This museum tracks the evolution of currency and money over the years, including such events such as the Devil's Head bill, so named because Satan snuck a cameo of himself into the Queen's hair behind behind her ear. Can you see it?
As a study in economics and supply & demand for money, these bills illustrate the effects of inflation which resulted in the local governments printing some truly huge bills:
This sounds remarkably like what the US Federal Reserve is doing these days....
Following are some examples of how religious faith affects money:
Even Prisons of War get money in POW camps:
How the Molson (beer brewing) family got into banking:
Outside of the museum was a sample of the heaviest currency on earth - a "Yap" Stone that weighs two tons:
Agent Tango wanted to send it back to HQ for further analysis, I thought it better to leave it where it was and left moving this as an exercise for the local agents.
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2009-06-12.5 Kanata ON Update Today was spent planning my departure from Kanata ON Monday AM for Montreal QC, after which it was either either head straight for Moncton, NB, or go to Moncton NB via James Bay QC. I wasn't sure which way I was going to go because a side trip to the James Bay Hydro Dam will be at least a 4 day round-trip on the road with the longest stretch of unserviced (ie no fuel, etc.) road on the continent, ending at a dam that produces over 16GW (giga-watts) of power.
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2009-06-16.1 Montreal QC - St Joseph Oratory (part 1) 2009-06-16.1 Montreal QC - St Joseph Oratory (part 1)
After discussing my plans with Agent Tango and Rho in Kanada, and then Agent Phi in Montreal,
my recon plan for the day was set, with my first objective being St Joseph's Oratory. This is the
largest shrine in the world that's dedicated to St Joseph, and sits perched atop Mount Royal.
When it was first started, people visited Brother Andre
in his chapel office:
Brother Andre's great confidence in St Joseph led him to encourage anyone who was
suffering from an affliction to offer devotion to the saint. Over time, Brother Andre
desired to give greater honor to St Joseph, so he had a small chapel built on the
side of Mount Royal to receive people.
Over time, that chapel was expanded into the following structure:
Today the chapel still attracts visiting pilgrims who leave
their written requests in Brother Andre's upstairs apartment:
and their thanks in the chapel below:
Over time Brother Andre's reputation spread and he became known as the miracle-worker
of Mount Royal, and the quantity of visitors overwhelmed the chapel. As a result, the decision was made to build a crypt church (so named because it was built into the side
of the mountain and is part of the greater structure's foundation)
with the basilica towering above.
Even this structure was too small for the quantity of visitors it recieved, so a
larger basilica was added. This structure, along with later renovations to the
building resulted in the property as it stood on my visit:
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2009-06-16.1 Montreal QC - St Joseph Oratory (part 2) 2009-06-16.1 Montreal QC - St Joseph Oratory (part 2)
Like any good secret agent, I found a inconspicuous entry point towards
the rear of the property, and then blended in with the local construction
crew working on remediating part of the oratory.
I quickly disengaged from the work crew and made my way to the open
area in front of the Basilica which also serves as the roof for the crypt church below:
which enabled me to get a sweeping view of the city of Montreal.
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Comments
2009-06-12.5 Ottawa ON - Canada Currency Museum
After clearing the Parliament Hill area we talked our way into the Bank of Canada's Currency Museum:
This museum tracks the evolution of currency and money over the years, including such events such as the Devil's Head bill, so named because Satan snuck a cameo of himself into the Queen's hair behind behind her ear. Can you see it?
As a study in economics and supply & demand for money, these bills illustrate the effects of inflation which resulted in the local governments printing some truly huge bills:
This sounds remarkably like what the US Federal Reserve is doing these days....
Following are some examples of how religious faith affects money:
Even Prisons of War get money in POW camps:
How the Molson (beer brewing) family got into banking:
Outside of the museum was a sample of the heaviest currency on earth - a "Yap" Stone that weighs two tons:
Agent Tango wanted to send it back to HQ for further analysis, I thought it better to leave it where it was and left moving this as an exercise for the local agents.
Today was spent planning my departure from Kanata ON Monday AM for Montreal QC, after which it was either either head straight for Moncton, NB, or go to Moncton NB via James Bay QC. I wasn't sure which way I was going to go because a side trip to the James Bay Hydro Dam will be at least a 4 day round-trip on the road with the longest stretch of unserviced (ie no fuel, etc.) road on the continent, ending at a dam that produces over 16GW (giga-watts) of power.
2009-06-16.1 Montreal QC - St Joseph Oratory (part 1)
my recon plan for the day was set, with my first objective being St Joseph's Oratory. This is the
largest shrine in the world that's dedicated to St Joseph, and sits perched atop Mount Royal.
When it was first started, people visited Brother Andre
in his chapel office:
Brother Andre's great confidence in St Joseph led him to encourage anyone who was
suffering from an affliction to offer devotion to the saint. Over time, Brother Andre
desired to give greater honor to St Joseph, so he had a small chapel built on the
side of Mount Royal to receive people.
Over time, that chapel was expanded into the following structure:
Today the chapel still attracts visiting pilgrims who leave
their written requests in Brother Andre's upstairs apartment:
and their thanks in the chapel below:
Over time Brother Andre's reputation spread and he became known as the miracle-worker
of Mount Royal, and the quantity of visitors overwhelmed the chapel. As a result, the
decision was made to build a crypt church (so named because it was built into the side
of the mountain and is part of the greater structure's foundation)
with the basilica towering above.
Even this structure was too small for the quantity of visitors it recieved, so a
larger basilica was added. This structure, along with later renovations to the
building resulted in the property as it stood on my visit:
2009-06-16.1 Montreal QC - St Joseph Oratory (part 2)
the rear of the property, and then blended in with the local construction
crew working on remediating part of the oratory.
I quickly disengaged from the work crew and made my way to the open
area in front of the Basilica which also serves as the roof for the crypt church below:
which enabled me to get a sweeping view of the city of Montreal.