I went to Montreal during Thanksgiving 2002 to visit my good friend, Athena. The Canadiens hold their Thanksgiving a month earlier, so everyone was busy at work while I trudged through cold and snow to visit this beautiful city.

Montreal is a stunning and clean city, but I can't help think that it's an imitation of Paris: both cities speak French, both cities have a river running through town with two small islands in the river, both have a large "hill" in the middle of the city, both have a Notre Dame, and both have a great Metro system. All jests aside, Montreal is a fun city with a wonderful atmosphere, nice people, and I love how well integrated the English and French languages are which gives the city a classy European feel.

The entire time I was there it was cold and snowy, but it is Canada after all. Several items that stood out on the trip: The Stade de Olympic is a beautiful structure, too bad it's structurally failing; there are a lot of beautiful women everywhere; bagels in Montreal are the best I've ever tasted, even better than New York; Poutin (local "dish" of french fries, curds, and gravy) sounds much better than it tastes; and when you order hot Indian food, it is really hot so watch out. I hope to back someday for the Montreal Jazz Festival and experience Montreal when it's warm.