EXTEND YOUR VISIT
TO MONTREAL AND QUEBEC 
on
the St. Lawrence River
Text © 2004, Pat Middleton
Photos © 2004, Richard L Middleton
MONTREAL
Our first
taste of old Canada was in the City of Montreal, about 3 hours downriver (northeast) of
Kingston. Our plan was to go straight to Old Montreal, the Place Jacques Cartier
and our 18th century hotel, L'Auberge Pierre Calvet. Arriving on the I-40, we
had no problem finding our way to Old Montreal. Our inn was located on Rue Bonsecours, exactly opposite from the
Notre Dame de Bonsecours church on the Montreal
riverfront.
L'AUBERGE PIERRE CALVET
At least half the charm of being in Montreal centered
on our delightful Inn and its excellent location.
Not
only did we stay in Old Montreal, but we lodged in a mansion dating from the 18th
century. Then the home of an American-minded French businessman, Pierre Calvet, the very same home was frequently visited by Benjamin Franklin who was
making an all-out effort to convince the province of Quebec (French Canada) to
join the American Revolution as the 14th colony!!
So when Monsieur G. Trottoir and I sat
visiting at a heavy table in the library at the Auberge Pierre Calvet, he pointed out enthusiastically that
we might easily have been Calvet and Franklin 300 years ago! They would also
have visited intently in the same room. When the American contingent left
Quebec, Pierre Calvet was promptly arrested and imprisoned as a traitor.
Trottoir grew up in the home that is now his Inn. The long portraits of early aristocrats, the antique furniture, the collector volumes in the library all reflected the accomplishments and vision of his own family. 300 years of family heirlooms have accumulated here... now there's a distressing thought!
"I hope my guests all feel like they are visiting my home," he offered. "When we were kids, our swimming pool was in the courtyard where you had your early coffee."
The menagerie of birds-- "Hello" the blue and and gold mackaw repeatedly demanded--- early morning coffee in the welcoming courtyard, sunny breakfast area, and discretely placed dining tables from the attached Filles du Roy restaurant all made it seem very much like home, indeed. Since 1727, the owners of the mansion had added one room beside another, on multiple and irregular levels, whenever additional space was needed, exactly as we have seen previously in Provence.
Click Here for a TIME LINE of French Canadian history
L'AUBERGE PIERRE CALVET
405 rue Bonsecours
Vieux-Montreal
Quebec, Canada H2Y 3C3
1-866-544-1725 or Fax 514-282-0456
calvet@pierreducalvet.ca www.pierreducalvet.ca
For More Information on Visiting Montreal
Map http://listingsca.com/Quebec/Montreal-Region/map1.asp
Click here for QUEBEC CITY
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