2025 Volendam, Montreal, Quebec, Canada... Part 1 of 2

The photos in the blog today started yesterday when we were leaving Quebec City. Last night, I took pictures along the St Lawrence River until we arrived at the Pierre Laporte bridge. I wanted to get pictures of the bridge and a Catholic Church in the Quebec suburb of Sillery. This morning, because of our really early arrival (6:00-6:30) I got out of bed long before I wanted to see what I could do sailing in while it’s dark.  I left the ship very early to go for a walkabout.  Today, I did my own self-directed walking tour of Old Montreal. From the ship I walked to the Clock Tower, sadly it was closed so I was unable to climb up the tower. In Old Montreal, history is present on every street corner. Cobblestone streets lined with historic buildings house art galleries, craft workshops, fashion boutiques, restaurants and cafés. From the lighthouse, I walked down Montreal’s oldest street, Rue Saint Paul headed for the famous Notre-Dame Basilica, at the southwest corner of the Place d'Armes, on the opposite side of Place d’Armes is the original Bank of Montreal, Canada’s first bank, a beautiful domed building. Moving along, I captured a great photo of the Sulpician Seminary, the oldest building of the historic district and around the corner the Centaur Theatre. Following Rue Notre Dame, I passed the Court House and arrived at Place Jacques Cartier dominated by a monument to Admiral Nelson…at the bottom of this square we found the Bonsecours Market, a 2-story, domed public market which has served as Montreal's main public market for many years. Alongside the market is Notre Dame de Bon Secours Chapel also known as the Sailors Church overlooking the old port and the St Lawrence River. I had a great day touring the city, managed to get in 6 miles. The weather was beautiful… As usual, I took way too many photos, so I have prepared this blog in two parts.