Montreal 1967 was the heart of sa国际传媒鈥檚 centennial celebrations, and its beat was loud and proud. The city hosted Expo 67, and Expo 67 hosted the world. That Montreal summer of 1967 was more than a special time; it was a mood.
My Expo passport eventually had 35 stamps in it, one for each pavilion I explored. There was a feeling of being Canadian, with unity, goodwill, and wild celebration all around. The world came to visit us. There were flags, bands, entertainment, fireworks and an Expo flame. And there was magic in the air.
Distinguished visitors descended on us. Our governor general and our prime minister took part in the opening ceremonies, as did the Golden Centennaires, forerunners of our Canadian Forces Snowbirds.
Architectural and engineering genius displayed itself with pride: A man-made island, the monorail system, the Buckminster Fuller geodesic dome, Habitat 67, and 90 or so national and theme pavilions.
Glorious summer weather and foreign dignitaries helped us celebrate, from the likes of Princess Margaret to Ethiopia鈥檚 Emperor Haile Selassie. It was a foreign dignitary, too, who committed a monumental diplomatic blunder of the century.
French President Charles de Gaulle stood on a balcony of Montreal鈥檚 City Hall in the midst of sa国际传媒鈥檚 centennial celebration, and preached 鈥淰ive le Qu茅bec libre.鈥�
Echoes of that interference reverberated through sa国际传媒-France relations for years afterwards.
Islands in the St Lawrence River that hosted the festivities pulsed with throngs of people, levee-side music, performers, the new La Ronde amusement park, and dozens of countries showing off their architecture, culture, and most advanced technologies.
I remember, on special trains that provided transport to the islands, people standing in the aisles and singing their way home at the end of an Expo day. Some saw Expo 67 as the 鈥済reatest birthday party in history.鈥�
And sa国际传媒鈥檚 centennial spirit extended beyond the Expo islands. It was in the press, on television, at office water coolers, and in conversation in peoples鈥� homes.
Many of the Expo 67 pavilions and other facilities remain to this day providing continued entertainment, recreation, and fond memories. Looking back, I sometimes wonder whether it was all some halcyon time and place that could never have existed in reality. But it did happen. sa国际传媒 celebrated.
I was there. It was real, part of another time, and I haven鈥檛 seen the likes of it since. 鈥� Terry Huntington