# Experiences in Canada



## Canadian (Jan 17, 2008)

Hi all,

There seems to be a lot of stuff on the internet about backpacking to Europe or Australia. I want to discuss some experiences I've had in Montreal and Ottawa and I hope some of you have stories of Canada or the US. Forgive my rambling style, and I'm writing a book, but right now, it's freeform and would love to hear some of our stories.

1. Hostels. I have a bit of love for hostels. My first experience was in Montreal and I booked into a 4-bed dorm. It was really cool, but there were some things I learned quickly. Firstly, it's a place where people come from all over the world. They're not all western Canadians. Heck, they don't all speak English. I was actually in a hostel where there were two guys from France and the next night I was in another dorm where it was me, a German and an American who was there to go to school. He had everything you'd need to be at home, and he even brought his laptop computer, which I would never do unless I was staying at a hotel. To be honest, everything you might want to do on a laptop while traveling can be done on a smartphone. Plus if you lose your smartphone, it's a couple hundred dollars, not 2000 base price. Charging a smartphone is simple and you don't feel like an idiot if

Another time I rented a hostel was to get a private room. Now, when they say private at the HI Hostel in Montreal they assume you'll be a two-some. So if you want a private room to yourself, you've got to pay double. A 45 dollar bed on the internet is booked and you somehow end up paying 90 dollars. Now for 110 I can get into the basic hotel and have a bathtub, a maid service and can have drinks sent to my room or go down to a bar which isn't populated by cargo short and golf shirt wearing Aussies. The best option is to spend a few nights at a hostel, then when you go somewhere else, stay in a hotel. It's not rocket science, but if you want fresh towels or don't want to have to lock up all your prized possessions.

Seriously, the summer uniform for people at hostels is the cargo shorts and a golf shirt. You can get into any bar on Crescent Street with this uniform. Even the jazz club called (Upstairs) which has an upside down sign. It's a great feeling to go from a dance club to a pub to a jazz club. Even hiking shoes, not the average AEs which most of us would wear when we think about casual shoes. I would wear AE polos with a pair of cut rate cargo shorts with Merrell hiking boots. I actually walked downstairs to the common room and found a German and an Aussie both dressed identically to me and speaking perfect English. We ended up going to party downtown and had a great night, ending up at that jazz club. Bonus was that at the jazz club because we arrived at the 3rd set (out of 3) we didn't even pay cover. My Coke was 5.50 plus tip, compared to the 2 dollar coke at the dance club (I'm a non-drinker for personal reasons) and buddy's beer was over seven dollars for a draught beer, but we had a really chill time and got to listen to a good half hour before we went back to the hostel. If you're tight on cash, the patio at Sir Winston Churchill is neat, and a 26oz bottle of water was like 4 bucks and I split it with the German (who had come to Montreal with dreams of being a video game designer and was spending most of his days on a computer in the common room, where he had also brought a laptop computer). 

The other big advantage to a hostel is cost, especially if you're staying in a 4 person dorm (which personally is as big as I want to go but there are rooms for 10, 20 or even (in my little bro's hometown) 40. In some places it's a private for 50-90, for two, or twelve for a 20 bed room. If I was poor, I might go for the twelve dollar room, but right now at this stage in my life, I'll stay at the hostel, but I'll stay in a smaller or private room.

Stuff. People will take your valuables if you leave them open. Lock up your cash, ID, phone and CCs. Don't worry about locking up your dirty tees and your gitch. I'm not a rastafarian or a pastafarian or a hippy, but I've got a few tees which are either umarked or have kind of cool-kid cred to them. It's not the place to wear your "Kappa Sigma" tee, but my "Books for Africa" tee is great. My backpack has three distinct pouches (they clip together) so I can use one as a fanny pack, one in the locker for my valuables and one as my main bag. The main bag has toiletries, clothing and tools. The fanny pack has a sweater, a couple bucks (in Montreal, the ATM fees are no worse than if I went down to the corner shop here. Plus most tourist areas take ATB or RBC cards) and some kind of snack. Don't worry about somebody stealing your stuff while you're gone. I had a money belt, a chest pouch and few bucks in my wallet (with my ID and debit card in a pocket on my jacket). If you don't need a passport, don't bring it. Would you bring a passport to fly from LA to San Fransisco? Likely not, so as a Canadian I'm not bringing more ID than my drivers license. If I lose it, I phone home, they shuffle some papers, I go fill out some forms and I'm able to get back into the plane. Might take a few hours. If I'm there for a number of days, they can courier me some ID like my firearms license or something government issued. 

If you're leaving a big bag in the hostel, for petes sake, take out everything valuable and lock it up. Like I said, nobody's stealing your clothing. If you're like me, you make friends fast and you learn quickly that somebody has brought expensive equipment. I bought my camera at a pawn shop for 20 bucks. It's digital, takes AA batteries and the cards are cheap. I would not bring my laptop for the reasons I mentioned above. If I get rolled, it's not going to kill me. I also don't dress too trad or too formal. I dressed up to go to a fancy dinner with a local friend. I literally walked out of the room with a tie on and people were looking at me funny. It didn't help that I had a seersucker sportscoat on. That was okay, but the necktie was throwing people off. If you're at a hostel, blend in, even if it means bringing some logoless tees and Old Navy khakis. Trust me, you can go buy those Park Avenues and those Armani blazers, but don't wear them around the hostel. I came in and the manager was wearing a 3-pc suit. I asked what the special occasion was and he said that he only wears it about 3 times a year and wanted to wear it that day. It wasn't typical.

Shopping. I went to the Bay and got some excellent, thirty dollar spectator shoes. They were marked down from 110. I got a good deal and I must have been a sorry sight because the salesman offered to throw out my old shoes. Yes they were Rockport loafers, but I wasn't going to part with a pair of shoes right then. Listen to this: if you are in a strange city and have a ton of shopping bags, please, please, take a cab back to the hotel. Now, somebody here is going to say, "Montreal isn't that dangerous", but I've been to lots of places in Canada and people are aggressive on the streets. I was with a buddy from school one time and he actually went up to a drug dealer to negotiate the price on a spliff. I had to literally grab him and haul him down the street. We had all sorts of shenanigans and I'd love to share some of them, but if he were IDed he'd probably have to answer to the police. 

If you do go shopping, do not do as I do, and automatically put on your coonskin or fishermans hat. It's a great conversation piece at the comedy club. It also attracts street people. Obviously, locals don't buy things in Old Montreal at a trinket shop. Also, don't wear a ballcap. I didn't see any locals in my part of town with ballcaps. Panamas, fedoras, trilbies, all okay. Didn't see many ballcaps (locals, go ahead and contradict me, but I saw Little Italy and the Plateau and the downtown areas and didn't see any). 

Also, in the tourist areas, don't be obligated to buy a tee shirt for every person you know. Mother gets a fridge magnet no matter where I go. Dad gets a bit of local candy, my niece and nephew get a shirt with the city name, my girlfriend gets cheap jewelery, and that's it. No buying a stuffed moose for Uncle Frank. They are a good place to pay 15 for 1, 2 for 25, etc so if you do buy a couple, but them at the same shop off the same rack. Also, check price tags. In addition these places are cramped, so don't knock anything over. I don't know what "Break it you buy it" is in French, but I could imagine such a situation. If you have a backpack, keep an eye out. 

Some parts of town are totally filled with frat boys and cool kids. Get over it. If you want to go to an Irish pub, there is Hurleys. Don't feel that every bar in the downtown area is designed to make personal connections with local girls over cheap whiskey. As a rule, local girls don't expect to get free drinks from tourists, but hostel-dwellers might try to flirt their way to a martini. If the hostel has a bar, it will be occupied till 2AM. I remember being totally tired and mentioning to a girl at the hostel and mentioning I had a private room. She remarked that I should spend more time on the Chive. 

Transit. The best couple bucks I spent was to get on the bus at the Biodome and hop off at this really scuzzy hotel. I walked in, told the front desk that I was a lost tourist and was looking for a cab. She helped me out, and I was in a cab back to my hostel in a few minutes. She even gave me a token to give to the parking lot machine. 

Transit people are rude. Don't get offended if your mother is a transit booth operator. They will speak French and if you're lucky, they can understand English. I remember going to a booth to buy a 1-use metro ticket. I gave him a 20 dollar bill and he handed back 3 bucks. Now, I don't know what kind of pass he gave me, but a 1-use card probably doesn't cost 17 dollars. Unfortunately, I was on a pub crawl so I simply used it and went on my way. The transit system on the other hand is awesome. If you're in a group, it's dramatically safer and faster than trying to flag down a cab outside Schwartz at 3AM. Know where your metro station by the hotel is and keep an open eye on the map. Same as every big city. There is a scam which I've seen. People will ask you to buy them a metro ticket so they can get to work. It isn't good charity, it's that they want to resell that ticket to toursits. I've been both conned and almost bought a metro ticket from a young man who was clearly not going to work, unless they pay people to drink cherry jack. 

Keep a hand on your wallet on the metro. Same as any other big city. Tuck in your shirt, I've heard of people having their money belt under their shirt being lifted. 

Pt. 2 coming shortly.

Canadian


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## Snow Hill Pond (Aug 10, 2011)

Canadian said:


> Transit people are rude.


https://blogs.montrealgazette.com/2...s-lazy-and-rude-36-efficient-and-friendly-25/


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## Canadian (Jan 17, 2008)

Part Two.

How little can you carry? It depends on how you value your possessions. Sometimes you're packing for a trip and it basically comes down to, "what do I have"?

I try not to bring anything I cannot lose. My camera? 20 bucks at a pawn shop, takes AA batteries. My phone? iPhone. Nothing super fancy. No laptop, no video camera, no dress shoes, no suit. Most importantly, no self important attitude about how things are better back home. If you're in Montreal, you eat the bagel, you don't get a steak. Don't be obligated to go to Tim Hortons or Second Cup. Trust me, the best espresso comes from a roadside stand as you walk through Old Montreal. Don't bother asking for decaf coffee. Nobody drinks the stuff and it isn't any good for curing the morning funk.

I must have been in five or six bars last time. As a non-drinker I generally ordered a Pepsi. However at one bar (a real dive), I had to order a Red Bull. Don't expect every restaurant to have a dozen kinds of energy drink, your special kind of beer and a cheap glass of really good wine. For example, the bar at the Days Inn has Monster. Not five kinds of Monster, just the basic green stuff. I find the best deal (assuming the bartender is competent) in a restaurant is a bottle of cheap sparkling wine. I don't know why, but when I drank, it got me tanked right away. Something to do with the carbonation. If you can't get a bottle of Asti Spumante or a bottle of Cordon *****, go for the house beer or the house red (and order a litre if there is two of you). In Montreal, the house red generally is decent. In some bars, the beer is Black Label and in other places it's Strongbow or Pabst.

Again, how much do you want to bring? I don't wear anything I'm not willing to lose, tear or get stolen. I know every single person on this forum will mock me, but I bring a cotton peacoat from Old Navy, a couple of pairs of Old Navy khakis, some various tees, a couple golf shirts and a pair of shorts. Shoes are a pair of loafers from Florsheim or Rockport and a pair of Merell hiking shoes. I do cheat a little and wear a tie and oxford cloth shirt on the plane. When I get there, I put it away in case I want to go to a fancy restaurant. For those of you who don't know, Montreal is easily in day trip range to either Quebec City or Ottawa. In Ottawa, one must eat at Mama Theresa's if you plan ahead. It will cost 200 dollars minimum for a foursome. I went with a buddy and his girlfriend (she invited herself along) and picked up the bill. With entree, appetizer and dessert, it was about 160 for the three of us. Canadian dollars, so that's about the same in USD depending on how generous the currency markets are.

Something else you want to think is, "What do I really need"? Do you really need that suit? Do you really need brown shoes, black shoes, dirty bucks and spectators? What do you want to buy when you get there? Sometimes, it's easier to buy a couple things when you get there. If you get a really good deal on say, a pair of brogues, do you want your bag stuffed to the brim before you can add purchases.

Also, when it comes to toiletries, if you're staying in a hotel, they'll provide shampoo and soap (anywhere in Canada. I don't know about abroad). If you're staying at the Omni, you can bug the concierge and he can give you virtually anything. I once asked him for a shoehorn and he obliged. Perks of paying 200/night. I have been on trips with friends where we'll fit 4 to a room just to be able to afford a better hotel. Honestly, in Montreal, you do notice. If the bar is devoid of ladies and locals, you're probably in a dump. Trust me, if you're at a hostel, you will not have random ladies throw themselves at you. If the evening involves drinks, dancing and a quick stop at the drugstore, maybe. Don't get it in your head that just because you buy a girl a drink, she must dance/kiss/go back to your hotel with you. Most people downtown are tourists and they aren't there to hook up.

If you are four to a room, be nice. Share beds. Hotel rooms in Montreal are massive. At the Omni I was taking pictures of the room for my sister who couldn't believe that the room was actually that big. Hostel rooms are tiny, but you get what you pay for.

What can I buy on site? Firstly, Montreal is one of the best spots to go shopping for vintage. Army surplus tends to get mixed in there, so if you want a pair of OD wool trousers with a khaki safari coat with Italian markings, you can actually have your pick. Of note, some items like compasses, knives and field glasses are actually more expensive second hand than at your local sportswear shop. I bought what I thought was a Canadian army surplus compass for twenty dollars and it turned out to be a cheap copy.

If you smoke illegal drugs, all bets are off. You will get caught. Drink all you want, but if your idea of a night out involves a bit of hash, don't come. I went into a very popular dance club and was both wanded and my cigarettes were smelled by a large bouncer. Once he noticed I was not actually, carrying marijuana and didn't bring my shooting irons, it was a magical night. If you do drink a lot, have an escape plan. If you're at a strip club, drinks will be expensive, even a Coke will cost you. I was sitting at a hotel bar in one of the better places in town. A group of guys about my age, all dressed like Tucker Max on a bender stopped. They each had a shot of Jack. I have never seen so many people go through a hundred dollars (as a group) so quickly. They were there for a bachelor party, and were on their way to party. Montreal is a great party city. Do go to, Sir Winston Churchill, Hurleys and maybe a couple drinks at the W. For NYE, some hotels will only admit people who are registered guests. Sometimes the best parties are ticketing events, so if you want to go, phone ahead, get on the list or make a reservation or buy tickets. For example, on my first trip to a big nightclub, I was traveling on business with my boss. We put on our good suits, phoned ahead to make a reservation and showed up on time at 8PM. We had some calamari, some steaks, some cocktails (I think I had seven cosmopolitans). They made it very clear that unless I wanted bottle service (like I could handle another 26oz of liquor) I should wrap up my meal before the entertainment started.

One more thing for part two. If you're in Ottawa, don't show up at Parliament for a tour. You get free tickets across the street and they are limited. Show up early and expect not to see everything you want.


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