Canada - Snowy Owl (Bubo scandiacus)

Snowy Owl, the official bird of Quebec.

Sent by Danièle, a postcrosser from Montreal, Canada.

This is from Wikipedia : The Snowy Owl (Bubo scandiacus) is a large owl of the typical owl family Strigidae. The Snowy Owl was first classified in 1758 by Carolus Linnaeus, the Swedish naturalist who developed binomial nomenclature to classify and organize plants and animals. The bird is also known in North America as the Arctic Owl, Great White Owl or Harfang. Until recently, it was regarded as the sole member of a distinct genus, as Nyctea scandiaca, but mtDNA cytochrome b sequence data (Olsen et al. 2002) shows that it is very closely related to the horned owls in the genus Bubo. The Snowy Owl is the official bird of Quebec.

This yellow-eyed, black beaked white bird is easily recognizable. It is 52–71 centimetres (20–28 in) long with a 125–150 centimetres (49–59 in) wingspan. Also, these birds can weigh anywhere from 1.6 to 3 kilograms (3.5 to 6.6 lb). It is one of the largest species of owl and in North America is on average the heaviest owl species. The adult male is virtually pure white, but females and young birds have some dark scalloping; the young are heavily barred, and dark spotting may even predominate. Its thick plumage, heavily feathered taloned feet, and coloration render the Snowy Owl well-adapted for life north of the Arctic Circle.

Snowy Owl calls are varied, but the alarm call is a barking, almost quacking krek-krek; the female also has a softer mewling pyee-pyee or prek-prek. The song is a deep repeated gawh. They may also clap their beak in response to threats or annoyances. While called clapping, it is believed this sound may actually be a clicking of the tongue, not the beak.

Canada - Canada Place

VANCOUVER, CANADA
The magnificent Trade and Convention Cenre at Canada Place.

Sent by Linda, a Swap-Bot partner from Canada.

This is from Wikipedia : Canada Place is a building situated on the Burrard Inlet waterfront of Vancouver, British Columbia. It is the home of the Vancouver Convention Centre, the Pan Pacific Hotel, Vancouver's World Trade Centre, and the world's first permanent IMAX 3D theatre (which ceased operation on October 1st 2009). It is also the main cruise ship terminal for the region, where most of Vancouver's famous cruises to Alaska originate. Construction on it began in 1983, finished in late 1985, and was open for Expo 86 as the pavilion for Canada and was the only venue for the fair that was not at the main site on the north shore of False Creek. The building was designed by architect Eberhard Zeidler.

It can be reached via the SkyTrain line at the nearby Waterfront Station terminus. The white sails of the building have made it a prominent landmark for the city, as well as drawing comparisons to the Sydney Opera House in Sydney, Australia and the Denver International Airport in Denver, Colorado.

The structure was expanded in 2001 to accommodate another cruise ship berth. In 2009, a companion building immediately to the northwest was completed which, like Canada Place, contains additional Convention Centre facilities as well as served as the International Broadcast Centre for the 2010 Winter Olympics while Canada Place served as the Main Press Centre.

Canada - Multiviews of Vieux-Montréal

Vieux-Montréal
The Place Jacques-Cartier. The Place D'Armes and St-Paul Street.

Sent by Ruxandra from Quebec, Canada.

Canada - Saint Joseph's Oratory of Mount Royal

SAINT JOSEPH'S ORATORY OF MOUNT ROYAL
Founded in 1904 by the late Brother André, c.s.c., Saint Joseph's Oratory towers 506 feet above the street level. It attracts more than 2,000,000 pilgrims and visitors every year.

Sent by Ruxandra from Quebec, Canada.

This is from Wikipedia : Saint Joseph's Oratory of Mount Royal, (French: Oratoire Saint-Joseph du Mont-Royal), is a Roman Catholic basilica on the west slope of Mount Royal in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

In 1904, Saint André Bessette, CSC, began the construction of a small chapel on the side of the mountain near Notre Dame College. Soon the growing number of visitors made it too small. Even though it was enlarged, a larger church was needed and in 1917 one was completed - it is called the Crypt, and has a seating capacity of 1,000. In 1924, the construction of the basilica was inaugurated; it was finally completed in 1967. The Oratory's dome is the third-largest of its kind in the world after the Basilica of Our Lady of Peace of Yamoussoukro in the Ivory Coast and Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome, and the church is the largest in Canada.

The basilica is dedicated to Saint Joseph, to whom Brother André credited all his reported miracles. These were mostly related to some kind of healing power, and many pilgrims (handicapped, blind, ill, etc.) poured into his Basilica, including numerous Protestants. On display in the basilica is a wall covered with thousands of crutches from those who came to the basilica and were allegedly healed. Pope John Paul II deemed the miracles to be authentic and beatified Brother André in 1982.

A reliquary in the church museum contains Brother André's heart, which he requested as a protection for the basilica. More than 2 million visitors and pilgrims visit the Oratory every year. It is located at 3800 Queen Mary Road , at Côte-des-Neiges (near to Côte-des-Neiges metro station).

Composer Émilien Allard notably served as the church's carillonneur from 1955-1975. For RCA Victor he released the LP album Carols at the Carillon of Saint Joseph's Oratory for which he wrote the arrangements.

Canada - Rue Peel, Montréal - 1972

Peel Street in 1972, Montréal, Québec, Canada.

Sent by Winifred, a postcrosser from Montréal in Canada.

This is from Wikipedia : Peel Street is a major north-south street located in downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The Street links Pine Avenue, near Mount Royal, in the north and Smith Street, in the Southwest borough, in the south. The street's southern end is at the Peel Basin of the Lachine Canal. The street runs through Montreal's shopping district.

McGill University buildings line much of its uppermost section. Further south, Peel is home to McGill's Martlet House, the Montreal Amateur Athletic Association, Canada's oldest athletics association, and the Consulate General of Pakistan. The street borders the western side of Place du Canada and the adjacent Dorchester Square, the Chateau Champlain, Windsor Station and the Dow Planetarium.

The Peel Metro station is named for the street.

Opened in 1845, Peel Street was named after Sir Robert Peel, the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Until 1959 Peel was known as Colborne Street south of Notre-Dame Street, and up until 1968, the street was known as Windsor Street near René-Lévesque Boulevard.