Canada and Vermont Vacation, July 2005

Northbound NH/VT | Montebello, QC | Montreal | Southbound VT

Friday, July 22: St. Viatour Bagels

I'd read that Montreal bagels were different than New York-style bagels, and so they were--slightly sweeter, less chewy, and flatter. St. Viatour Bagels is said to be one of the best bagelries around, so we stopped here for a quick bagel breakfast on our way our of town. The bagels were plentiful, hot, tasty, and cheap. I also loved their homemade matzoh, in small packages near the cash register.

Barre Rock of Ages Granite Quarry

Barre, Vermont, is a small town known for its granite. We took a tour of the quarry on a workday, looking down 600 feet into the pit, while a thunderstorm brewed above. Don't worry--in case of an electrical storm, they shut down all equipment and the men get to climb out of the pit on custom-built wooden ladders that snake up the sides. Barre also hosts a granite bowling alley, built as a prototype in the 1950s, but never widely adopted. We got in the last shot down the satisfyingly hard and unscratched lane before an employee ran to cover it for the rain.

Back in Boston

Back home, after meeting Annie for a quick Korean dinner in Allston, and after unloading the car and dragging everything up the stairs, I displayed my treasures: flours and sugars from the King Arthur Store, maple pepper from the corn guy in Queechee Gorge, Vermont, ketchup-flavored potato chips from Canada for Mike "I Like Ketchup with my Ketchup" Ike, chocolate mustard, Szechuan peppercorns, Montreal bagels, and unpasteurized creamy honey, all from Canada. What a bounty! Home, safe and sound, and with all of our treats.