The SUBURBS of Montréal, for a change

On these forums, we always see pictures of Montréal city proper, but we never see pictures of the suburbs. Yet most of the Montréalais live in the suburbs, and not in the city center. In fact Montréal is one of the most suburbanized cities in North America, with the (dubious, some would think) distinction of having the longest mileage of suburban freeways per inhabitant.

I guess we all see the world through our own cultural glasses. What attracts North Americans is the supposed Europeanness of Montréal, the dense urbanity of its city center, the old stones. Hence the reams of threads showing pictures of Montréal city center. Yet for a francophone from Europe, what’s fascinating about Montréal is precisely the opposite, it’s the fact that life there is en français, through and through, yet it looks so much like an American city, which is always so disconcerting and exotic for the francophone European visitor. So what about we have a look at the Americanness of Montréal for a change? That Americannness that strikes European visitors usually. Let’s explore the suburbs (la banlieue) of Montréal!

PS: The pictures here are not meant to be representative of the suburbs of Montréal. They are just a random exploration of the suburbs according to my whims. Other pictures will be added over time. Also, all pictures come from Google Street View, as is obvious from the pics.