The Formula One Canadian Grand Prix has been held in Montreal since 1978, on the artificial island of Île Notre-Dame. Held every year at the beginning of June, the race is eagerly anticipated by the city's residents, to whom it represents the unofficial start of summer.
Located in the old RCA factory in Saint-Henri, the Emile Berline Musée des Ondes is a small museum dedicated to the world of sound, and Montreal's place in the history of the audio and aerospace sectors. Only open a few days each week, this museum doesn't take long to visit, and allows you an inside look at the swiftly-disappearing industrial past of Montreal.
Comprising an area of almost 200 acres next to the Olympic Park, Montreal's Botanical Garden opened in 1931, and is considered to be among the most important in the world. The garden is separated into over twenty thematic zones along with ten greenhouses, dozens of kilometers of trails, and over 22,000 plant species. In other words, you better get started.
Built as the American Pavilion for the 1967 World Expo, the Biosphère on Île Sainte-Hélène has become one of the defining landmarks of Montreal. Today, this geodesic dome is home to a museum about the state of our planet's environment.
Perhaps the most iconic piece of architecture in Montreal is Habitat 67, designed by Israeli/Canadian architect Moshe Safdie for the city's World Expo. The brutalist interlocking system of identical concrete living cubes still seems as outlandish and visionary as it must have in 1967.
Located in the neighborhood of Plateau Mont-Royal, the Parc La Fontaine is a popular place for picnics, strolls, and laying out in the sun. This is among the city's largest parks, at 84 acres, and on summer weekends, you'll find nearly every square inch of it occupied.
Mont Royal is a lot larger than we expected. Sure, we figured that the hill which provides the city its name would be big, but we didn't know this hill would be roughly the same size as the city itself. So it came as a shock to learn that the northern side of Mont Royal is nothing but cemeteries... half the mountain, dedicated to the dead.
Found within the former Généreux public bath hall on Rue Amherst, across from the Marché Saint-Jacques, the Écomusée du Vier Monde shines a light on the working-class community of Montreal's Centre-Sud. We visited the museum, and then took a walk around the neighborhood to which it's dedicated.
As the St. Lawrence River winds its way from Lake Ontario to the Atlantic Ocean, most of its journey is smooth sailing. However, just before it reaches Montreal, the river hits a rough patch. Jürgen and I hiked to the neighborhood of LaSalle to check out the Lachine Rapids.
Built in 1976 for the Summer Games and attached to the Olympic Stadium, Montreal Tower's height of 165 meters (541 feet) makes it the tallest inclined tower in the world. We took the funicular up to the top, where there's an observatory that provides views of the Olympic Park, Mont Royal and downtown Montreal.
