Why Montreal?
"Mon pays ce n'est pas un pays, c'est l'hiver," Gille Vignault wrote in his folk song Mon Pays. It means: "My country isn't a country, it's winter." Taken metaphorically, it refers to cultural isolation; in the case of Quebec, the song, written in 1964 at the beginnings of what became known as the Quiet Revolution, refers to political isolation and was taken as an unofficial anthem of the separatist movement. The lyrics really can be taken literally, though. Quebec is winter. I've got a photo of myself in Bermudas and no shirt, digging out of a two-foot dump in late April a few years ago. With rising temperatures of late, however, the winter season has shrunk. A traveller to Quebec can now expect snow on the ground and up to the knees from December until March.
Montreal is known as Festival City. In the summer, there are festival of international jazz, French music, comedy and beer; the fringe festival and the world's largest multilingual literary festival, Blue Metropolis. There are signs everywhere of a "Festival du homard". Don't be fooled. It's not a lobster festival, but a restaurant enticement to eat crustaceans any day of the year. L'hiver, not to be outdone, has a winter festival, held Jan 22-Feb 6 this season. Events, most free, are held in Parc Jean-Drapeau on Île Ste-Hélène in the St Lawrence River. Montreal, being the home of the Cirque du Soleil, sees many circus troupes pass through town. The Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain kicks off a multiweek tenure on February 15 at Tohu, 2345 Jarry St East.
A comfortable bed
Our friends stay at Auberge Jardin d'Antoine, a charming bed and breakfast on St Denis Street in the Latin Quarter. A budget room costs about $110 (Dh395); a suite $155 (Dh557), taxes excluded. One of the top boutique hotels, featured in Linda Kay's Romantic Days and Nights in Montreal, is Hotel Saint-Sulpice, 414 Saint-Sulpice St, in Old Montreal. The hotel offers a number of different packages, such as a double room for $260 (Dh934) per person that includes tickets to a performance of The Nutcracker by Les Grands Ballets Canadiens plus a backstage tour, or a museums package for $265 (Dh952) a night (two-night minimum).
Find your feet
Montreal is a city of neighbourhoods, each with its own character and all of them connected in some way by public transportation. There are four subway lines and countless bus routes that can take you in all directions on the island. It's the tour guide cliché to mention the Underground City, so I'm mentioning it: once in the subway network, you've got access to stores, malls, concert halls, cinemas, museums and the Montreal Canadiens ice hockey team's arena through 32km of tunnel.
While you're out, see an exhibition at the Musée des Beaux-Arts. Vieux-Montréal is worth a walkabout in winter: the architecture is exceptional and the history goes back a long way by North American standards. You'll want to stop by the Point-à-Callière Museum, the Centre d'histoire de Montréal and/or the Château Ramezay.
You can also find your legs with some skiing on Mont Tremblant, about 90 minutes north, or skating on the pond at Île Ste-Hélène or indoors at Atrium, 1000, de la Gauchetière West St.
Meet the locals
Montrealers are out and about, winter or not. A tourist to Montreal doesn't have to go to some outlying, off-island area to meet locals. Get on the Métro to Villa-Maria in the Notre-Dame-de-Grâce neighbourhood, walk down Monkland Blvd and drop into any of a dozen bistros, cafes or restaurants. On est tellement fière d'être Montréalais and proud, too, of our ability to speak French and English. Most Montrealers, now that Quebec's language and education laws have been in effect for 30-odd years, are completely bilingual, sometimes multilingual. Given the city's multiethnicity, you'll also have no trouble hearing people speaking Arabic, Italian, Greek, Spanish, Portuguese or Russian.
Book a table
First things first: In Montreal, an entrée is the appetiser. On to the main course: Montreal is a gourmand's delight. Montrealers have always thought so. It took a while for the rest of the world to notice. Two valuable resources: Cheap Thrills, available in Montreal bookstores; and the online guide at www.montrealgazette.com.
L'Orignal, 49 Alexis St, features tartare, grilled and braised meats such as wild boar and bison. Dinner for two (starters, mains and dessert), excluding taxes and beverages costs $135 (Dh485). Fourquet et Fourchette, Palais des congrès, St Antoine St, devoted to the cuisine of New France, as Quebec was known 400 years ago, and the native culture found there. An evening meal for two includes soup or salad and dessert for $70 (Dh252), not including taxes. A lunch menu is about half the price. Alep and Le Petit Alep are in Little Italy at 199 Jean-Talon Street East, but the cuisine is Syrian-Armenian with its own Québécois twist. The main resto and its smaller, slightly less-dear cafe neighbour are an antidote to homesickness for things Middle Eastern. The range is $10 (Dh36) to $15 (Dh54) per main.
What to avoid
Don't spend too much time in the Underground City. Most of the people you'll find there are rushing to catch a train or are on their way to work in one of the connected government buildings. You wanna be outside.
Shopper's paradise
You can, if you're dressed right (and natives generally are dressed properly in their Kanuk overcoats and fur-lined Kamik boots or Timberlands) take in some shopping along Ste Catherine Street, or buy art or antiques in the high-end galleries on Sherbrooke Street. If the cold gets to you, drop into Les Cours Montréal or Eaton Centre, or any one of the hundreds of shops, catering to all tastes, connected to the Underground City.
Don't miss
I've been away from my adopted home since January 2008. I miss everything, even shovelling. You shouldn't miss: poutine, the dish of French fries, gravy and cheddar cheese (so endearingly written about by Calvin Trillin in The New Yorker last year); bagels, which in Montreal are handmade and only baked in wood-fired ovens; and shopping at the Jean-Talon or Atwater markets (covered, so you can shop in the winter). Here you'll find produce, meats and beverages. You can also have a quick lunch in one of the many cafes and traiteurs. Don't forget to bring home some Quebec maple syrup.
rbeauchemin@thenational.ae
Visit Abu Dhabi culinary team's top Emirati restaurants in Abu Dhabi
Yadoo’s House Restaurant & Cafe
For the karak and Yoodo's house platter with includes eggs, balaleet, khamir and chebab bread.
Golden Dallah
For the cappuccino, luqaimat and aseeda.
Al Mrzab Restaurant
For the shrimp murabian and Kuwaiti options including Kuwaiti machboos with kebab and spicy sauce.
Al Derwaza
For the fish hubul, regag bread, biryani and special seafood soup.
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
French Touch
Carla Bruni
(Verve)
Armies of Sand
By Kenneth Pollack (Oxford University Press)
Most%20ODI%20hundreds
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Company Profile:
Name: The Protein Bakeshop
Date of start: 2013
Founders: Rashi Chowdhary and Saad Umerani
Based: Dubai
Size, number of employees: 12
Funding/investors: $400,000 (2018)
Singham Again
Director: Rohit Shetty
Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone
Rating: 3/5
Notable cricketers and political careers
- India: Kirti Azad, Navjot Sidhu and Gautam Gambhir (rumoured)
- Pakistan: Imran Khan and Shahid Afridi (rumoured)
- Sri Lanka: Arjuna Ranatunga, Sanath Jayasuriya, Tillakaratne Dilshan (rumoured)
- Bangladesh (Mashrafe Mortaza)
SHAITTAN
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The biog
Family: He is the youngest of five brothers, of whom two are dentists.
Celebrities he worked on: Fabio Canavaro, Lojain Omran, RedOne, Saber Al Rabai.
Where he works: Liberty Dental Clinic
Paatal Lok season two
Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy
Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
Rating: 4.5/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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THE BIO
Bio Box
Role Model: Sheikh Zayed, God bless his soul
Favorite book: Zayed Biography of the leader
Favorite quote: To be or not to be, that is the question, from William Shakespeare's Hamlet
Favorite food: seafood
Favorite place to travel: Lebanon
Favorite movie: Braveheart
PROFILE OF SWVL
Started: April 2017
Founders: Mostafa Kandil, Ahmed Sabbah and Mahmoud Nouh
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport
Size: 450 employees
Investment: approximately $80 million
Investors include: Dubai’s Beco Capital, US’s Endeavor Catalyst, China’s MSA, Egypt’s Sawari Ventures, Sweden’s Vostok New Ventures, Property Finder CEO Michael Lahyani
MWTC
Tickets start from Dh100 for adults and are now on sale at www.ticketmaster.ae and Virgin Megastores across the UAE. Three-day and travel packages are also available at 20 per cent discount.
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sept 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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The specs: 2018 Harley-Davidson Fat Boy
Price, base / as tested Dh97,600
Engine 1,745cc Milwaukee-Eight v-twin engine
Transmission Six-speed gearbox
Power 78hp @ 5,250rpm
Torque 145Nm @ 3,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined 5.0L / 100km (estimate)
The Outsider
Stephen King, Penguin
Frankenstein in Baghdad
Ahmed Saadawi
Penguin Press
BACK%20TO%20ALEXANDRIA
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RESULTS
6.30pm: Longines Conquest Classic Dh150,000 Maiden 1,200m.
Winner: Halima Hatun, Antonio Fresu (jockey), Ismail Mohammed (trainer).
7.05pm: Longines Gents La Grande Classique Dh155,000 Handicap 1,200m.
Winner: Moosir, Dane O’Neill, Doug Watson.
7.40pm: Longines Equestrian Collection Dh150,000 Maiden 1,600m.
Winner: Mazeed, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
8.15pm: Longines Gents Master Collection Dh175,000 Handicap.
Winner: Thegreatcollection, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson.
8.50pm: Longines Ladies Master Collection Dh225,000 Conditions 1,600m.
Winner: Cosmo Charlie, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson.
9.25pm: Longines Ladies La Grande Classique Dh155,000 Handicap 1,600m.
Winner: Secret Trade, Tadhg O’Shea, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
10pm: Longines Moon Phase Master Collection Dh170,000 Handicap 2,000m.
Winner:
Match info
Premier League
Manchester United 2 (Martial 30', Lingard 69')
Arsenal 2 (Mustafi 26', Rojo 68' OG)
About Krews
Founder: Ahmed Al Qubaisi
Based: Abu Dhabi
Founded: January 2019
Number of employees: 10
Sector: Technology/Social media
Funding to date: Estimated $300,000 from Hub71 in-kind support
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
HWJN
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The full list of 2020 Brit Award nominees (winners in bold):
British group
Coldplay
Foals
Bring me the Horizon
D-Block Europe
Bastille
British Female
Mabel
Freya Ridings
FKA Twigs
Charli xcx
Mahalia
British male
Harry Styles
Lewis Capaldi
Dave
Michael Kiwanuka
Stormzy
Best new artist
Aitch
Lewis Capaldi
Dave
Mabel
Sam Fender
Best song
Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber - I Don’t Care
Mabel - Don’t Call Me Up
Calvin Harrison and Rag’n’Bone Man - Giant
Dave - Location
Mark Ronson feat. Miley Cyrus - Nothing Breaks Like A Heart
AJ Tracey - Ladbroke Grove
Lewis Capaldi - Someone you Loved
Tom Walker - Just You and I
Sam Smith and Normani - Dancing with a Stranger
Stormzy - Vossi Bop
International female
Ariana Grande
Billie Eilish
Camila Cabello
Lana Del Rey
Lizzo
International male
Bruce Springsteen
Burna Boy
Tyler, The Creator
Dermot Kennedy
Post Malone
Best album
Stormzy - Heavy is the Head
Michael Kiwanuka - Kiwanuka
Lewis Capaldi - Divinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent
Dave - Psychodrama
Harry Styles - Fine Line
Rising star
Celeste
Joy Crookes
beabadoobee
Brief scores:
Day 2
England: 277 & 19-0
West Indies: 154
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 502hp at 7,600rpm
Torque: 637Nm at 5,150rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Price: from Dh317,671
On sale: now
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
