Tuesday, August 2, 2016

Montreal

The following picture was taken from the side window of the RV traveling at about 50 MPH so it it not the best but I thought it was too interesting  not to post it.


This is a buffer wall along the freeway going into Montreal.  Instead of a solid wall of cinder blocks or cement there are these windows set in.  I assume the windows are out of plexiglass or something similar but surely not glass.  Anyway because of those windows the wall was not so fort-like as most of them are. 

Well, I do not like Montreal!  That isn't like me but I can't help it, the thought of going back there makes me shudder. 


It started about here...
On entering Quebec Province and heading east I decided to get off the freeway for a while so I could experience a feel for this very French part of Canada.  And then the rain started, and it came down hard.
I had been told I should not drive in downtown Montreal but to park instead across the St. Lawrence River from the city and take a bus.


Why, you ask?  Because the streets are very narrow and there is a huge amount of construction on the streets right now.  But the rain got me confused and I ended up going over the bridge into the city before I could turn around.  And once I was in the city I was detoured up and down so many streets I could not get back on the bridge.


Betsy, the GPS, was almost crying with the constant detours--well maybe not the GPS but I was close to tears.  It did not help that all the signs were in French and very foreign to me.


And then I came to an overpass that was too low--by several inches--for me to go under! (I absolutely refuse to hit another thing.)   But what was I to do? It was a one-way street!  I pulled to the curb and endured the dirty looks from the other drivers as they went around me.  As soon as the street was empty I did a hurried boot-leg turn and drove two blocks the wrong way on a one-way street--shaking all the way.


And that was not the only low overpass I came to where I had to back up and turn around.  And all those people on the streets were having so much fun, and all I could do was drive in circles.


I spent the entire afternoon driving--no where.  As evening approached I found a city parking lot with     some hotel vans and city buses parked in it.  Maybe I could fit in without being noticed.  I actually hoped someone would call the police--preferably a bi-lingual one--who would help me get out of the city.


The next morning I just started pushing east until I left the outskirts of town and finally I found a bridge that would take me to the opposite side of the river.


Good Grief!  I just spent two days in Montreal and never once got out of the RV!

3 comments:

  1. Montreal is a tough one. There aren't a lot of cities that defeat us but that is one of them.(along with NYC, Boston and San Francisco) When we first started RVing Montreal allowed overnight RV parking on Clocktower Quay - expensive fee but worth it to be within walking distance of Old Montreal.

    Quebec City still has an overnight RV lot at the small boat harbor if you make it up that way.

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  2. As bad as the experience was, Quebec City made it all right again. (my next posting). Thanks for letting me know I am not a total wimp though I am sure I could have been smarter in my planning.

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  3. Your journeys are fascinating. I hope to join you on the road one day.

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