Montreal - Downtown

(Local Name: Ville-Marie) Ville-Marie Square is a good starting point for a look round the ultra-modern buildings of downtown Montréal, whose revitalization began in 1962 with the cross-shaped towers of the Royal Bank of Canada building, 223 m (732 ft) and 49 floors high. The sculpture in the square is "Female Landscape" by Gerald Gladstone, a profound statement on modern architecture. Although there are plenty of stores at ground floor level, the real shopper's paradise is below ground in the vast "Ville Souterraine", Montréal's subterranean city.