21 Swings Montreal

Montreal Swings into Spring

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If you happen to be near Place des Arts between now and May 31st, you may want to take a few minutes to play. The installation 21 Swings is back on De Maisonneuve Street.

Montreal Swings

The motion of each swings triggers the musical notes of one of four instruments: piano, guitar, harp and vibraphone. When multiple swings are in motion, they create a melody. The notes change the higher you go. At night, the swings are illuminated. Yes, that’s me in the photo above making music and feeling like a kid again.

The installation is removed for the summer festival season, but will be back from August 6th to October 18th.

21 Swings ad

Bagg Street Shul

Walking Tours with the Museum of Jewish Montreal

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Doing research for a project can either be a chore or a pleasure. It was the latter for me recently. I’ve been researching Jewish history in Montreal when a friend mentioned that the Museum of Jewish Montreal gives walking tours. It sounded like a lot more fun than just reading about it, so I signed up for “Making Their Mark,” a tour of the Jewish community that existed in the Plateau area from the turn of the 20th century until the 1950s.

I met Laura, my tour guide, at the corner of St. Laurent and Milton. Since I was the only one who signed up for that day, it would be a private tour. We spent the next two hours viewing buildings that were formerly synagogues, schools and hospitals which Laura brought to life as she talked about the immigration of Eastern European Jews and how they established their community, culture and what was once Montreal’s thriving schmatta industry.

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Canada Day Cake 2014

Canada’s 147th Birthday

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My friends, Celia and Pauline, had volunteered to barbecue hamburgers at a Canada Day celebration in Montreal West. Being the good and loyal friend that I am, I decided to support their efforts by eating one. It was a hot, muggy day perfect for relaxing in the park listening to live music and taking advantage of the ice cream carts. Here are a few photos of the festivities. Happy Canada Day, everyone!

Grilling burgers in Strathearn Park
Celia, burger volunteer
Strathearn Park Canada Day 2014

Hotcakes and Hiccups

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I recently had a conversation with one of my co-workers that could only happen in a place like Montreal where we constantly switch back and forth in French and English at work. While I can work in French, I don’t have an extensive daily vocabulary. The same can be said of my co-worker who is French and can work in English. We often help each other out, asking about grammar and the correct way to say something. Our desks are side by side with a divider in between, so while we can’t see each other, we can talk to each other.

Now the key words in this conversation are “hoquet” which is French for hiccup and the word “hotcakes.” If you say “hotcakes” with a heavy French accent, guess what it sounds like?

Our conversation went like this:

Co-worker: I have hoquet.

Me: You had hotcakes?

Co-worker: Is that how you say it in English?

Me: Yes. Hotcakes?

Co-worker: Oh, that is interesting. I have hoquet.

Me: It’s the same as pancakes.

Co-worker: What?

Me: Hotcakes is another way to say pancakes.

Co-worker: I think that is not what I mean. I have hoquet.

Me: You had hotcakes for lunch?

Co-worker: No. Hoquet. (She hiccups loudly)

Me: You have hiccups!

Co-worker: What? Hoquet? It is the same?

Me: No, hiccups. H-i-c-c-u-p. How do you spell it in French?

Co-worker: H-o-q-u-e-t

(Pause)

Me (puzzled): So hotcakes gave you hiccups?

Maybe it wasn’t just the language. We had a good laugh. 🙂

Have you ever had a conversation like this?

How to Turn a Soda Can into a Wheelchair

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DSC03253Fundraising for Mount Sinai Hospital

On the first day of the school year my sister-in-law, Hilda, who works as a lunch monitor at an elementary school, gets unusual packages from some of the kids: they give her little bags filled with tabs from soda cans that they’ve collected over the summer.

When she has a boxful, she delivers them to the Mount Sinai Hospital in Montreal who sells them to a recycler.  The money they receive goes to support the hospital. It’s a cause Hilda has been promoting for the past ten years. The children at the school and the teachers love the idea of helping out someone in need. Our entire family regularly snaps off the little tabs before dropping the empty soda can into a recycling bin. I decided to follow her on a recent delivery and find out more about the program.

Hilda's collection jar

Hilda’s collection jar

The Auxiliary of the Mount Sinai Hospital runs the Can-tab program. Lorraine Caplan, Co-president of the Auxiliary, explained that they receive bags of can-tabs from as far away as Florida. Every few months, several huge bags are sent to a recycler who pays them $500 to $600. Only tabs from soda cans are accepted as they are pure aluminium.  When Hilda first started collecting can tabs, the money went towards buying wheelchairs. Now, the money is used to support music and art therapy at the hospital. The Auxiliary took on the responsibility of paying the therapists’ salaries ever since government cutbacks took effect.

So the next time you’re about to drop an empty soda can into the recycling bin, help The Mount Sinai Hospital by snapping off the tab.  It’ll help take some of the guilt off the empty calories. 🙂

We Love You, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah!

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There’s one thing that David Chang, the main character in my book, Guitar Hero, and I have in common: it’s a love of Beatles music. I twisted and shouted to their songs as I grew up. My Chinese immigrant parents shook their heads in wonder when my brother, sister and I spent our allowance buying Beatles albums at the local Woolworth store. With my friends, Kim (blogger Tranquil Dreams; read her post about the exhibit here) and Jennifer, I got a chance to relive those times at the exhibit The Beatles in Montreal at Pointe-à-Callière museum.

John Lennon’s Rolls Royce
Beatles hair products
Mini-dress
Guitars used by The Beatles

Starting from the beginning as The Quarrymen, the exhibit tells their story through photos, memorabilia, posters, newspaper clippings and video clips which of course include their debut on The Ed Sullivan Show. The museum also recreated the famous rooftop session at Apple Studio in London. By hanging the screen from the ceiling, it feels as if you’re on the street with the crowd that day on January 30, 1969. You also have the chance to be the 5th Beatle, that is, if you have the courage to sing karaoke in a museum so quiet you can hear a pin drop. (We faked it.) Equally fascinating is the video on how the museum installed John Lennon’s Rolls-Royce.

History of The Beatles albums
Singalong with The Beatles
Drawing by John Lennon
John Lennon and Yoko Ono demonstrating for peace at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel
Kim and Jennifer watch the video of the session on the rooftop of Apple Studio

The details surrounding their performance at the Montreal Forum on September 8, 1964 are the stuff of entertainment talk shows, like how the fab four rested inside the Forum while a fake limousine with four police officers wearing wigs distracted two thousand screaming fans outside.

The exhibit is a real blast from the past and runs until March 30, 2014.

Chinese lanterns at the Montreal Botanical Gardens

The Magic of Lanterns at the Montreal Botanical Gardens

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The annual Magic of Lanterns show is on at the Montreal Botanical Gardens. I finally got a chance to see it on Saturday and the weather was perfect for a night time stroll. The line up to get into the section where the Chinese Garden is located was extremely long, but people were patient and smiling as everyone inched forward.

The annual exhibit has a new theme every year.  Artisans in Shanghai create over 900 lanterns that are designed by a team from the Montreal Botanical Gardens. The results are beautiful. Ancient Chinese figures line the walkway to the main exhibit at the lake which comes alive with lanterns in the form of birds, insects, wild animals, trees and villagers.

It took us a couple of hours to see everything, not because of the size of the garden, but because of the size of the crowd!  The stone pathways around the lake and the terrace surrounding the main pagoda were jam packed. If you’re a shutterbug like me, you may want to bring a tripod. The exhibit runs until November 3rd.

Lanterns light the stone pathway

Creativity, Inspiration and Fun at Montreal Comiccon

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When I was a kid, one of my favourite comics was Superman. While other kids fantasized about having x-ray vision and being able to fly, I idolized Lois Lane. I mean, I knew I would never, ever have super powers, but I could, maybe someday, be a writer and have adventures like Lois. After all, she covered Superman’s adventures for the newspaper, so she was right there with him as he fought the bad guys, and even saved his life a few times. Lois Lane was undoubtedly a strong influence when it came to my career choices.

So when the annual Comiccon convention hit Montreal this past weekend, I bought a one day pass and went with my friend and copy editor, Virginia Modugno. A must-see for us was the Q&A with the cast of Battlestar Galactica. The lineup to see Edward James Olmos, James Callis, Tahmoh Penikett and Michael Hogan was really long, but they were worth the wait.

Battlestar Galactica fans
Cast of Battlestar Galactica
Felicia Day
Star Trek fans
Christopher Lloyd

There were so many events for gamers and fans of horror and sci-fi: comedy skits, movie premieres, screenings, a video game room, and the Q&A with celebs. We also saw Felicia Day and Christopher Lloyd as eager fans took turns asking questions.

The exhibition hall had tons of memorabilia, collectibles, costumes and comics. What would Comiccon be without tons of comics? Or without the autograph sessions and photo-ops with the celebrities who created such memorable characters? Besides the ones I mentioned above, Gillian Anderson , George Takei and Lou Ferrigno among others were set up at one end of the hall to meet their fans.

And how did they get there? Well, parked at the other end of the exhibition hall was the Ghostbusters station wagon, Dr. Who’s phone booth, the DeLorean from Back to the Future and the hovercraft that a young Luke Skywalker raced in a prequel. There was literally alot of ground to cover at the Palais des congrès, but undoubtedly, the day belonged to the fans. Just seeing the costumes, the creativity and feeling their enthusiasm was worth the price of admission. I don’t know the names of all these characters, so if anyone recognizes any of them, let me know.

Catwoman and Batman
Predator
Me and my new BFF
The Green Arrow
Virginia and The Watchmen

Since it was my first time, it was all a bit overwhelming, and when it ended at 7p.m. I was exhausted. It was loads of fun, and maybe I’ll go back next year. Maybe I’ll even shell out the extra bucks for a photo-op with a celebrity.

I didn’t see anyone there dressed up as Lois Lane, but I suppose it could have been me. I was there with my camera, taking it all in as Lois would have, watching the superheros do their thing.