal did an amazing job of celebrating our day. They certainly put Victoria to shame!
Old Montreal looks amazing with its narrow cobbled streets and Gothic structures. On the way down I saw a woman on crutches but it was ok she was still able to wear her stilettos! Of course I have a sneaking suspicion it was the silly stilettos that got her on crutches in the first place.
The stage was out of this world in part because it was bordered by a full rainbow. That rainbow added a lot to the night as far as I was concerned. The first singers that I heard was an unaccompanied choir singing Joni Mitchell`s, "Big Yellow Taxi". It was as if angels were singing a glorious prayer and then you would hear the words and it was such an odd juxtaposition of beauty and words.
I really wish I knew the name of the next singer. He was my favorite. His voice was so rich and he sang with such integrity. I may not have understood the words but I certainly understood his passion. The show was well run with the main backup musicians on stage throughout which made for no breaks as one singer left followed immediately by another. Jeremy Fisher was one of the performers and although his voice is a little high pitched for me he was certainly good with the crowd and he really got everyone going on his third and final song that was reminiscent of a Bob Dylan tune.
I don`t know who the host was but his white suit jacket reminded me of an aging singer whose time has passed but he is desperately doing all he can to hold onto his past glory. He wasn`t bad just a little desperate sounding in his antics. Of course I again have no idea what he was saying but mannerisms speak volumes.
There was a black singer with an English sounding name that I couldn`t quite catch. Sad, all these singers that I would like to pursue more and I have no idea who they are. This man I could very well picture singing in a gospel choir even though his style was more along reggae.
He had the crowd in the palm of his hands and then they had him do a duet with the next singer, a female. They sang a Brian Adams tune. It made me long for Brian Adams to be up there singing. Now there`s a sentence you won`t see me write again!
When the lady took the stage the crowd was like a balloon with a leak. The enthusiasm was completely sucked right out of it and with it the cold of the night crept in. I turned away and made my way to the fireworks display.
Well, that`s all for this days installment. Hope everyone had a great Canada Day and that many of you were able to find your way to a park somewhere for some great live music.
11 comments:
Hahaha, I was laughing at that line as well!
Lovely to read an update, and another check goes in the pack light box, so thanks. I promise to get back to your email shortly :)
Cobblestone streets sound excellent, but would probably be dangerous for me, even without the stilletos, its great to hear you're having a blast, however too bad the computer keeps kicking you off. Have a good week!!
Happy Canada day!
You met Mark Hamilton?
Those were the artists : Boom Desjardins (the last one, with long hair, the crowd really liked him), Annie Villeneuve (the girl who did a duet with the black singer, Gage) , Jeff Martin, Frédérick De Grandpré (the host, he's a singer and an actor), Gage (the black singer), Jeremy Fisher, le groupe Asani, le groupe André (the cheerleaders of the Alouettes went on the stage during one of their songs), Cirque Fantastic, Lafas Druméria.
I really like this post, to get the point of view of someone for whom a lot of those singers are new.
"It made me long for Brian Adams to be up there singing. Now there`s a sentence you won`t see me write again!"
You kill me, Toccata! hahaha!
That was a great review, especially considering you didn't know who most of the performers were or what they were singing. They should have had some guy on the corner dressed in Canadian paraphernalia handing out programs or something. It might have been good for your soul.
Allison, you must be getting so excited. No doubt you just want to be on that plane and gone! Can`t wait to hear about your upcoming adventures. Although, we will understand if you have to leave us for a time and work on actual papers for actual classes!
Justacoolcat, Happy July 4th! No doubt you and the wife have something fabulous planned. Hope it involves some good music, good wine and maybe even a firework or two thrown in.
Evelyne, thanks for the information. I`m glad you were there having fun with friends. It was great talking to you last night too by the way. I`ll try and work on my backwards apostrophes but I find it so much faster to leave them in there!
Barbara, my soul is still lost I`m afraid and I am learning to keep a wide berth to any and all hanging around the street corners.
Wow, what a great description of the events...I felt as though I was there with you.
Sounds fantastic...especially the rainbow. How welcoming that is.
Soak up every bit of it...you deserve this wonderful experience. I'm just a wee bit jealous. :)
Sounds a great place and event!
Was the mystery singer Bob Marley :0)
old Montreal must be beautiful... you know the French influence and all... that's the difference between London and Paris... e.g. in London our iron railings go straight up with a stately pointy bits atop (unless they're dreadful modern ones) ... in France the same things would be all swirly... French things are swirlier than anglo-American things. That's the only way I can put my finger on it... sorry am I going off at a bit of a tangent here?...
ok hope you're having a great weekend!
all the best!
gleds
The pictures you paint (and post) are intriguing, and goes to help me understand why so many Japanese want to choose Canada in their 'year-abroad' option at some universities...
Hey, time for an update, n'est ce pas?
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