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MONTREAL, CANADA
OCTOBER 21, DAY 5 It’s raining. I’ve always wondered what rain looks like. Now I know. Seriously, Montreal is a country within a country. Despite it being a part of Canada, It has a unique French culture. English is a second language, French is the first. And if I didn’t know better, I would think I was indeed in the heart of France. We arrived two and a half hours late last night, but still had time to have dinner at a very nice French restaurant not far from the Canadian National Terminal where our two railcars are being parked. The Canadians still rely on rail travel to get them around the country, so everything here is first class. Day 5 is a drizzly, cold day. Not what I wanted to shoot my story in, but day 6 promises to be worse. My goal is Christ’s Episcopal Church built in 1875. It is not as old as other churches in the city, but it is a sterling example of how seriously Canadians take their history. When Montreal was extending its underground subway system, it was determined the church had to be moved 15 feet or taken apart stone by stone, then reassembled. The city decided to move it intact into a new foundation. They did it by using a series of heavy duty cranes inch by inch until the church was on its new location. Furthermore, when they moved it, it was discovered that the church was not level when it was originally built. And that caused one of the priceless stained glass windows to break when it placed on its new level foundation. That window was restored piece by piece and now it looks like new. The church is so much a treasure to the people of Montreal, The Queen of England worships in the church when she visits Canada. Security is tight here at the terminal. We have to show our identification when we come and go from our railcars. But despite the precautions, our Montreal hosts are courteous and helpful. We’re here for one more day, and then it’s off to New York City. Two stories in the can, one more to go. There is a complete underground shopping center here at the CN railroad terminal. And one thing the French Canadians are famous for are their pastry. That’s where I headed next. Be seein’ you |
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