Some Highlights From Montreal

I just spent a week in Montreal.  Other than the inevitable issues that arose from only speaking English (with a few French sentences here and there thrown in) in a primarily francophone city (fortunately, virtually everyone in Montreal is bilingual), it was a pretty cool experience.  I also got a chance to check out some of the city's sporting history, the most obvious of which is the team that has won more Stanly Cups than any other. 

My hotel was just down the street from the Bell Centre, so it was to my great excitement when I found out the Canadiens Hall of Fame is located inside the arena.  Now, I'm not a Canadiens fan.  But as a hockey fan, I can certainly appreciate their history.  They have more than twice as many championships as anyone else, and some of the greatest players ever to play the game wore Canadiens sweaters.  The opportunity to check out their Hall of Fame was simply too good to pass up.

The Bell Centre

As soon as you walk in, there's a wall with every captain
in Canadiens history.  Bill Durnan is significant because
he was the last goalie to be a captain before the NHL made
a rules change prohibiting it.

The great Jean Beliveau was Montreal's longest-serving
captain and won 10 Stanley Cups in 18 seasons.

Jose Theodore's touque from the 2003 Heritage Classic, the
NHL's first outdoor game.

When the Forum closed and the Canadiens moved to the Bell Centre,
every living team captain participated in a historic "passing of the
torch" from one building to the other.

The Canadiens have won the Stanley Cup 24 times, the most
championships by any team in North America other than the Yankees.

 

The great Maurice "Rocket" Richard, the greatest player in Canadiens
history and the NHL's first real superstar.

The main entrance of the Forum, the Canadiens' home from 1924-96.

Montreal's most recent championship was in 1992-93.

Yes, the street the Bell Centre is located on is called "Montreal Canadiens Street."

I also got to go on the field at Percival Molson Stadium, which is where the CFL's Montreal Alouettes play.

The view from centre field (the 55-yard-line).

My last stop was Olympic Stadium, site of the 1976 Olympics and former home of the late, great Montreal Expos.  Most of Olympic Park was closed for construction, and the stadium itself was closed because it's hosting the finals of the FIFA Women's Under-20 World Cup this weekend.  The world's largest inclined tower, the Stadium's most distinctive feature, was also closed.  None of that stopped me from getting pictures of what I was able to access.

The Olympic pool is located inside the base of the Tower, and I was
able to find this view of it from the Stadium lobby.

The former Olympic practice track is now Stade Saputo, home
of the Montreal Impact of Major League Soccer.

This is actually from inside the Olympic Park subway station.

So, there you have it.  Sorry that this got kinda lengthy, but as you can see, I had a pretty good week in Montreal.  It's good to be home, though.