Day 1: Sunday, October 28, 2007

We arrive to an overhead view of neatly arranged boxes. Montreal is an erector set cut sharply by river, the sun rising over the city as we descend. Natalie and I are on one plane, and Neil, departing an hour earlier and arriving one hour later, is on another. Exhausted, Natalie and I meet Neil at the baggage claim after a round of tasty orange juice. After Neil's cigarette, we find a cab to take us to Jani's. The driver avoids hitting the brake at red lights to run up our fare, something Neil and I both notice.

Jani's apartment is a cave. The window faces a brick wall, letting in very little natural light. Outside one door is a charming balcony. The walls of the main room are accented with moulding and hotel-like fixtures. Natalie sets up the inflata-bed and quickly goes to sleep in an attempt to be, as Natalie says, "the most boring houseguests ever." Neil and Jani smoke on the balcony, while Natalie and I trade incoherencies in an attempt to get some sleep before the first reading.