As it turned out, last week was the perfect week to be in Halifax!  First, it was my anniversary.  When Hubby came home on Tuesday night I had dinner made, Champagne in the fridge (from Sis-in-Law) and a gift of MEC merchandise for his growing love of kayaking.  Second, it was the Halifax International Busker Festival.  I spent much of Wednesday trolling the Halifax Waterfront for deals on crafts, clothes & accessories as well as entertainment on their many busker stages!  There were performers on pogo sticks, break-dancers, fire artists & comedians…  but my absolute favorite was VICTORRR  RRRUBILARR!!  He was this great football (soccer ball) juggling/tricking performer from Argentina.  Not hard on the eyes either.  The day continued with some pampering (my anniversary gift) at The Fixx Salon on Lower Water Street, a stop at Pete’s for fresh ingredients for dinner and a walk to Video Difference (the coolest video store I have ever seen) for a movie. 

Thursday was shopping day:  Peep Show, Lulu Lemon, and I went to the Mic Mac Mall to check out the newest H&M to hit the east coast – which was a disappointment.  They took out the funkiest of lines from the H&M collection and I found that, although there were some nice pieces, everything was very monochromatic.  Bring us the Montreal/Toronto worthy styles!!  Oh well.  The craziest part of this story, I didn’t buy a thing!  I was being a good girl.  But, by far the best part of the day, was when Hubby & I pampered friends of ours - that are new parents – with a homemade dinner at their house.

Friday I spent part of the afternoon with another friend and his two kids.   We played in the sandbox!  And, finally, it was time to hit the town for some Halifax nightlife…  after a delivery of Alexandra’s Canadian Classic Pizza (with the sweet sauce), Hubby and I went to a friend’s house for some pre-drinking before heading downtown…  felt young to be walking across town with a case of beer and coolers under the arm.  First bar: rooftop patio of the Argyle with a bunch of residents and their partners.  Second bar: dancing at the Lower Deck (Hubby went home before we hit #2 because he had to work in the am).  When we were kicked out of that bar at 2am -> Third bar: The Alehouse.  By far the best of the three… Merimac was playing all the maritime favorites, the place was packed and everyone was dancing and belting out the words.  I think I stumbled ”home” around 3:45am. 

Saturday, the vacation ended…  slept in and headed home to Saint John in the sweltering heat (driving Matilda, she has no air conditioning).  Dream over.

First, I love that they are practical.  According to an on-line tourism site dedicated to the city “ it was to save space on the inside that Montréal duplexes and triplexes were endowed with these wonderfully varied wrought iron spiral staircases. A 19th-century law, in an attempt to secure some greenery for the city, stipulated that a green space be left in front of buildings. This left less room on the lot for the building itself. The solution of putting staircases on the outside took care of this problem by claiming as living space the area that would have been taken up by an indoor staircase. ” Practical & conscious of the environment/urban planning…  I swoon!

I love that they have personality.  Each building facade (apartments & single family dwellings alike), already architecturally beautiful, is augmented by its personalised staircase – twisting & turning in its own special way.  Each owner uses it to their own end; some hang plants and clothing (like my Oma used to do), others baskets & other ornaments.  A street lined with them is quite something to behold, it reminds me of the romanticised alleyways in the ‘ghettos’ of West Side Story.  They are a haven, and I sometimes dream of having one of my own that I could perch on with a good book and look out over the street/backyard/etc. 

The most beautiful of these staircases (inset) I discovered yesterday while I was exploring the port area of Montreal.  I had just walked the entire length of the water and was in need of some shade.  I strode up one block to Place Jacques Cartier and dove down an alley reserved for local artisans.  An offshoot of this alley opened up into this courtyard surrounded by high grey stone walls (like you were suddenly within the walls of some medieval castle full of high priced jewelery), and within another step-down offshoot, there it was.  Ahhhh.

Alas, I think this blog may divulge too much of my unhealthy obsession with moulded metal, and so I leave you with this…  the only way my fabulous city of Saint John could be any perfecter (yes, I said it, I don’t want to be too poetic), would be to add a few of these beauties to the uptown/south end.  Maybe we could add one to our house… ohh hubbyyy…