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Montreal
*** Shopping-Tip: Montreal
{{otheruses}}
{{Montreal infobox}}
'''Montreal''' or '''Montréal'''
#Notes 1 (
International Phonetic Alphabet pronounced Image:ltspkr.pngMedia:Montreal-english-pronunciation.ogg {{IPA|/ËŒmÊŒntɹiˈɒË?l/}} in
Canadian English,
Image:ltspkr.pngMedia:Montreal2.ogg {{IPA |/mɔ̃ʀeal/}} in International
French language French, and {{IPA |/mɒ̃ɾeal/}} in
Quebec French accent) is the second largest
city in
Canada and the largest city in the
Provinces and territories of Canada province of
Quebec. At the 2001 Canadian Census, there were 1,583,590 people living on the current territory of the city of Montreal proper (new 2006 demerged territory). The population of the Montreal
Census Metropolitan Area (also known as
Greater Montreal Area) is estimated at 3,635,700 in
2005 ([http://www40.statcan.ca/l01/cst01/demo05a.htm Statistics Canada]), making it the second largest French-speaking metropolitan area in the world. Montreal is ranked as the 15th largest metropolitan area in the Americas and 77th in the world. The city is the largest part of the
Quebec region of
Montréal (region) Montréal. It is the most densely populated city in Canada. Montreal is seriously considering a bid to host the
2016 Summer Olympics, which would mark the 40th anniversary since the Summer Olympics of 1976.
As in most parts of Quebec,
French language French is the most common spoken language in the city. Nevertheless, Montreal has a substantial
anglophone population and many of the residents are
bilingualism in Canada bilingual. Montreal is a "Gamma"
global city, hosting a multitude of international festivals and events including the
1976 Summer Olympics XXI Summer Olympiad,
Just for Laughs Juste pour Rire (Just for Laughs) comedy festival, the
Montreal Jazz Festival, the
Canadian Grand Prix Formula One Canadian Grand Prix, the
Montreal World Film Festival, and many others. During the period of
prohibition in the
United States, Montreal became well-known as one of North America's "sin cities" with unparalleled
nightlife, a reputation it still holds today. In 2005, only 35 homicides were committed in the city, one of the lowest numbers in its history.
Montreal has the highest concentration of post-secondary students of all major cities in North America. The city is a centre of health and aerospace science. In 2005, it won the distinction of being chosen
UNESCO's "
World Book Capital World Book Capital City 2005–2006" due to its vibrant literary scene.
Montreal is situated in the south western corner of Quebec approximately 270
kilometres (168
miles) southwest of
Quebec City, the provincial capital, and 190 kilometres (118 mi) east of
Ottawa, the
Government of Canada federal capital, and 539 kilometres (335 mi) northeast of
Toronto. The city is located on the
Island of Montreal at the confluence of the
Saint Lawrence River Saint Lawrence and
Ottawa River Ottawa Rivers. The port of Montreal lies at one end of the
St. Lawrence Seaway, which is the river gateway that stretches from the
Great Lakes up into the
Atlantic Ocean.
History
{{main|History of Montreal}}
Huron,
Algonquin, and
Iroquois have inhabited the Montreal area for some eight thousand years. The first European to reach the area was
Jacques Cartier, when, on
October 2,
1535, he entered the village of
Hochelega (village) Hochelega, on the
Island of Montreal.
Seventy years later,
Samuel de Champlain arrived on the island, but the village of Hochelaga no longer existed. In 1611, he established ''La Place Royale'', a
fur trading post on the
Island of Montreal, but the local Iroquois successfully defended their land. The first permanent European settlement on the Island of Montreal was created in 1639 by a
France French tax collector named Jérôme Le Royer. Missionaries
Paul Chomedey de Maisonneuve,
Jeanne Mance and a few French colonists set up a mission named Ville Marie on
May 17,
1642.
Image:old montreal.jpg Old_Montreal.html" title="Meaning of thumb thumb|right|250px|[[Old Montreal.html" title="Meaning of right|250px|[[Old Montreal">thumb|right|250px|[[Old Montreal">right|250px|[[Old Montreal">thumb|right|250px|[[Old MontrealVille Marie became a centre for the
fur trade and the Catholic religion, as well as a base for further exploration into
New France. The Iroquois continued their attacks on the settlement until a peace treaty was signed in 1701. The town remained French until 1760, when
Pierre François de Rigaud, Marquis de Vaudreuil-Cavagnal surrendered it to the
Great Britain British army under
Jeffrey Amherst. Fire destroyed one quarter of the town on
May 18,
1765.
The
Treaty of Paris (1763) Treaty of Paris in 1763 ended the
French and Indian War Seven Years' War and ceded New France to the
Kingdom of Great Britain.
American Revolution American Revolutionists briefly held the city in 1775 but soon left. By this time, the city had gained its present name of Montreal, and it started to grow from British immigration. The golden era of fur trading began in the city with the advent of the locally owned
North West Company, the main rival to the primarily British
Hudson's Bay Company.
Montreal was incorporated as a city in 1832. The city's growth was spurred by the opening of the
Lachine Canal, which permitted ships to pass by the unnavigable Lachine Rapids south of the island. Montreal was the capital of the
United Province of Canada from 1844 to 1849, bringing more English-speakers to the city, making the two linguistic groups roughly equal in size. The resulting increased
Anglophone community built one of Canada's first
university universities,
McGill University McGill, and the wealthy merchant classes began building large mansions at the foot of
Mont Royal.
In 1852 Montreal had 58,000 inhabitants; by 1860 it was the largest city in British North America and the undisputed economic and cultural centre of Canada. The
Canadian Pacific Railway made its headquarters there in 1880, and the
Canadian National Railway in 1919.
Saint Jacques Street in what is now
Old Montreal, then better known as Saint James Street, became the centre of the Canadian financial industry in the late 19th century; the name "Saint James Street" was used as a metonym for Canadian high finance as much as "Wall Street" is used in the United States, or "Bay Street" is used in Toronto today. With the annexation of neighbouring towns between 1883 and 1918, Montreal became a mostly Francophone city again. The tradition to alternate between a
Francophone and an
Anglophone mayor thus began and lasted until 1914.
Image:Palais1880.jpg right|thumb|250px|The Montreal courthouse in 1880.After
World War I, the
Prohibition movement in the
United States turned Montreal into a haven for Americans looking for
alcoholic beverage alcohol. Despite the increase in
tourism,
unemployment remained high in the city, and was exacerbated by the
Wall Street Crash 1929 Stock Market Crash of 1929 and the
Great Depression. However, Canada began to recover from the Great Depression in the mid-1930s, and skyscrapers such as the
Sun Life Building began to appear.
During
World War II, Mayor
Camillien Houde protested against
conscription and urged Montrealers to ignore the
Government of Canada federal government's registry of all men and women.
Ottawa was furious over Houde's insubordination and put him in a prison camp until 1944, when the government was forced to institute conscription (see
Conscription Crisis of 1944).
After Montreal's population surpassed one million in the early 1950s, Mayor
Jean Drapeau laid down plans for the future development of the city. These plans included a new
metro system and an
Underground city, Montreal underground city, the expansion of Montreal's
harbour, and the opening of the
Saint Lawrence Seaway. New buildings were built on top of old ones in this time period, including Montreal's two tallest skyscrapers up to then: the 43-storey
Place Ville-Marie and the 47-storey
Tour de la Bourse. Two new
museums were also built, and finally in 1966, the
Montreal Metro metro opened, along with several new expressways.
The city's
World City international status was cemented by
Expo '67 Expo 1967 '67 and the
1976 Summer Olympics Summer Olympics in 1976. A major league baseball team, the
Montreal Expos, was named after the Expo and started playing in Montreal in 1969. However, the team moved to
Washington, DC in 2005, where it was named
Washington Nationals.
After the ascent to power of the
Parti Québécois in the mid-
1970s, Montreal's linguistic and ethnic composition underwent a period of transition greater than the norm for urban centres, as many anglophones relocated to Ontario. The passing of
Bill 101 in
1977 would also ensure linguistic change, as new immigrants to the province learned
French language French and became known as
Allophone (Quebec) allophones (also see
Bilingualism in Canada). The election of a separatist provincial government also had a negative effect on Montreal's economy, as a number of organizations, most prominently Sun-Life Insurance Co., relocated out of the province, moving mostly to Toronto. Toronto eclipsed Montreal around this time as Canada's largest city and chief financial hub. Throughout the 1980s and well into the 1990s, Montreal experienced a relatively slow rate of job growth as compared to other major Canadian cities.
Montreal celebrated its 350th anniversary in 1992, prompting the construction of two of Montreal's tallest skyscrapers:
1000 de La Gauchetière and
1250 René-Lévesque. Currently, Montreal's favourable economic conditions allow further improvements in
infrastructure, with the expansion of the
Montreal Metro metro system and the development of a
ring road around the island. Neighbourhood
gentrification is also occurring. Montreal now constitutes its own
List of Quebec regions region of Quebec.
Image:1545montreal-07.jpg
In late 2005, Montreal hosted the
United Nations Climate Change Conference, the first meeting joint meeting of the parties to the
Kyoto Protocol and to the
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
Climate
Image:Montreal - Plateau, day of snow - 200312.jpg snow.html" title="Meaning of thumb thumb|250px|right|Winter in Montreal sometimes brings large amounts of [[snow..html" title="Meaning of 250px|right|Winter in Montreal sometimes brings large amounts of [[snow">thumb|250px|right|Winter in Montreal sometimes brings large amounts of [[snow.">250px|right|Winter in Montreal sometimes brings large amounts of [[snow">thumb|250px|right|Winter in Montreal sometimes brings large amounts of [[snow.
Montreal lies at the confluence of several climactic regions and thus the
climate in Montreal varies greatly, both by
season and by day to day, and is considered a part of the culture of the city by Montrealers.
Precipitation (meteorology) Precipitation is abundant with an average
snowfall of 2.14 metres (7.0
foot (unit of length) ft) per year in the
winter and regular
rainfall throughout the year. Each year the city government spends more than
Canadian dollar C$50 million on
snow removal.
Summer is the wettest season statistically, but it is also the sunniest.
The coldest month of the year is January, which has a daily average temperature of −10.4 °C (13
Fahrenheit °F) — averaging a daily low of −14.9 °C (5.2 °F). Due to
wind chill, the perceived temperature can be much lower than the actual temperature and wind chill factor is often included in Montreal weather forecasts. The warmest month is July which has a daily average temperature of 20.9 °C (69.6 °F) — averaging a daily high of 26.3 °C (79.3 °F). The lowest temperature ever recorded was −37.8 °C (−36.0 °F) on
15 January 1957 and the highest temperature ever was 37.6 °C (99.7 °F) on
1 August 1975[http://www.climate.weatheroffice.ec.gc.ca/climate_normals/results_e.html?Province=ALL&StationName=montreal&SearchType=BeginsWith&LocateBy=Province&Proximity=25&ProximityFrom=City&StationNumber=&IDType=MSC&CityName=&ParkName=&LatitudeDegrees=&LatitudeMinutes=&LongitudeDegrees=&LongitudeMinutes=&NormalsClass=A&SelNormals=&StnId=5415]. Moderate to high
humidity is common in the summer. In
spring (season) spring and
autumn, rainfall averages between 55 and 94 mm (2.2 and 3.7
inch in) a month. Some snow in spring and autumn is normal. Similarly, late heat waves as well as "
Indian summers" are a regular feature of the climate[http://www.weather.com/outlook/travel/climatology/monthly/CAXX0301].
Despite its widely varying climate, the Montreal region supports a diverse array of
plants and
wildlife. The
maple is one of the most common
trees and the
sugar maple in particular is an enduring symbol of Montreal and
Quebec, thanks to the production of
maple syrup.
Demographics
''See also:
List of famous Montrealers''
The
Census Metropolitan Area of Montreal (also known as
Greater Montreal Area) has a population of 3,635,700 in
2005 according to
Statistics Canada ([http://www40.statcan.ca/l01/cst01/demo05a.htm]). This total includes the neighbouring cities of
Laval, Quebec Laval and
Longueuil, Quebec Longueuil, as well as other smaller cities. Montreal proper, in its new city borders following the
January 1,
2006 demerger, has a population of 1,583,590 (according to 2001 census figures). A resident of Montreal is known as a Montrealer in English and a ''Montréalais(e)'' in French. Residents sometimes refer to the city by the shorthand of MTL, or occasionally by the
Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport Pierre Elliott Trudeau Airport designation of YUL. The large population of Montreal justifies it having its own postal district,
List of H Postal Codes of Canada H span, together with
Laval, Quebec Laval.
About 67.8% of the population of Montreal area is composed of
francophones, 18.4% have neither French nor English as their first language and are called
allophone (Quebec) allophones, and 13.8% are
anglophones. On the
island of Montreal itself, these numbers change and francophones constitute only 53% of the population, allophones 29%, and anglophones 18%. However, the majority of residents have at least a working knowledge[http://www.statcan.ca/english/Pgdb/demo18a.htm] of both languages, and a majority of allophones speak either English or French as a second language. This trend has increased after the
Charter of the French Language French language legislation of the 1970s.
Armenian language Armenian,
Italian language Italian,
Romanian language Romanian,
Arabic language Arabic,
Greek language Greek,
Portuguese language Portuguese,
Spanish language Spanish and
Hindi language Hindi are also very popular languages.
The
Caucasian race Caucasian population is vastly descended from people of
French people French,
Irish people Irish,
Scottish people Scottish and
Italian people Italian origin[http://www40.statcan.ca/l01/cst01/demo27h.htm]. According to Statistics Canada 2001, the top four ethnic groups in the city are
Canadian at 55.7% (1,885,085), French at 26.6% (900,485), Italian at 6.6% (224,460), and Irish at 4.7% (161,235).
Statistics Canada concludes that those who identified themselves as Canadian are most likely of British, French or Irish origin whose families have been in Canada for many generations.
Montreal is a multi-ethnic city. Caucasians are the majority in the city but there are substantial groups of minorities.[http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census01/products/standard/themes/RetrieveProductTable.cfm?Temporal=2001&PID=58628&METH=1&APATH=3&PTYPE=55440&THEME=44&FREE=0&AID=0&FOCUS=0&VID=0&GC=99&GK=NA&SC=1&CPP=99&SR=1&RL=0&RPP=9999&D1=0&D2=0&D3=0&D4=0&D5=0&D6=0&GID=431565]
*
Caucasian race White: 2,886,400 or 86.8%
*
Blacks: 129,705 or 3.9%
*
Arab: 67,830 or 2.0%
*
South Asian: 56,655 or 1.7%
*
Han Chinese Chinese: 50,115 or 1.5%
*
mixed race: 46,900 or 1.4%,
Religion
For a major North American city of its size, the Catholic population is visibly high as hundreds of churches dot the streets of Montreal. Over 84% of the population identify with the Christian heritage, the vast majority of them being of
Roman Catholic heritage mostly due to the heavy numbers of French, Italian, Irish, and Portuguese inhabitants in the city. The
Protestant and
Orthodox presence which is much smaller are chiefly those of
English people English,
Greek people Greek, and
Lebanon Lebanese peoples. However, since Quebec's
Quiet Revolution in the 1960s, very few francophone Quebecers practice their religion. The proportion of practicing Christians (especially Catholics) in Quebec is now significantly lower than the proportion of practicing Christians in the rest of Canada, or even North America.
Non-Christian religions are very large as well. The largest non-Christian group is now
Islam Muslim and is mostly composed of fairly recent arrivals. Montreal's
Jewish community, while in decline, has had a huge impact on the cultural, artistic, economic and gastronomic life of the city, dating back to the mid-18th century. There are also small
Buddhism Buddhist,
Sikh,
Bahá'à Faith Bahá'à and
Hindu communities.
Economy
Image:Mont.jpg thumb|300px|right|Montreal from the South
Once the largest city in Canada, Montreal remains a vibrant major centre of commerce, industry, culture, finance, and world affairs. Montreal is a major port city along the
Saint Lawrence Seaway, a deep-draft inland waterway which links it to the industrial centres of the
Great Lakes (North America) Great Lakes. It's the largest inland port in the world and is one of the most important. As one of the most important ports in Canada, it is a trans-shipment point for
cereal grain,
sugar,
petroleum products, machinery, and consumer goods. For this reason, it is part of the
railroad railway backbone of Canada and has always been an extremely important rail city; it is the eastern terminus of the
Canadian Pacific Railway and home to the headquarters of the
Canadian National Railway.
Montreal industries include
pharmaceuticals, high technology, textile and clothing manufacturing (the ''schamata'' industry),
higher education,
electronics electronic goods,
software engineering, building and city engineering, transportation devices, printed goods, fabric, and
tobacco.
Montreal is one of the world's top aerospace industry centres. It is often said that Montreal is the only city in the world where an entire airplane can be built, from the start of engine crafting to the last paint drop. The leading wagon of the industry is unquestionably
Bombardier, a manufacturer best known for medium-sized aircraft.
The headquarters of the
Canadian Space Agency are located in Longueuil, southeast of Montreal. Montreal also hosts the headquarters of the
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO, a
United Nations body); the
World Anti-Doping Agency (an
Olympics Olympic body); and the
International Air Transport Association (IATA); as well as some 60 other international organizations in various fields. The city is also a vibrant centre of Canadian film and television production. The operational headquarters and five studios of the
Academy Awards Academy Award-winning documentary producer the
National Film Board of Canada can be found here, as well as the head offices of
Telefilm Canada, the national fiction film and television funding agency.
Montreal is also a popular filming location for big Hollywood blockbusters, because the city can give both an European or American feel to a movie. This industry has been declining in recent years, as Vancouver in Western Canada has started to take much of Montreal's filming deals. Major titles filmed partly or entirely in Montreal include ''The Art of War'', ''The Aviator'', ''The Bone Collector'', ''Catch Me If You Can'', ''Cellular'', ''The Day after Tomorrow'', ''Driven'', ''Gothika'', ''Heist'', ''The Jackal'', ''John Q.'', ''The Notebook'', ''Rollerball'', ''Taking Lives'', ''Secret Window'', ''The Sum of All Fears'', ''The Terminal'' and both ''The Score'' and ''The Whole Nine Yards'' featured the city in script.
Places in Montreal
Image:Montreal Twilight Panorama 2006.jpg thumb|center|500px|Downtown Montreal as seen from Mount Royal at twilight
Downtown Montreal
Downtown Montreal lies at the foot of
Mount Royal, which is designated as a major urban
park. The Downtown area contains dozens of notable
skyscrapers — which, by law, cannot be higher than Mount Royal — including the aforementioned
1000 de La Gauchetière and
1250 René-Lévesque. The Tour de la Bourse is also a significant building in Montreal, as it is where all stock and derivative trades take place, and is also home to a successful program to encourage nesting peregrine falcons.
Place Ville-Marie, a
Ieoh Ming Pei-designed
cruciform office tower built in
1962, sits atop an underground shopping mall that forms the nexus of Montreal's
underground city, Montreal underground city, one of the world's largest, with indoor access to over 1,600 shops, restaurants, offices, and businesses, as well as
List of Montreal metro stations metro stations, transportation terminals, and tunnels extending all over downtown. The central axis for downtown is
Saint Catherine Street.
Other streets like Peel, de la Montagne, de Maisonneuve and Crescent are very popular as well. Downtown Montreal is located between the mountain
Mount Royal and the
St Lawrence River.
Two islands are located in front of the Montreal Skyline panorama, Île Ste. Hélène, and Ile Notre-Dame. The Notre Dame island hosts the Canadian Grand Prix and Formula One car races, as well as the Champ Car tournament.
Six Flags La Ronde La Ronde (now owned by American company
Six Flags) is the biggest amusement park in Montreal and is located on Île Ste. Hélène. The International Fireworks Festival is held there every summer.
The basic Skyline view may be seen from one of two lookouts on Mount Royal. The lookout at the Belevedere takes in downtown, the river, and the Montérégien Hills, and on clear days the Green Mountains of Vermont are visible. The view of eastern lookout on Remembrance Rd. sweeps out toward the Olympic Stadium, and beyond. Many tourists visit these lookouts.
Montreal is known for the contrast between old and new. The
Maison des Cooperants (a 146 m / 479 ft tall building) is right in front of an old church. Much of Old Montreal has been kept the way it was back in the day Montreal was first established. Old Montreal was a worldwide port, but shipping has been moved further east to the Port de Montreal site, leaving the Old Port/Vieux-Port as an historical area. The Montreal Skyline is ranked eighth in the
Emporis in skyline views, a focal point in Montreal's recognition.
The reason the Olympic Stadium was built 6 kilometres (3.7 miles) from downtown is that the owners thought that Montreal's downtown would expand to where the Olympic Stadium now stands.
'''Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth'''
At the center of Montréal's vibrant cultural and commercial district sits the city's grandest and most gracious hotel Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth recently recognized by Travel + Leisure as one of the 500 greatest hotels in the world. Located above the train station (Via Rail & AMTRAK) and connected to the extensive underground city of thousands of boutiques, restaurants and cafés, and within walking distance of sports and cultural attractions, the hotel reflects the distinct elegance and charm of Montréal. Host to over 30 festivals annually, the city offers entertainment for the whole family in summer or winter.
Old Montreal
Southeast of downtown is
Old Montreal (Vieux-Montréal), an historic area with such attractions as the Old Port,
Place Jacques-Cartier, City Hall, the Marché Bonsecours, Place d'Armes, Pointe-à -Callière Museum, and the
Notre-Dame de Montréal Basilica.
Architecture and cobbled streets in Old Montreal have been maintained or restored to keep the look of the city in its earliest days as a settlement, and horse-drawn calèches help maintain that image. Old Montreal was a worldwide port, but shipping has been moved further east to the Port de Montreal site, leaving the riverside area of Old Port/Vieux-Port as an historical area now restored and maintained by
Parks Canada. The most recent trip to the
North Pole departed from that specific port. Downtown and Old Montreal are connected by the recent
Quartier international de Montréal development, and is also served by ferries to the South Shore, and a network of bicycle paths.
Griffintown
Griffintown is the old name for a section of the city that spans from the borough of Point St. Charles to the Old Port, and north to Notre-Dame street. It was first settled by mostly Irish immigrants during the mid-late 1800's. The population consisted mostly of labourers who worked in the industries and construction in the area. It was marked by poverty and cramped living conditions.
Currently, it holds the stables for the horses that provide tours in carriages (calèche) around the Old Port. Many technological companies built office space in the area, and École de Technologie Supérieure (ÉTS) built its residence there. Much of the original architecture remains, however, and the locals who grew up in the area keep old ghost stories alive.
Olympic Park
image:Olympiastadion Montreal.jpg Stade Olympique right|thumb|250px|The [[Stade Olympique|Olympic Stadium, in the city's eastern section..html" title="Meaning of Olympic Stadium.html" title="Meaning of right|thumb|250px|The [[Stade Olympique|Olympic Stadium">right|thumb|250px|The [[Stade Olympique|Olympic Stadium, in the city's eastern section.">Olympic Stadium.html" title="Meaning of right|thumb|250px|The [[Stade Olympique|Olympic Stadium">right|thumb|250px|The [[Stade Olympique|Olympic Stadium, in the city's eastern section.
Montreal was host to one of the most successful
World's Fairs in history,
Expo '67. Partially based upon the success of the World's Fair, Montreal was awarded the
1976 Summer Olympics. The Olympic site was built 6 kilometres (3.7 miles) from downtown in the Hochelaga-Maisonneuve district. Montreal's Olympic Stadium has the world's tallest inclined tower at 175 meters high and leaning at 45 degree. Until the end of the 2004 season, the stadium was the home of the
Montreal Expos baseball team. The Olympic complex also includes the
Montreal Biodome,
Montreal Insectarium, and the
Montreal Botanical Garden, one of the largest
botanical gardens in the world, second only to
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew in
England. Two pyramidal towers, known as the Olympic Village, were built to house athletes. They now serve as apartments and offices.
Today, the CFL's Montreal Alouettes play their last game of their season and playoff games in the Olympic Stadium. It is nicknamed the "Big O" because of its oval shaped roof. It has a capacity of up to 56 040 fans for a football game (45 000 for baseball) and it may hold more in the future when temporary overflow stands are added to the dugout pits and centre field for football. Locals also sometimes refer to the stadium as the "Big Owe" — a reference to its exorbitant total cost, which was only recently completely paid off.
Museums and cultural centres
Montreal is the centre of
Culture of Quebec Quebec culture and a major centre of
Canadian culture in general. It has many specialized museums such as the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA), the Musée d'art contemporain (MAC), the
Redpath Museum, the
McCord Museum McCord Museum of Canadian History, and the
Canadian Centre for Architecture. The
Place des Arts cultural complex houses the MAC and several theatres, and is the seat of the Montreal Opera and for the moment the
Montreal Symphony Orchestra, which is slated to receive a new concert hall adjacent to Place des Arts.
Religious sanctuaries
Image:Niagara-Canada 714.jpg Saint Joseph's Oratory.html" title="Meaning of thumb thumb|right|250px|The [[Saint Joseph's Oratory is the largest church in Canada..html" title="Meaning of right|250px|The [[Saint Joseph's Oratory">thumb|right|250px|The [[Saint Joseph's Oratory is the largest church in Canada.">right|250px|The [[Saint Joseph's Oratory">thumb|right|250px|The [[Saint Joseph's Oratory is the largest church in Canada.
Nicknamed "the city of saints," or "la ville aux cent clochers" (''the city of a hundred belltowers''), Montreal is renowned for its churches. As described by
Mark Twain, "This is the first time I was ever in a city where you couldn't throw a brick without breaking a church window." The city has four
Roman Catholic basilicas:
Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral, the aforementioned
Notre-Dame de Montréal Basilica Notre-Dame Basilica,
St. Patrick's Basilica (Montreal) St. Patrick's Basilica, and
Saint Joseph's Oratory.
The Oratory is the largest church in Canada, with the largest dome of its kind in the world after that of
Saint Peter's Basilica in
Rome.
Other well-known churches include the pilgrimage church of Notre-Dame-du-Bon-Secours, which is sometimes called the Sailors' Church, and the
Anglican Christ Church Cathedral (Montreal) Christ Church Cathedral, which was completely excavated and suspended in mid-air during the construction of part of the Underground City. All of the above are major tourist destinations, particularly Notre-Dame and the Oratory.
An impressive number of other churches can be found, as such that a five-minute walk is usually enough to find another one. A common expression of Montrealers is that we stumble into them walking.
Chinatown
Image:Chinatown-gate.thumb2.jpg thumb|right|250px|Chinatown in Montreal
Montreal has a small but active
Chinatown, Montreal Chinatown (''Quartier chinois'') just south of downtown, featuring many Chinese shops and restaurants, as well as a number of
Vietnamese establishments. Several of these restaurants offer dim sum from as early as 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. and can be quite crowded, especially on Sundays. The principal axes of Chinatown are
Saint Lawrence Boulevard and
La Gauchetière Street.
The Gay Village
Montreal is known as a
Queer or
Gay-friendly city. Its
Pride parade pride festival,
Divers/Cité, is claimed to be the largest in North America; organizers estimate that it [http://fugues.vortex.qc.ca/main.cfm?p=100&Article_ID=3224 drew 1.4 million people] in 2002. It benefits from financial support from all three levels of government. Montreal is home to one of the largest
Gay Village, Montreal gay villages in North America, centred around the downtown Beaudry metro station (known in French as ''le Village gai''). Montreal is a centre of Queer life and culture in Canada and hosts several
circuit party circuit parties every year. The 2006
World Outgames are to be held in Montreal.
The Plateau
Montreal's trendy and colourful
The Plateau Plateau neighbourhood is located on the twin North-South axes of
Saint Laurent Boulevard and
Saint Denis Street, and East-West axis of
Mount Royal Avenue. The cobbled, pedestrian-only
Prince Arthur Street is also located in this neighbourhood. In the summer, night life often seems as active as in the day in this area.
It boasts the highest population density of all Montréal and the greatest number of creative people in Canada, according to Statistics Canada. The same source also states that it is the urban place where the most people travel mainly by foot, bicycle or public transport. The Plateau Mont-Royal has been dubbed the "coolest neighbourhood in North America" by Wallpaper Magazine. The exterior staircase is a distinctive feature of the city's architecture.
Mile End
The tiny "Mile End" district, officially part of the Plateau borough but generally considered distinct, is home to many Montreal artists and filmmakers. The city's two famous
bagel emporia, the Fairmount[http://www.fairmountbagel.com/] and St-Viateur[http://www.stviateurbagel.com/] bakeries, are located on the streets of the same names. Fairmount Street is also home to Wilensky's, immortalized in
Mordecai Richler's novel "
The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz" and Saint-Viateur is the site of several hipster cafés of note. The area has become noticeably more cash-rich in recent years, due in part to the presence of the
Ubisoft studios in the district, on
Saint Lawrence Boulevard.
Outremont
Image:ParcOutremont.jpg thumb|right|250px|Parc Outremont in the summer
The
Outremont (borough) Outremont district is 3,84 km² with a population of 23 239. It used to be an independent town but is now part of the greater Montreal. Since the end of the first half of the 20th century, Outremont has been the host of the French upper middle-class and of a strong Jewish orthodox community.
Mount Royal
Mount Royal is Montreal's outstanding urban park, designed in 1876 by
Frederick Law Olmsted, best known as the designer of New York's Central Park. Mount Royal's features include the Chalet and the Kondiaronk Belvedere overlooking downtown Montreal (the most famous view of the city), and man-made Beaver Lake with its recently renovated pavilion. Mount Royal is topped by an illuminated cross that has become a Montreal landmark.
Observant hikers on the park's many trails will find an abundance of small wildlife. In the winter, the park is the site of numerous cross-country ski trails and a new, refrigerated skating rink near beaver Lake.
Once, a
funicular railroad brought sightseers to its peak. Unfortunately, that attraction has long since vanished. A
tramway also went up the mountain on the north side, replaced in the late 1950's by the
Camillien Houde Parkway, which now bisects the mountain (the parkway is named for long-time but controversial former mayor, jailed during
World War II for his opposition to
conscription in Canada). The "11-Montagne" bus line perpetuates the route of the tram.
Every Sunday in the summer, hundreds of people gather at the statue of Confederation co-founder
George-Étienne Cartier at the foot of
Mount Royal for several hours of drumming, dancing, and juggling (among many other activities), in an event that has come to be known as the
Mount Royal#Mount Royal's Tam-Tams Tam-Tams. It is unclear how this event started; but, as it has no formal organization and has carried on both in a lively and peaceful way since at least the late 1980s, it remains a popular event. The statue is currently undergoing extensive and long-needed renovations but the partying continues all around the construction area.
The intersection of Park and Pine Avenues (''in French : Avenue du Parc, Avenue des Pins''), just to the south, formerly a winding urban interchange (inspired by the New York parkways of
Robert Moses), is also undergoing a major transformation to become more pedestrian-friendly.
Night life
Saint Denis Street is also the heart of the
Quartier Latin (Montreal) Latin Quarter of Montreal (''Quartier latin''), just south of the Plateau, and filled with clubs, bars, and street festivals. The principal east-west axes of this district are
Saint Catherine Street and Boulevard de Maisonneuve, with
Saint Denis Street as its north-south axis. The mood is bohemian.
Crescent Street is "party central" for Montreal's
Anglophone population, lying at the edge of the
Concordia University campus. Throughout the summer, it features street fairs and festivals. The
Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix unofficially starts off Montreal's non-stop festival season in the summer. Crescent Street also features many clubs and bars. The clientele of Crescent nightclubs and bars are mostly students, tourists and in general a younger crowd looking for exhilaration and excitement. Most venues will play Top 40, rap and hip hop music. The nearest subway stops are Peel and Guy-Concordia.
Boulevard Saint-Laurent (''
Saint Lawrence Boulevard, known locally as "The Main"'') is one of the best places to find nightlife, with many bars and nightclubs and a wide range of restaurants. Saint-Laurent street night spots are often less mainstream than those on Crescent street, with a great variety; from Top 40 and urban music to electronica and techno, from underground and alternative rock to live bands. South of Prince Arthur Street, towards Sherbrooke Street, one is likely to encounter a "posher" clientele. From Prince Arthur Street north (to Mount Royal avenue & beyond), one should expect to rub shoulders with an "edgier" crowd. The nearest subway stop is Saint-Laurent.
Another notable night life spot is Ste-Catherine Street between St-Hubert and Papineau, where many gay night clubs are concentrated.
Montreal's bustling nightlife is enabled in part by its relatively late "last call" (3 a.m.), and the many restaurants and fast food joints that are open late into the night. Some bars and nightclubs charge a cover charge varying from 5 to 15$ CAD. You are expected to tip 1$ per drink. Popular late-night fare includes 99-cent pizza slices, Lebanese-style falafel sandwiches,
shish taouk, and the local favourite,
poutine.
Montreal nightlife is also rated fourth in the world at www.askmen.com for its after-hours (3 to 11 a.m.). Stereo, Aria and Circus are amongst the most notable after-hours; Stereo boasts one of the best sound systems in the world. One can often see world-famous deejays such as
DJ Tiësto Tiësto,
Deep Dish and
Armin van Buuren featured in Montreal's clubs and after-hours.
Montreal is known in some circles as the strip club capital of Canada. The city has over 30 male and female strip clubs in the downtown area alone. Strip clubs in Montreal are unique in that the majority offer full-contact lap dances. Full-contact lap dances have been legal in the province of Quebec as of 2001. Strip clubs in Montreal are either categorized as full-contact or non-contact.
Strip clubs in Montreal operate differently from U.S. strip clubs. In Montreal exotic dancers are mostly independent workers, not house dancers. Dancers are thus free to work at a variety of strip clubs, and often do. Unlike U.S. exotic dancers, those working in Montreal retain all of the revenues from their performances; gratuity is not expected.
See also:
Nightlife Magazine
Sports
Image:Montreal Canadiens.gif right|thumb|250px|Montreal Canadiens logo
Montreal is famous for its
Ice hockey hockey-hungry fans. The
Montreal Canadiens is one of the '
Original Six'
NHL teams, and boasts the greatest number of
Stanley Cup championships.
Montreal is also the site of two high-profile racing events each year: the aforementioned
Canadian Grand Prix, and the
Molson Indy Montreal of the
Champcars Series. Both races take place at the
Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on
ÃŽle Notre-Dame. On
July 13,
1982, Montreal hosted the first
Major League Baseball All-Star Game outside the
United States. The most important sporting event in Montreal's history, however, was when Montreal played host to the
1976 Summer Olympics.
Once the favoured sport mainly of Montreal anglophones, football fever has spread across Quebec, with the pro football
Montreal Alouettes of the
Canadian Football League CFL drawing packed crowds at the small but picturesque Molson Stadium, part of
McGill University and nestled against the slopes of Mt-Royal. As noted above, the Alouettes play their last regular season game and post season games at the much-larger and enclosed Olympic Stadium, which has also been home to a number of Grey Cups, the CFL's championship game.
With football's new-found popularity "en français", the Université de Montréal's "Carabins" draw enthusiastic crowds at its mountainside
Outremont stadium rivalling that of English universities Concordia and McGill. McGill itself was rocked by a
hazing scandal in 2005 and shut down its program for the remainder of the season.
Montreal has an all-sports radio station,
CKGM (''The Team 990'').
In
July 2005 Montreal hosted the 11th
FINA 2005 World Aquatics Championships World Aquatics Championships.
In 2006 Montreal will attract some 16,000
LGBT athletes, who will participate in the first-ever
World Outgames. The Outgames are being hailed as the largest international event in the city of Montreal since the 1976 Olympics.
Major sports venues
{| class="wikitable" width="100%" align="center"
|-
| width="35%" align="center"|'''Venue'''
| width="30%" align="center"|'''Capacity'''
| width="35%" align="center"|'''Team/Tournament/Attraction'''
|-
| width="35%" align="center"|
Gilles Villeneuve Circuit
| width="30%" align="center"|100,000
| width="35%" align="center"|
*
Canadian Grand Prix
*
Champ Car Molson Indy
|-
| width="35%" align="center"|
Stade Olympique Olympic Stadium
| width="30%" align="center"|56 040
| width="35%" align="center"|
*
Montreal Alouettes playoff games:
*
Marathon Montreal Marathon
*
Motocross NAPA Motocross
|-
| width="35%" align="center"|
Hippodrome de Montreal
| width="30%" align="center"|25,000
| width="35%" align="center"|
Horse Racing
|-
| width="35%" align="center"|
Bell Centre
| width="30%" align="center"|21,273
| width="35%" align="center"|
Montreal Canadiens
|-
| width="35%" align="center"|
Molson Stadium
| width="30%" align="center"|20,200
| width="35%" align="center"|
*
Montreal Alouettes
*
McGill Redmen McGill Redmen Football
|-
| width="35%" align="center"|
Île Sainte-Hélène Île Sainte-Hélène Aquatic Complex
| width="30%" align="center"|13,000
| width="35%" align="center"|
FINA XI Fina World Championships
|-
| width="35%" align="center"|
Jarry Park Stade Uniprix
| width="30%" align="center"|12,000
| width="35%" align="center"|
*
Masters Series Rogers Cup
*
Beach Volleyball Beach Volley World Tour
|-
| width="35%" align="center"|
Complexe sportif Claude-Robillard
| width="30%" align="center"| 9,500
| width="35%" align="center"|
*
Défi sportif
*
Montreal Impact
|}
Current professional/amateur franchises
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! scope="col" | Logo
! scope="col" | Club
! scope="col" | League
! scope="col" | Venue
! scope="col" | Established
! scope="col" | Championships
|-
| style="background: white;" |
Image:Montrealcanadienslogo.gif 50px|Montreal Canadiens Logo
! scope="row" style="font-weight: normal; text-align: center;" |
Montreal Canadiens
|
National Hockey League NHL Hockey
|
Bell Centre
| 1909
| 24
|-
| style="background: white;" |
Image:CFL Alouettes.gif 50px|Montreal Alouettes logo
! scope="row" style="font-weight: normal; text-align: center;" |
Montreal Alouettes
|
Canadian Football League CFL Football
|
Percival Molson Memorial Stadium Molson stadium
Olympic Stadium (Montreal) Olympic Stadium
| 1996
| 6
