Phew

I finally have internet installed at home. Back to living in the 21st century. I really hope this will lessen the hours that I spend at work.
Oh, I also have a land line again. Back to living in the 20th century. Actually, that's not entirely true, I went for VOIP (I know, I'm so "now").

Kurios

About a month ago, I watched Kurios, the newest production by Cirque du Soleil. It was AWESOME. There weren't any acts that I didn't enjoy.
I think my favourite act was the Acro Net. I'm a sucker for flips, tricks and light hearted acts. I really appreciated the comedic touches in it too!
The Rola Bola reminded me of my time in Switzerland when the team I was skating with did off-ice training with these things. I remember falling off a couple times!
The clown act(s) in Cirque shows is/are always good. This one did not disappoint.
The opening act got the audience into the mood of the show. The costumes, music...amazing. The first part of this opening with the percussive piece reminded me of the Irish hand dancing video that went viral a couple years ago. I have no idea if that was the inspiration, but that's all I could think about. In fact, speaking of inspirations, the show seemed like it was inspired by Micmacs. The colours, the costumes, the music.

Anyway - if you ever have a chance to see the show, you HAVE to go.

- picture courtesy of Cirque du Soleil

Barber of Seville

Last night, I attend the extra night of the Opera de Montreal's production of the Barber of Seville.

It was the first opera buffa that I've seen. And that made a big difference. You see, operas are supposed to end in tragedy. If the curtain doesn't close on a body sprawled on the floor (or imaginarily off-stage in a lake or something) it's not quite right. This whole comedic thing is not what I'm used to.

I mean, it was...different. Sure, it was nice to laugh, but because I have never seen a staging of an opera buffa (or even a video of one), I wasn't sure how over the top they're typically supposed to be.

Three things that I spent more time questioning rather than just enjoying the production:
1. Basilio - Too flamboyant of an interpretation? I was distracted by him!
2. Figaro - Owns a battery powered flashlight?
3. Characters wearing black unitards and oversized balloons attached to their heads - HUH?!?!?! This was to be some sort of staging choice during Basilio's aria. Imagine dark lighting, smoke machines, and 10-20 of these 'characters' crawling around the stage. So confused.

That being said, it was fun. I thought Figaro (Etienne Dupuis) and Rosina (Carol Garcia) were fantastic. And the star of the show (for me, at least) was Bartolo (Carlo Lepore). Lots of funny moments, nice character details and interpretations, and of course great singing.

A nice touch, the production was sponsored by Movember. And fun mustaches made their appearances in the production as well.

Not that I would say that it wasn't deserved, but the show ended in a standing ovation. So, is this just a cultural norm or in fact a brilliant performance?

It was a nice night out. My first time in the Place des Arts which is a lovely, well, place for the arts. The main theatre was really large (I wanted to make my way up to the top balcony to see what the view is like up there, but I kid you not, the escalators - I couldn't actually find the stairs - were only going up pre-show and down at the beginning of the intermission and post-show) but more modern instead of the red velvet and gold gilding of old-school theatres. I walked by some nice restaurants that I'll have to try out at some point and interesting galleries that I'll need to visit. There was a photo exhibition of Dancers Among Us (which was lovely, of course). I'm looking forward to getting out more often and enjoying everything that this city has to offer!

- picture courtesy of Opera de Montreal

Les Étoiles du Métro

On my way to the opera last night (post to come), I stumbled across the auditions for Les Etoiles du Metro. It such a wonderful idea, and there was a small crowd gathered to listen to the musicians. The musicians that you see/hear in the metro they're not just 'whoever'. There are many talent artists who add to your soundtrack of your commute.

A city that loves its sports teams

Now, I'm not saying that Toronto doesn't love its sports teams, but when you are new to a city, you tend to notice things. And this is what I notice about Montreal.
The buses are cheering on the local teams, the bus drivers are listening to the games.
There are people tailgating outside of the stadium today before the football game starts. Cops line the streets to direct traffic and pedestrians. Buses have been commissioned to act as shuttles. People are not only wearing Alouette's paraphernalia, but they're also well prepared for the reality of the elements and stadium seating. Parkas, snowpants, an assortment of bum pads and cushions, and blankets to keep warm.I haven't ventured downtown for when a Canadiens play, but I'm sure it's just as crazy (if not crazier).

Karma?

It's snowing.

Holding out

For the past couple of years, I would wait until (at least) December 1st to switch to my sorta winter coat. And then wait until (at least) January 1st to switch to my actual winter coat.
I'm wondering if I'll have to make the switch a little earlier this year. So far so good. I mean, there's no snow on the ground (which is kinda nice seeing as how I know lots of other people in different cities and provinces who already have had to deal with snow this year) sauf a random day here and there we're hovering around 0 degrees.
I've been going back and forth between two fall coats that I own, always ensuring that I have a mega warm scarf. The scarf makes all the difference. I probably should pull out my mittens (I need to buy a new pair of leather gloves...freak accident last year where something leaked in my bag and I'm not sure if I can revive my gloves) because my hands are always in my pockets.
Some nights I am feeling a little chilly, but I just walk faster and think of the warmth that's waiting for me at home. Do I dare switch to a different coat. We'll see.
Oh, and for some warm thoughts, the picture is from the first weekend after I moved into my place. I was having a snack on my front balcony (I have a side and rear one as well!), writing some cards, and being serenaded by Rush or Bowie (I forget) and the many folks who were out and about and hanging out across the street in/by
the pool (which was the last weekend it was open).

Le parfum de Montreal

So for a couple of days (at least since I've been here) the city smells. Maybe not the entire city, but near where I work. And even gets into the ducts and my office stinks. Like manure.
The first time it happened I got really self conscious. I wasn't sure what was going on and I have to admit that I did a self-check to make sure I didn't step in something or have some sort of accident that I wasn't aware of. I mean, the smell was bad and very apparent.
I finally asked a colleague the most recent time that I smelled it if he noticed anything and he let me know that across the river, the farms are taking care of their fields and it just wafts into the city.
So I'm not going crazy!

Marche Jean-Talon

As you know, I've been making Jean-Talon my market of choice when I have time to go. It's close to where I live and it's awesome. Most recently when I went, I noticed that they winterfied it.
In nice weather there are so many outdoor stalls in the market, but with the colder weather approaching (or here, depending on how you look at it) they've erected gazebo/tent/covered areas so that the 'outdoor' vendors are in fact 'indoors'. I'm not sure if this will mean that there are less vendors in the cold weather seasons than in the warm-weather seasons (I'm suspecting so)but it's still a nice place to pick up produce and grab a snack.

One of the times that I was at the market, I decided to have a snack of sausages on a stick. I didn't have the list of sausage types with me as I was snacking so I'm not able to remember which type I preferred (I can definitely say it wasn't the lamb, though!) but it was neat to try the variety that was available. It's the "Super 8" that I got, bien sur!
Each time I'm there, I see people ordering different things off of the menu and I can't help but giggle when I see people gnawing at the meat off the bone. I should nab a picture of it the next time I'm there.

"Welcome to Quebec!"

I had a lovely phone conversation with a gentleman about exchanging my Driver's License. After figuring out the logistics of what I need to bring with me to my appointment (booking one-month in advance!) to get my new driver's license, he told me about how much it cost to keep said license. Turns out QC folks have to renew their license every year on their birthday. And pay a nice little sum of money to boot. "What a horrible birthday present!" I said to my fellow Quebecker. I told him about the differences in Ontario and we had a good laugh. To which he said, well, you can probably guess!
I'm kind of sad to be turning over my Ontario card. I like it. And it'll be an reminder of this big change in my life...and my identity. One that I'm still grappling with.