Not in the erotic sense of course, I went rockclimbing last night for the first time. Ok I did it in Thailand up a mountain, but that felt more like the guy pulling me up. Was where the Tsunami hit, I wonder if he is ok…Im in Montreal, everything is in French, sexy girls keep walking past, it really could be in France except Im on the wrong continent. I came over on Sunday afternoon with a couple of guys from Venezuala who live here. I met them on Thursday night in the Cadillac lounge and then went dancing.

I had a slightly weird weekend, I took Bonnie for Brunch back in the Only Cafe which was nice but she was heading off to the Harvest Festival with Mark and his posse so we said our goodbyes and I had the day to myself as usual. I took a really long walk into the City which seems like its all I do, but with the weather being so perfect its a great thing to do. I have to get myself fit for this weekend anyway when I’ll be hiking in a National Park near Montreal. I’ve been looking for a day pack with a wire mesh inside since my day pack is a bit knackered since I was forced to check it coming back from India. I have so much money tied up in gadgets Im slightly paranoid about getting things pinched if I leave my gear in a hostel.

It gives me a mission to find something I need anyway, its nice to be able just to wander but you do need little things to do otherwise your day has no structure. I found a place that said their sister store definietly had them, so I spent an hour wandering down to their only to find they had just closed. Oh well, I headed back to Marks on the Subway and streetcars but he wasn’t in, I had to track down Matt (his roommate) at the local pub who was having a drink with a friend before I could pick up my stuff. It weighs a ton and all I have bought is a sleeping mat (well, a few other knick knacks but nothing major). I staggered back to the Metro but decided to blow more money on a taxi since my knee was a bit sore under the weight :p I know Im a wuss.

I had arranged to spend the night with Maria which by chance I had walked past earlier on in the day so knew it was close, I dont know what I would have done if the elevator was broken as she lived on the 12th floor. She breeds cats in her apartment and had 2 litters on the go, with their attendant mothers fussing over them. I wasn’t sure if I should go out, I realise now I had missed the Beastie Boys in concert, but then Im sure it would have cost a fortune to get in. I also had the chance to see a band called Chromeo who have a song I really love, but I was Dog Tired in a Cat Empire. Maria started making us some dinner and then got a call from her boyfriend who invited her over. That settled my evening then, I was going to get an early night… On a saturday… oh well, everyday is Saturday for me now :)

She left, and I dont know how it happened but the door to the other room somehow opened, maybe it was the pressure, but I then learnt she didn’t have 2 cats but 5 and the others were unleashed into the main room. Oh dear, there went my early night as the cats proceeded to jump on me, each other, fight, attack my backpack, the furniture… I opened the balcony door and they seemed quite happy out there, but then I started getting paranoid one would go missing so I made them go back in. I didn’t want a $800 siamese cat on my concience or budget! I put a Friends DVD on and tried to ignore them, which was hard as one of the smaller cats kept coming to me for protection.

Maria worked on Sunday morning so I sleepily said goodbye and had a lie in, I did the dishes (which was a first for her apparently) and went to meet Andreas and Yorvis for brunch in the city. We met up with another local Torontonian Couchsufing host called Robin and suffered the terrible service that was Brunch in Shoeless Joes. Seemed to take forever, and while the waitresses bitched about the Chef they took forever to get our menus and coffee. Not recommended…

Robin was strange, he loved to host people but never travelled .After brunch we went to the local Mountain Equipment Co-op, a store that Colin from Vancouver had turned me onto several years before while in Canada skiing, and Robin expressed a desire to go see Nepal but I dont know if he ever will. The time to go is right now as the views are the best this time of year, but then I guess its not that easy for some people. You need a passport for one thing.

Still I can’t understand how he never even takes a 2 week vacation, every. He uses his time off to work on his family farm, which is all well and good, but if you work so much and earn and save so much all that happens is that you end up giving it to ungrateful kids and the government. I would rather enjoy my life if at all possible, in a responsible manner.

So the weekend was kinda dull, maybe I should have gone to the Harvest Dance festival but it was too late for that, we drove to get my gear from Marias, had a pint in an English pub waiting for another girl we were also giving a lift to and headed off to Montreal.

The start of the week was spent getting my bearings in Montreal, which is always fun without a map. Over a pint the night before Andreas explained a few things and told me where I could get the subway into town which was simple enough, jump on the 47 and jump off with everyone else by the subway. I chose Peel as the station most appealing and then just pounded the streets for a good few hours. I will have to go on more of a phototour on Wednesday but I have been taking quite a few shots. Nothing spectacular yet, but practice makes perfect. Mikeal (Andreas’ roommate) has a 10-22 superwide angle which I will be hoping to borrow too. He was impressed by the super cheap 1.8 50mm I bought in Toronto, its a great portait lens for $110.

Every Monday the Montreal gang head over to a huge indoor climbing wall and I was invited. Was great fun, we warmed up on the ‘bouldering’ section, which is a 18′ high wall with different marked routes you have to try to scale. I didn’t manage the beginners route, but then Im weak. It certainly taxes your arms, I think I might need to excercise more than just my walking legs if Im going to manage Devils Tower in Montana :) After 1/2 hour of this we moved onto the main floor and climbing with ropes which was fun. The first two routes were fairly uneventful and I scrambled up like a bloated monkey, but then they had me trying the section that has a horizonal overhang. I watched the rather cute Diana from Mexico do it earlier on, but she was half my weight and apparently a natural but I gave it my best shot. Getting to the overhang was easy but once there the grips petter out a bit and then you have to start thinking about climbing on the ceiling…. I couldn’t do it and when I let go swung right out, which was a nice buzz, ie I thought I was going to die :)

Shoes and the harness are not that expensive over here, it might be nice to invest and then I will have a chance to go it more when Im travelling around. Just bouldering up low rocks is fun as long as you dont drop too far and there are bound to be people everywhere who are into that. I need to get fitter and here is my chance while I am away, I was planning on getting a bike when my vehicle is sorted out. Walking is nice, but sometimes a bit too leisurely a pace. I also see the kids on their big skateboards and would like one of those too. Maybe Im a bit too old to learn tricks, but at least its good for the hills :) Downhills that is.



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