Stade Olympique in Montreal, Quebec

such a tradition i needed to use the word breakfast twice.

Sounds like smoked meat and a photo with Youppi are a must:

http://espn.go.com/page2/s/ballparks/olympic.html

ranking #19 is offensively incorrect. unless he means places in the immediate area of the stadium. then he would have a point.

Saw Glavine and the Mets beat "Nos Amours" 4-2 on Thursday, overcoming a pair of Wilkerson (he and Batista are the first Montreal pair to each hit 30 in a season). I sat in the fifth row behind the Mets dugout... the attendance was a startling 11,000 thanks to Dollar Hot Dog night (I had the smoked meat, which was no big deal). Al Leiter and Rick Peterson had a studious throwing session before the game; I was close enough to hear their voices but only caught RP gesturing and saying "That's a high strike."

If I'd packed the glove -- or just stood at the end of a runway to snag caroms -- I'd have had an excellent shot at a BP homer, where all the pikers line up along the bleacher rail, the best ratio of balls to fans I've seen in the majors. The Quebecois teens shout "Trow de ball 'ere, pleez! Azzhole!"

That turf looks like terrycloth. The fans' habit of slamming the seats next to them (and there are plenty to choose from) during rallies is annoying.

There are tons of Peel Pubs, and I wouldn't go in even if I was 22. Picked up the new Hidden Cameras and Arcade Fire and saw the AF do their SalvArmy show... they've got something good, but are frequently a shade too "emo."

The "Main," ie Blvd St-Laurent, is the most annoyingly packed Saturday night strip I've ever seen. 20something chaos at its metropolitan worst.

Was Youppi put down?

I will be at the Expos' "away" finale / Art Howe finale / John Franco finale (fingers crossed) this Sunday at Shea, followed by a dash home to watch A's-Angels I guess.

What happens to Youppi if the move is declared official?
Who knows? Maybe he'll come with the territory. Maybe not. One of the most distinctive mascots in Major League Baseball probably would have to change its name, though. "Youppi" is "Yippee!" or "Hooray!" in French. For the record, Youppi was the first mascot to be thrown out of a Major league game. On Aug. 23, 1989 -- 10 years after the mascot arrived in Montreal -- the orange, hairy giant was ejected in the 11th inning after Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda complained to the umpires about Youppi danced atop of the visitors' dugout.

from http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/mlb/news/mlb_news.jsp?ymd=20040929&content_id=875193&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp

the o's-yankees game i attended a few weeks ago was delayed for a few minutes because the oriole bird mascot was dancing around/hanging on to the left-field foul pole. umpires and fans were unable to get its attention and the pa announcer had to yell at it.