Place Ville Marie, built in a cruciform shape is Montreal's first really tall building, and the first to build an underground shopping mall. Now the downtown buildings and malls are connected through underground passageways. This is particularly appreciated when the mercury dips down and the winds crank up.
I walked about ten minutes from my house to the nearest metro station. From there I was able to take the metro to Bonaventure and walked underground to Place du Canada where I had a meeting. I chose to walk outside to my next destination (hence the photograph), but could have walked the few blocks to Place Ville Marie underground. There are over 30 km (20 mi) of climate-controlled tunnels - bright, often lined with shops - so that weather does not have to limit shoppers, movie-goers, museum lovers, diners.... I still prefer the above ground routes, but have appreciated this underground alternative on many occasions.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Day 350: Place Ville Marie
Monday, May 18, 2009
Day 137: Looking Downtown
Montreal has a vital downtown - safe, walkable and lively. This photograph was taken looking towards downtown from the south. The building on the right is Place Ville Marie, one of Montreal's first skyscrapers, built in 1962. It was also the first to house an underground shopping mall. Now Montreal has an underground life - miles of tunnels connect buildings and underground shopping centres - a boon to winter shoppers, movie goers, office workers... As they are also connected to the metro (our subway system) people can accomplish a lot without going outside.
We do not have huge skyscrapers as there is now a law regulating the height so that they do not overshadow our mountain. You can see one view of the city here - taken from the mountain looking slightly east of these buildings.
