April 25, 2014
Montreal All in One Piece: (Sort of)
Stopping in Montreal was a good idea. Not only is there the absolutely no question part about coming to see Josh and Sabrina and Amelia, Evee, and new baby Joey, but jet lag to Paris will be cut in half by six days of recuperation between flights. The red eye timing is also good, because you can sleep through much of the flight, during normal sleep time.
Not so great, in retrospect, was the transfer at Toronto. We didn't mind it, but clearly the big city baggage handlers had a different approach to the bikes from the ones we photographed at Vancouver. They must think the plastic bag around the bikes is to hold the parts they smash and crack off them.
We haven't done a complete survey, but it was Dodie's bike they mainly took a shine to. (Well, they took something to it.) The locking mechanism of the Ortlieb handlebar bag bracket was smashed off. The Velcro strap holding the tire pump in a bracket under the main tube was ripped in half, and the pump left lying at the bottom of the bag, the plastic container strapped for protection to the rear derailleur was smashed, and zip straps that were holding padding under the fenders were torn off.
Needless to say, these changes rather tempered our pleasure in having our bikes back.
The next step was to find the baggage storage service at the airport, so we could stash the bikes there for the six days. We already knew that we would be charged $9.50 per bike per day, and had absorbed that. What was a bit surprising was the reception at the baggage counter. I had left Dodie with the duffel bags and one bike, and carried the other one over there. I wanted to set it down and zip back (30 seconds) for the other one. I asked the man at the counter to just keep an eye on bike one for 30 seconds. No way. Ok, I said, I am setting this down, and you need not look at it, then. No way. Can't leave an unattended bike here. OK, I am setting it down in the corridor, and I will be back in 30 seconds. No way. The bike is a threat to the airport if unattended. "But we are in a public non secured area, 10 feet from the outside street!" "You can't leave that bike anywhere (presumably, anywhere on the Island of Montreal and vicinity!). Take it back and only come back when you have both bikes together, your passport, and boarding pass for your flight in six days. And oh, you can't store it here in that (ripped) plastic bag."
So I found a cart and awkwardly put the bike on it. I returned to where Dodie was waiting, intending to put the second bike on the cart, so we could move both and our other bags to the storage counter. Now much as I love this lady and have been married to her for 47 years, I could have done without her opening gambit: "You can't put the bikes on that cart, they will be damaged". Yikes, another roadblock wielding official! Actually, I was eager to get this official over to the other one at the baggage counter, so I could watch the fireworks!
Some kind of negotiating and shifting did get both bikes onto the cart in a "approved" manner, and we returned en masse to the baggage counter. The guy over there folded (like a cheap suit) and the bikes went into storage in their bags and without their boarding pass!
From this point things picked up, as we easily discovered the bus that would take us to Montreal's efficient subway system and thereby to Joshua's place. So that's how we soon got to meet our newest grandchild, 5 week old Joey!
It was not long before we all headed out to find some food. Here, of course, is where Montreal really shines. At a bakery deli around the corner we found sandwiches and salads that really are not done justice by the mundane terms "sandwich" and "salad". We are talking here about crazy good baguettes, with Brie and ham and vegetables in there. We are talking about cous-cous and sweet potato and pickled cabbage. There were mountains of plain croissants, pear and other tartes, almond croissants, oh my! Amelia and Evee ate this exotic fare with gusto, little mess, and no noise. What great kids.
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Suitably restored, we headed for the bike shop. Josh had cleverly devised a birthday present for me. He claimed (correctly) that his bike (a 1980's era Nishiki) needed major refurbishment. He even had the rear wheel not turning and the headset partially disassembled. So my gift was to go to the bike shop and buy a bunch of parts. Tomorrow, the fun will continue as I get to install all the stuff! At the same time we asked about a replacement bracket for the Ortlieb handlebar bag. The fellow teased us by speculating that it would have to be ordered. However a trip to the back produced the item. For just $26 we are back in business.
We returned home in time to head out to a bakery in the other direction! This is a Polish bakery, unusual in this city. Their most famous item to us is the mohn strudel. Mohn, poppyseed paste, is the stuff whose pronunciation is the source of so much consternation or mirth from Sandra. Is it muhn, moon, moehn? I really don't know anymore. Actually, we didn't buy any this time around. This stuff, like it's heroine relative, is such a mainline to the pleasure centres of the brain (and the blubber centres of the waistline) that you can't just buy it willy nilly. However, I did get the most wonderful quark tasche (cheese danish). I grew up on this here, and my body considers it jet fuel. I only got one and hid it on top of the fridge. I will eat it only in small doses. Anyone else who goes after it up there is taking a risk with me! Yeah, Montreal!
Today is also Amelia's birthday. She is three! We held a small gift opening party, with more festivities to follow tomorrow. Among the great things in the boxes was a butterfly fairy type costume. Doesn't she look great?
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