The Land of Bixi

What I learned about Montreal:

There is a certain aggressive vigour* in the city's view of itself- here is the founder of McGill, for example:

Onward!

It's particularly clear in the behaviour of the cyclists, who all ride like maniacs. And there are so many of them! Everywhere we rode (and we rode a lot) there were scores of fit, reckless people on bikes zooming by and jamming up the intersections. They have a beautifully done and very well used bike share programme, and everywhere you look is another rack of public bikes (or Bixis):

SO MANY BIXIS

The fact that each Bixi weighs about 50 pounds does not deter Montreallers from riding them TOP SPEED in all directions. I have wistful fantasies of NYC getting to that point eventually, but we'd need some serious bike lane restructuring. Montreal's bike lanes make sense, go where you want to go, and are often protected by concrete curbs on BOTH sides. It was really nice. 

There was also lovely architecture and landscapes and some really dedicated surfers flopping around in a slightly turbulent section of the Saint Lawrence. There was a Biosphere,

One of the weirder world fair relics I've seen, though I think Knoxville's Sunsphere still wins

And the Highest Inclined Tower in the World,

We went up in a funicular

And an Octopus,

Previously sighted in Portland

And an unexpected screening of my favorite Swiss 80s art film which OH MY LACK OF GOD is on YouTube! Aaaaah!

I liked wandering around and not rushing at all, and it was lovely to spend time with my gentleman-friend. We tried to speak French, but couldn't quite shake a sense of ridiculousness even if we KNEW we were saying the words we meant to say. The bizarre Quebecois accent doesn't help. A friendly youth hostel employee informed us that Montreallers are all mean, much meaner than New Yorkers, but  Philadelphians are the meanest of all. It's a shame that everyone's perception of Phila appears to be based on It's Always Sunny. 

I stopped in Phila on the way back to Brooklyn to collect my cat, and while sitting in the Rocket Cat and trying to get my brain together after a 15 hour train ride and inadequate sleep I felt a great sense of homesickness. Mostly because the flyers pasted to the windows were so much cooler than the ones I'd find in an analogous Brooklyn cafe. I might just be going to the wrong cafes, but Phila has a lovely sense of community and I don't think this big, anxious city can replicate it. 

Dorian don't care, though. He was nervous for about an hour, then decided he was above it all. 

This is after having his way with my lovely new curtains

It's only been 24 hours and my cat is already cooler than I am. 

Orientation starts tomorrow. I am not gonna be a snob! I am not gonna be a snob! I am not gonna be a snob! Much. 

-Isis

*Spelled in Canadian to honour and humour our neighbour's flavours.  

Bells

Looks who's an authentic NYer! I rode from my house to Williamsburg twice and the second time I only got lost once! WHY does Brooklyn have so many different grids?

It's been a strange week, half riding out in all directions and half being comatose and waiting for things, like utilities guys to turn up with the internet. My new neighborhood is largely Caribbean, so it smells amazing and the bodegas have fruits and candies that I can't identify. It's near Prospect Park, so I've been diligently riding out on the little bike loop every day. I like it a lot more than Central Park, less crowded, less manicured. Just as many manic-faced roadies in Kissena jerseys, though.

AND THERE'S NOWHERE TO PARK.

People are a lot nicer than I expected. They say hello to me and smile (after the sort of up-and-down size-up that seems to be a New York thing). I got a giant bell and furiously ding at anyone who gets in front of me, and they say 'I like your bell!' which is disarming. 

Replace the constant squeaking with DING DING DING DING DING...

Since everything is so far away from everything else I am gonna be getting Champion style legs pretty soon. 

I made a point to make my room nice; it'll be good to have a sanctuary from the inevitable school-related stress. Packing half a three story house into a third of a three bedroom apartment isn't so easy, but NYC has closets which are deeper than six inches, so there's that. The house mojo won't be properly set until my cat and the housemate's cat move in (also, the housemates). I miss having a chubby little pounce monster wrecking my curtains. 

And I miss Phila a lot, or rather I miss the people in it. It's going to take a long time to build up a community as amazing as the one I enjoyed there. I did visit Time's Up, which is a bike co-op not unlike Bike Church in Phila. And everyone was super nice and welcoming and unsnotty and that made me very happy. Bike people seem to be marvelously similar no matter where they are, and it's immensely comforting to find a space where I feel automatically at home. I've never dealt with design types before, and it's been a long time since art school. The social aspect of grad school is scaring me out of me tree going to be an adventure. 

Tomorrow I and my gentleman-friend are checking out a small-boat club where we may keep our sailboat (WHICH FLOATS!!!!!!) Is there a way to talk about your boat without sounding like an entitled twitbag? If you say 'I'm building a boat' everyone says 'Cool!' but if you say 'I have a boat' everyone thinks,

Wot? Me?

At some point I will write about the boat's maiden voyage. It was.... memorable. 

There are a lot of churches in my neighborhood. St Francis of Assisi rings its bells at 15 minute intervals (not quite on the dot). It makes me acutely aware of time, and how much (if any) I am wasting. This whole city seems very much concerned with time, at least no one appears to be loafing. I'll quit loafing the minute school starts, but at the moment flaneur-ing my way about Brooklyn feels very strange. 

Qua? Moi? Oui!

And on THAT note, I am off to Montreal for a week. 

Hello, mad city?

-Isis