Montreal Film Festival

Oh my! Tara wanted to get moving immediately upon waking, and I took too long to be ready and she was irritable and lashed out and I realized my error in staying with her. I found myself in tears and ready to walk out, but pulled myself together and stayed steady and somehow we moved on.

We decided to make today a search for good coffee. I realized too late that the coffee we are looking for does not exist here. It is the same in Paris and in truth anywhere but Italy. My husband and mother are both astonished at my fussiness about coffee. I am always searching and always disappointed that I cannot find the kind of coffee one can encounter anywhere in Italy, from the train station to the autostrada to the bar on the corner etc. The espresso is foamy and wholebodied and easy to drink. I gave up on coffee in Ecuador and accustomed myself to the consistently 'not quite right' taste, and in fact lost my addiction to coffee over the year. I truly believe coffee is optional for me now. The 'Myriad Cafe' close to Tara's apartment was the best so far, the Cafe Depot up the street was horrid, the Nezpresso we tried yesterday afternoon on Crescent Street (lots of machines on sale upstairs after you tasted the coffee downstairs) was not quite right (I only tried a small sip because it was late in the day and I cannot drink coffee past noon if I want to sleep the night) and the Starbucks although consistent is not quite the cappuccino/espresso we yearn for.

So today was coffee tasting day and we prepared ourselves by looking online for the 'best coffee places in Montreal'. Tara compiled a list and we set off. The first choice was close by and 'closed for renovation' (Kafein on Bishop). 'Nocochi' on Mackay had great Middle Eastern desserts and candy and the barista tried to please us but the coffee did not pass. He suggested a Cafe down the street (without a name but next door to where Tara bought her phone) where the cappuccinos we ordered turned out to be lattes and tolerable but too milky for my taste. Our barista was a young girl from Venezuela. There were two places on Crescent (Benelo and Testa Rossa) which we skipped, and headed for Cafe Art and Java on University and President Kennedy, where the coffee had an odd taste, which was replicated at Cafe Veritas on St. Laurent and Notre Dame in Old Montreal (which had a great smoothie I'd come back for). We walked through tiny Chinatown on our way to Old Montreal, which is unchanged (and just as small) as it was 30 years ago.

I was all 'coffeed out' and could not finish the last cappuccino. Of course if it was 'right' it would have been easy, but we had truly not found a good cup of coffee and there are more places to visit before we are done with our search. My suspicion is that the coffee here is simply different than what we are accustomed to in Italy and Tara will have to adjust to the tastes here, or use her little coffee maker at home with her Italian coffee beans and warmed up milk and do it as my grandmother used to at her home in Sterzing/Vipiteno when I was growing up. We will all ahve to fly to Italy for a good cappuccino. Good excuse to fly five thousand miles.

I wanted to spend more time in Old Montreal. The sun was brilliant and the old stones beckoned, and my heart stayed here some time ago, but Tara was ready to move on. She had seen nothing of the Latin quarter, so we walked up St. Denis for miles and miles. She wanted to eat Thai food, but by the time we decided to look for lunch, the kitchens were closed. She shopped in the boutiques along the way, and found a great pot shaped and coloured like a pepper (it looked like a tomato to me) to warm up milk for coffee. St. Denis is a happening place, but I was also interested in the Montreal film festival (which I used to go to regularly when I lived here) so we picked up programs and when we finally stopped to eat at a Middle Eastern restaurant in front of the Odeon Theatre where many of the films were playing, I finally chose some films to see. I had encouraged Tara to join the 'Theatre frosh' event of the evening, the plan being to visit all the theatres on campus (she will audition for roles at the events). I was delighted that it was so easy to go to the ticket booth and purchase billets for two films at 5 and 7. I was thinking of getting a third film for 9, but decided that two was enough. Dinner was exquisite. I will have to try to remember the name of the place (Couscous?) and return for amazing desserts. Montreal is certainly a place for FOOD, there are so many restaurants of all sorts and flavours and styles and atmospheres. So much to explore!

The first film was Czech and a review of the life of a mother and her two daughters from 1967 to 1977. The best part was the presence of the director who presented her first movie at the film festival 20 years ago when she won the best first film feature. The subtitles were in English so I could understand it. The 'Uomo Nero' was in Italian with French subtitles, but I did not have to read them, I was delighted to understand it all. I luxuriated in everything Italian. Tara is struggling being away from Italy, and I feel that way every time I am reminded of Italy. I manage to visit Italy almost every year (not yet in 2010), and my heart stays there, so I understand how she feels. Of course I am afraid at any moment that she will 'bolt' and return to Italy to stay, not that I object entirely, but I do believe she needs to acquire a college education. Of course I am not sure she will be employable after two years of acting and two more years of 'cultural studies' which is watching and critiquing film, but it sounds like a fun education. Perhaps I am envious that she can study such flighty things, but it is easier to stomach when the bill is not $50, 000 a year. I remember working intensely at university, and not having alot of free time, but studying today appears so much more relaxed. Students have big chunks of time free to play and study and relax. When I was in school it was 8 to 5 classes with a break for lunch and studying in the evening and weekends. It was intense.

The movies and the atmosphere at the cinema were 'electric, but when I walked out of the theatre, St Denis was packed with revelers and I did not want to leave. Tara had done her theatre frosh event and was communing with her residence mates, so I walked the length of St. Catherine, passing a huge outdoor screen presenting 'The Shining' which is still too scary for me to watch. I felt entirely safe walking the distance to Tara's place, where she met me to let me in and then joined her mates. I was glad that she was being social and making connections in this new place. I am crossing my fingers that she will find her 'niche' and feel at home here. It is too painful to always wish to be elsewhere. I have experienced that many times in my life and it keeps me from appreciating the place I am in. I have always wanted to live in Italy, but I have not, and I try to be happy where I am, but I am not always good at that. I understand Tara and her feelings, but I hope that Montreal will turn out to be wonderful for her. I imagined her presenting her first feature film at the World Film Festival and feeling good about her time here.