It’s not a terrible town, I just chose a terrible day to go – I kept telling myself. Granby is in the middle of Montreal and Sherbrooke. Its majestic fountains were dry, the streets were quiet, and lollipop ladies only had frowns on their faces.
I’ve read in travel guides from the last century that Granby is known for its many ornate fountains taking after famous European water features. There was supposed to be a replica of the Trevi Fountain in Rome, a 3,000-year-old greek fountain, and a first century Roman fountain.
I found a few fountains but nothing like what was described. Was I looking at the wrong places or were they taken away?
The fountains hardly had an accessible interpretive sign to introduce their history to visitors. The only place where I did find a sign was in front of the United Church of Canada built in 1928. It was an industrial town for many decades but there doesn’t seem to be too much industry going on there today.
The name of a local bakery summed up my feelings on the excursion – Pain Pain.
