Underwhelmed in Almonte Ontario

During the student break, I visited Almonte, a small town located twenty minutes west of Kanata; however, I must admit, I was somewhat disappointed by it. What initially sparked my interest was the fact that there was a Mexican connection. The town was named after Juan Almonte, a Mexican General  who was noted for his bravery in the 1830’s during border wars with the U.S. I happen to have an affinity towards Mexico as I had lived there for two years, so I thought I’d give it a try. I also learned that the true, original Spanish pronunciation of Almonte would have been Almonté, as in OLÉ! OLÉ!

Once I got there, I headed straight for the main street called Mill Street which was like a ghost town. I arrived at high noon fully expecting to see the hustle and bustle of weekend visitors, but honestly, most of the shops were closed. I guess they lock the place up on weekends (of all times)! Obviously, I was under the impression they’re not big on tourism; there was just no energy there. The facades of the shops are pretty enough but they need to jazz it up a little for tourists. For example, I wanted to visit the Joe Naismith museum. Closed.  Went to the Textile Museum. Closed. Headed towards a cozy looking bistro called Victoria’s. Closed.  It seemed there was nothing inviting for tourists to do. Nothing that says, “Welcome, we’re glad you came!”

   In fact, if I were that General Almonte, and got wind of the story that my name was on the Potential Names For Our New Town list, I'd be making discreet phone calls to see if I could have my name removed, as I wouldn't want to be associated with such a monotonous town. No "wow" factor in this town, just one big yawn.      

 On a scale of one to ten, this town scores a three for the following reasons:

#1- The Mexican Connection.

#2- It has the Joe Naismith Basketball Museum (which I couldn't visit because it was closed, but I would imagine that it would be alluring for sports buffs).

#3- The post office is a landmark (architecturally, it’s very eye catching).

  The only fun part was when I found another place to eat called Cortelli’s where they offer you a dual Italian/Chinese menu so I feasted on sweet and sour chicken balls, chow mein and fried rice, which was hot and delicious. All at a reasonable $12.50+tax.

So there you have it folks! I was underwhelmed by Almonte and I most definitely wouldn’t recommend it to anyone--unless of course, you don't mind being greeted by a CLOSED sign every time you turn around.

(Wow, do I sound like I have a big chip on my shoulder or what!)