Tour of Montreal

We boarded a bus this morning and headed into Montreal for a tour of the various landmarks and sites. The first stop was the Montreal Cathedral where we met our tour guide, Christine. She informed us that she had brought us the best, fresh sesame bagels from a well known and loved bagel baker, St-Viataur Bagel. Established in 1957, the bagels are hand rolled and boiled in a honey water mixture; they are then baked in a wood burning oven. The baker operates 24-7 and contain no artificial ingredients. We would look forward to them after our tour of the Cathedral

The Cathedral is named, "Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral. It is a minor basilica in Montreal and the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Montreal. The Construction was ordered by Bishop Bourget and he wanted a smaller scale replica of St. Peters in the Vatican City. The first architect refused the project, saying it could not be reproduced on a smaller scale. It was built starting in 1875 and was consecrated in 1894. On March 28, 2000 it was designated a National Historic Site of Canada.

In imitation of the statues of the 12 apostles on the facade of St. Peters, the cathedral is topped by statues of the patron saints of 13 parishes of Montreal that donated toward the building of the cathedral.

This large wooden structure is called the ciborium. It is a reproduction of the famous "baldacchino" in St. Peters. It covers the altar and is located under the dome.

This is the Bishops Mortuary Chapel. Bishop Bourget's tomb is is the center and the remains of the assistant bishops and administrative bishops are in on either side.

Since mass was getting ready to start we quickly departed to eat our fresh bagels outside in a small park across the street from the cathedral.

After we ate our delicious bagels, we traveled to the United States pavilion that was built for the 1967 Montreal Worlds Fair know as Expo 67.

Here we are in front of the dome designed by Buckminster Fuller for Expo 67. My back was hurting so I had on a back brace which made me look misshapen! It is interesting to note that Montreal is built on an island that is 30 miles long and 10 miles wide. Because of the winters here, a large underground city was built that houses shops, businesses, cafes and the like. Condos, apartments and offices are built above ground but are connected to this underground city via tunnels and stairs. What did they do with all the dirt that was excavated? They enlarged an small existing island and it is on this island where Expo 67 was placed. 62 countries took part and built pavilions. The dome is one of the few pavilions left and was donated to Montreal by Pres. Lyndon Johnson in 1968. In 1995 the dome became a museum promoting the environment and its protection. A membrane used to cover the inside of the dome but a wielding accident cause it to burn and Montreal decided not to replace it. From here we went to lunch on the "mountain" that Montreal was named after. the mountain is a volcano that never erupted and was called Mont Royal, hence the name Montreal. It is a favorite place to go during the summer and we were treated to fresh baguette sandwiches and a fresh fruit tart, absolutely wonderful!

After lunch we got to go to the St. Joseph's Oratory Of Mount Royal. This Oratory is a minor basilica and national shrine. It is a National Historic Site of Canada and also Canada's largest church. with one of the largest church domes in the world. Founded in 1904 by Bro. Andre Bessette in honor of his patron saint, Saint Joseph. It was built over a period of 60 years and attracts more than 2 million visitors and pilgrims to its steps each year. The faithful will climb the steps, on their knees while saying a prayer on each step. It is also the highest building in Montreal and it rises more than 30 meters above Mont Royal's summit. It is the only building that is allowed to do so since the building code of Montreal restricts any building from surpassing the height of Mont Royal, even skyscrapers. The history of Bro. Andre, as he is known as and the Oratory is well known.

These are canes and cructhes that people have hung after burning oil to St. Joseph and being healed. Bro. Andre was born in 1845, he was baptised the same day since he was only expected to live a few hours, he lived to the age of 92. He had a deep faith and devotion to St. Joseph and became a monk. Becasue of his lack of education, he could not read or write, he served as a doorman at Notre Dame College where he became known for his kindness and healing prayers. He never did become a priest and was a humble lay brother. Because of his faith and growing number of people attributing miraculous healings to his prayers, particularly when invoking St. Josephs intercession he was allowed to build a small chapel dedicated to St. Joseph. It is this chapel that grew into St. Josephs Oratory, a testament to Bro. Andre's faith and dedication. He died in 1937 and more than a million people attended his funeral. He was beatified in 1982 and canonized in 2010 becoming the first male Canadian-born Saint.

This is the tomb of St. Andre. It still draws the faithful who pray and touch the tomb.

As was sometimes the custom, St. Andres heart was removed and placed in a separate area as a way of venerating him.

The English plaque next to the vessel of the heart. I apologize for the poor photo, it was very dark.

A view from the top of the Oratory.

We departed the Oratory and headed to our last destination for the day, the Notre-Dame Basilica of Montreal. Since mass was being said in the morning we waited until after lunch to visit this beautiful cathedral.

view of the inside of the Basilica. All the wood in here is hand carved. We were told that the outside, made of limestone, took 6 years to complete. The inside took 40 years to complete!

The pulpit, not the stairs, is carved from one large dark oak tree. The angels above the pulpit are carved from white pine. All the ornate wood work is hand carved.

A view of the altar. Celine Dion, a Canadian citizen, was married here. Behind here is a smaller chapel for more intimate marriages, baptisms and the like. We were not allowed to go in since a baptism was being done and we were not allowed to take pictures.

What a beautiful day! The flower beds have just been planted the sun was out and the food was great. We look forward to what we will see down the road. Tommorrow, we load up and head out, 152 miles up the road to Quebec City for what will be a great tour of North Americas City of Lights. I look forward to posting more. Au Revoir.