Author: nellyglass

It rained all day. We walked, we enjoyed great street art, ate amazing food and saw a church or two.

• This cute little hotel we are staying at offers a continental breakfast in a wicker basket hanging on your room door knob… how fun is that!
• We were away by 8am and caught the subway/bus north to Little Italy to see a church that I didn’t see yesterday… a church I just had to see… St. Michael and St. Anthony, designed and decorated by Guido Nincheri. Alas, we missed the morning mass and it was closed! But I called the office and got info on the evening mass schedule. We would return later in the afternoon on our way to dinner.
• We walked south the length of Rue St. Laurent admiring the fantastic street art murals painted on the sides of buldings at almost every intersection. What a vibrant art culture in this city!
• At the bottom of R. St. Laurent, we walked through the gates of Chinatown and made our way to St. Patrick’s Basilica. Huge, dark and solemn, it is a very majestic church.
• A snack refresher at Crew Cafe in the old Royal Bank building on Rue St. Jacques. Excellent salad and coffee in such a grand setting.
• Back to the hotel to dry out for the afternoon
• On the bus again at 5pm to head back to Outremont neighborhood to see two more churches:
• Saint Viateur: what a surprise to find this church complete with several Nincheri frescoes. 5 o’clock mass was just starting so Monica and I sat at the back and enjoyed the music. The stained glass is phenomenal but it’s the elaborate carvings of the alter and reredos that draw the eye.
• Finally, St. Michael and St. Anthony: Guido Nincheri’s painted all the frescoes here and they are beautiful. Hard to imagine him laying on scaffolding for hours some 80 feet off the floor as he painted. And the huge stained glass fan windows are spell binding with their bright orange splashes of color.
• Dinner was at Main on Rue St. Laurent for some famous Montreal smoked meat sandwiches. They are everything and more they claim to be… huge and delicious. I couldn’t finish mine!

Here are the day’s photos: Montreal Street Art

We were up and away from Trois Rivieres at 5:30 in a calculated effort to beat the morning rush traffic into Montreal.

• We arrived at our hotel at 7:15 and parked the car for the next two days.
• Hotel check-in time was not until 3pm so we set out on foot to see some sights
• Within 10 minutes, we had our subway passes and headed toward the Westmount neighborhood, stoping a couple of times to see the artfully decorated subway stations at Place des Arts and McGill
• Our first short walk was to see the church Saint Leon de Westmont, widely considered Guido Nincheri’s masterpiece of stained glass. Sadly, it was closed today (Monday) … oh, I’ll be back!
• Next, we stopped at Mount Royal to see the basilica Oratory of St. Joseph. Relatively new (1960’s), the glass and decor are very contemporary. However, the crypt under the basilica has some lovely traditional glass.
• We continued to the Outremont neighborhood to visit Sainte Madeleine d’Outrement church. It was also closed today but the care takers were setting up for a mid-week bizzarre and they let us in. We had it all to ourselves. Beautiful windows. Quiet and serene, we whispered even though we were the only ones there.
• We carried onward to the Little Italy neighborhood to visit Notre Dame de la Defense. A funeral procession was just arriving so we had to scurry in ahead of them, get the shots and get out. Before WWII, Guido Nincheri was commissioned to design and decorate this church from the ground up. Against his wishes, the Italian community insisted he include an image of Mussolini on a horse in the mural over the alter. Following the war, the Canadian government arrested and sentenced Nincheri to four months in jail for treason. After his release, he left Canada and settled in Rhode Island.
• Lunch at Pizza Napoletana, a truly happening spot with great food. The wine list is “Bring Your Own” so Monica had to scoot across the street to buy a bottle and bring it back the restaurant. Different and fun!
• We strolled through the large and colorful Jean-Talon market, sampling the pasteries… approved!
• Back to the hotel to check in and a rest before dinner. Auberge le Pomerol… a small, cute hotel and right above a subway station.
• Monica’s nephew, Brent Taylor, picked us up at 6:30 and toured us through the largely Hasidic Jewish neighborhood of Outremont. Brent’s wife, Helene, met us at one of their favorite restaurants, Rumi, a blend of North African and Persian food. What a fantastic meal and so great to catch up with family. Thank you Helene and Brent for a wonderful evening!

Here are the day’s photos: Montreal Arriving

A beautiful sunrise had us up early and ready to go. The destination today was just a 1.5 hour drive to the city of Trois Rivieres to see three amazing churches. I have posted just a sample of each in today’s photo gallery. For all photos, see Gallery/World Windows:

• St. Jean Baptist Cathedral in the town of Nicolet just across the river from Trois Rivieres. Here we saw the gigantic and breathtaking window of St. Jean B. designed by local Nicolet artist, Jean-Paul Charland, and crafted at the Max Ingrand studios in France.
• Sanctuary (basilica) Notre Dame du Cap on the eastern skirts of the city and set on the banks of the St. Lawrence River. We arrived just as 10 o’clock mass was starting so we spent the hour strolling around the park-like grounds. Inside, my jaw fell to the floor staring at the five large windows. My photos cannot possibly capture the grandeur. As the crowd dispersed, the deacons turned off the lights which allowed the windows to glow even brighter.
• Cathedral of the Assumption in the downtown sector. Perhaps the most exquisite of the three churches today, it is filled with 125 Guido Nincheri windows of unsurpassed beauty. His work is so intricate and his figures have a fluid livliness. The nuns were just setting out the Eucharistic for the aternoon mass. Otherwise, we had the church all to ourselves.
• Lunch was at O’Centro Pub and Grill. As we were waiting for food, Ryan called to wish his mother a Happy Mother’s Day and Sarah sent a text wishing the same. 😊 Good children!
• Then to our hotel to relax and blog. It was a stellar day!

Here are the day’s photos: Trois Cathedrals in Trois Rivieres

The day dawned with the hope of sunshine. It tried really hard the rest of the day and almost made it through a few times. Very cold and breezy though. Then, at the end of the day as we strolled home after dessert, the sun burst through and lit up the city before us.

• Monica and I took an early morning drive north of the city to Lac Beauport to find the hotel where we stayed on our honeymoon 35 years ago. Such wonderful memories!
• Back to our hotel before 9am and set out on foot to explore the old city quarter
• Watched as 20,000 marathon runners streamed noisily through the streets
• Visit to the City Market (just opening and not busy during our visit)
• Breakfast at Buffet de Antiquaire for yummy crepes
• Stroll along quaint Rue Petit Champlain, oldest street in Canada.
• Visit Notre Dame de Quebec Basilica- oldest church in Canada and has the only Holy Door in the Americas (opened once every 25 years)
• Visit Chapelle des Urselines with its lovely guilded wood altar and colorful rose window
• Strolled the Plains of Abraham back to our hotel for afternoon siesta
• Dinner right next door to our hotel at La Cepas Spanish restaurant. So good! Wonderful ambiance.
• After dinner stroll around the block to find dessert. We found it at Les Cousins on Rue Cartier. To die for… and I think we just might if we keep on eating like this.

Here are the day’s photos: Exploring Old Quebec

Even though the forecast was for rain all day, Monica and I did get some walking exercise between the showers.

• A hearty breakfast at JaJa restaurant (in our hotel).
• Visit the Plains of Abraham museum just down the street from our hotel. This is a meticulously curated and maintained museum… and so humbling to retrace Canada’s monumental battle between the French and English.
• Visit Eglise Saint Dominique: beautiful contemporary windows.
• Visit Eglise Saint Roche: we arrived just as a funeral was finishing. Again, stunning windows… especially the “Seeing Eye” in the West over the pipe organ.
• Retreat to our hotel for an afternoon lounge in the pool and hot tub.
• Dinner was a short walk in a light rain to Pub Galway on Rue Cartier. Excellent food, service and ambiance. The short walk home, however, was in the pouring rain. Nevertheless, our spirits were not dampened after this fun day.

Here are the day’s photo highlights: Quebec City in the rain

This spring, Monica and I are on a much anticipated road trip through Eastern Canada. We are planning five or six major stops between Saint John and Toronto to see the sights and experience the cultural glories of each city. We are also hopeful to connect with some family and friends along the way, some of whom we have not seen in nearly 40 years!

Each day, I will highlight our activities in bullet form followed by the day’s photo gallery.

Day 1:

• Away at 7am with a breakfast pit stop in Woodstock
• First stop: Edmundson at the Cathedral of Immaculate Conception to see the stained glass by Italian/Canadian Guido Nincheri (dubbed the Canadian Michaelangelo) and his apprentice Matteo Martirano. I was so excited to see these. More from Nincheri later.
• Next, to the town of Beaupre on the north shore of the St. Lawrence River and lunch at the Beau Pre micro-brewery.
• After lunch, to the beautiful Sainte Anne de Beaupre Basilica. The interior is covered with glass mosaics and filled with 250 stained glass windows by Frenchman Auguste Labouret (I have done work inspired by him… see “Art Deco Disconze”. A pilgrimage site in North America, this church’s most notable relic is the arm bone of Saint Anne.
• Into Quebec City to find our Hotel le Concorde on Grand Allee. Great view from 20th floor room over the Plains of Abraham and Chateau Frontenac
• Stroll through Old Quebec. Found some street art that Monica couldn’t pass-by. Also in search of food and wine, we found both at a little convenience store. Enjoyed both in our room as we watch the city lights twinkle below.

Here are today’s photos: Quebec City Arriving