This post is a revision to a previous essay titled “Bridge to Somewhere”. This revision will be included in Zine #1.
I drove over the Jaques-Cartier bridge for the first time a couple weeks ago and it was one of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen in my life. There are several bridges from the south shore (where I live) to the island of Montréal but I’ve yet to cross Le Pont Jaques-Cartier. I arrived at the bridge from the south side of autoroute 132 and made my way to the on-ramp. The turn-off is tight, I’m pulled from the ground and into the air like the start of a roller coaster. The sight of land falls away as the distance between myself and the ground below grows. It grows and grows until I’m completely flanked by the Saint-Laurence river on both sides, at a dizzying height of 104 meters. Approaching the first cantilever, I was struck with just how detailed the whole structure is. The rich visual texture in front of me was mesmerizing. From the near-infinite web of green triangles in the structure to the array of red and green X’s which dictated what lane you could drive in. I felt both amazed and a little overwhelmed. Especially driving in the lanes with dashed yellow lines on either side. I felt like I was driving into the opposing lane and could feel my whole body reject it. “Are you trying to kill yourself?” My body asked. To which I would reply, “And subject these people to more traffic? Not a chance.” The weather was also immaculate. Sky as blue as the river below, clouds as few as the worries in my heart, and a clear view to the beautiful Montréal skyline. I know it’s cliché to say but sometimes it really can be the journey.