Trip To Montreal, Quebec, Canada (A lesson I learned)

"She calls out to the man on the street
'Sir, can you help me?
It's cold and I've nowhere to sleep,
Is there somewhere you can tell me?'
He walks on, doesn't look back
He pretends he can't hear her
Starts to whistle as he crosses the street
Seems embarrassed to be there
Oh think twice, it's another day for you and me in paradise
Oh think twice, 'cause it's just another day for you,
You and me in paradise, think about it"
Phil Collins-"Another Day In Paradise"


I'm taking creative license in my blogging about my trip to Montreal. Next post will be back to my destinations on the 3rd day. It is a wonderful city that I was very happy to have a chance to visit. I took many positives away from my time there. Yet, I cannot write about my journey without mentioning the first time in my life where I feel my life was legitimately threatened, and that happened in Montreal.


It was the late afternoon on the 3rd day, Sunday. Other than the hot weather, I was really enjoying my visit. I wanted to go to a store to get some Canada-unique food items to bring back home for my family and friends. The clerk at the front desk of my hotel told me of a nearby Provigo supermarket which was a short walk down Sherbrooke St, so I headed out to find some candy bars and coffee to bring back home.


At the store, I was able to find some Coffee Crisp bars, so I bought a few of them (and they are now my favorite candy bar), but I was unable to find any Mr. Big bars, so I wanted to head to another store to find some. After I left the Provigo, I walked down Sherbrooke St back to my hotel.
I mentioned before that Montreal seems to have a huge homeless problem. While I feel bad for them, and pray for them that their situation to improve, I think aggressive panhandling should be enforced as a crime. You cannot force someone to be generous to you, and many find it downright scary. I cannot remember for the life of me what street corner this was, but on it was a small public park that was full of homeless. As I was crossing the street, one man, who was wearing a red t-shirt, blue jeans, and a bandana, came up to me and asked me for change. I had none. That wasn't good enough for him. He got into my face as I was walking and asked again, his face so close to mine I could smell his breath. I again told him no, I had none. He tapped my shoulder and asked again with his face close to mine. I kept walking and reached for my cell phone to make like I was calling the police. He raised his arms and I thought he was going to hit me, but he growled "Fuck you, then" and walked off. I think if a cardiogram was hooked up to me, my heart rate would have been close to 200 BPM. I get nervous right now just writing about it. The rest of the walk to the hotel was a blur. No longer did I feel safe like I did earlier. I kept looking behind me for the aggressive panhandler, but he was not there.


When I got back in the hotel, I was debating on whether I should even stay one minute longer. I was scared and I was longing for home, but after a rest and gathering my thoughts, I thought the best revenge was to go back out and explore one more time. I promised my family and friends some goodies, and dammit, I was going to get them some.


I said it before and I will say it again. I was stunned by the amount of homeless in Montreal. A city in a country that prides itself on taking care of the poor and needy, and provides a safety net unlike what we have in the United States, having that big of a homeless problem. It's comparable or worse than American cities I have visited. It opened my eyes to another fact: The problems in Canada are no different than the problems we have in the USA. It is not a social utopia or the model all nations should be built on. It is just another country, full of people with hopes and dreams, trying to survive. They have crime, we have crime. They have unemployment, we have unemployment. They have prejudices, we have prejudices. We're different but the same. Either my expectations were too high, or maybe I did not know what to expect. It was a reality check for me. God Bless Canada, it is a great nation. God bless Montreal, it is a great city. Yet, the visit made me very thankful to live where I do. It made me very thankful to be an American. I am grateful for the lessons this visit taught me and they will stay with me.


Next post, back to the Olympic Park, Daddy needs a new pair of shoes, and Goodbye, Farewell, and Thank You.


To Be Concluded...