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words by Neilia
Sherman
photos by Brian Waterman
 | A
quaint street scene in Montréal. |
Why
go to all the way to Europe when you can visit North America's most European city,
Montréal? The cafes, the food, the shopping, the locals who parlez en
Francais, it is all here, but with just enough of a Canadian slant that you
know you are in the province of Quebec. As my very knowledgeable tour guide put
it, "we are French but we are also proud to be Canadian, we are both."
Montréal
is the second largest French speaking city in the world, after Paris, with over
68% of the population being native French speakers, so, obviously, this is not
your typical North American city. Culturally, the difference is immediately noticeable
- -Montréalers do not shy away from making eye contact with strangers --
and the customary way to greet friends is to kiss them on both cheeks, unlike
Canadians in other provinces, who tend to keep a distance of at least three feet
and shake hands upon meeting. Where
to start in describing this wonderful city? Five hours from my hometown of Toronto
by train, Montréal is as different from its conservative cousin as night
and day. This is truly the city that never sleeps. Walking around on a Tuesday
night, there were crowds of people everywhere I went. In cafes, in restaurants,
on the streets. It looked like a busy long weekend in Toronto. Mais, ca c'est
la difference. People in Montréal love to walk, to eat, to socialize and
to enjoy their city, especially in the summer and Montréal is considered
to be a safe city for a woman to travel alone. For instance, Montréal's
subway system is one of the safest in the world with only 6 violations per 100,000
passengers recorded annually.  | Hard
at work at Juliette et Chocolate. |
The
hardest decision you may face is to pick a place to eat or even to have a drink
-- the restaurants and cafes are just that plentiful. After enjoying comedienne
Kathy Griffin's hilarious act, at the fabulous "Just for Laughs" Comedy
Festival, I found myself with one of those inexplicable cravings for a late night
snack. Luckily a sign that said Juliette et Chocolat caught my eye. It turns out
that this chocolate-lovers dream had just been opened two weeks earlier by 22-year-old
Juliette Brun, a Parisian chef who was living out her dream by opening her own
cafe. (CONTINUE...)
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