Go East Young Man

17 July - Another far too late night meant getting up was very difficult but today I had a mission and if getting up early had to be done I was going to do it. Broke the fast, packed a bag, grabbed Celeste and took the 98B to the airport because today i'm finally going to see some more of this country besides the jewel of the West (apparently that's what some people in Vancouver call my recent home) - I was heading to the land of smoked meat and poutine, the place where people talk funny, the gay capital of the planet and the place that might one day no longer be a part of this country (although nobody can tell me what they'll call their hockey team if the separatists finally get their way) - Montreal. Gettingto the airport was no problem at all but had a few issues upon arrival - was charged extra for bringing Celeste despite being told when I booked the tickets that it was covered, also couldn’t for the life of me manage to loosen her handlebars or pedals (as I write this on the plane i'm praying that she is being treated with the respect that a lady like her deserves) and when I went to board I was told that I had to check in my carry on bag because my bike tool and lock were banned items (i know terrorists have managed to take over a plane with box cutters but I can’t see how a bunch of allen keys can constitute a threat to airline security - also praying that this bag managed to get stowed away on my flight and not the next one because its going to be very irritating waitingfor it on the other side, especially considering that i'm arriving at 10pm - no idea when the next one's coming). Relatively uneventful flight - flew over the Canada US border for most of the way which brought back memories of my driving across in the other direction, the uncomfortable seat also brought back the awful pain in the left butt cheek that plagued me throughout my american odyssey a few months ago but what ar you going to do? Not very reassuring for the 14 hour Canada Australia flight that no doubt awaits me in a couple of weeks. The four hour trip seemed to take a lifetime but eventually touched down in Montreal and, as luck would have it, along with all of my bagage including the messenger bag carrying the dangerous allen keys (although the security guard gave it a pretty suspicious looking over before I picked it up). Afairly long winded commute into the city and through the Metro to the hostel and when I arrived at half eleven the staff were gettingready to shut down but luckily they found my name scrawled in the register as being due to check in so all was okay. Went for a little bit of a wander to find some sustenance but decided to hold off on experiencing the nightlife for a bit, the past week has been a bit brutal in the lack of sleep and travelling, eeven when half conscious in a plane, always wears me out. But, I have finally made it to somewhere new in Canadia so very happy about that.