Can you tell a Jarry person before they get off? I haven't really been able to do so. I'm always surprised in the moment, but afterwards I usually nod to myself 'I should've known!"
Jarry people are middle class, hard-working and unpretentious. This doesn't mean some are a little strange (or estranged) but usually not in a very affected or self-conscious way. They are authentically a bit strange.
This probably comes from living 'downtown' but not really being a part of that scene. We want to be close, but not too close. We love the Jean-Talon market, but are a bit put off by its crowded noisiness. We want to blend into the crowd.
As mentioned in a previous post, a lot of people get off at Jarry. I have never been able to figure out why at rush hour as many people often get off at Jarry as they do at Jean-Talon. For the latter it makes sense, as Jean-Talon is a hub. Jarry is not a hub.
Perhaps it is the fact that a lot of us work regular jobs and want quiet lives, but we are still committed to not having cars.
The 'vibe' I get when I'm in the Jarry metro is of something very functional. It's not freaky or run down in any way like some of the other stops (thinking d'Iberville or St. Henri, at least when I was there).
It is clean, functional and not really exceptional in any way. The roof pattern at the ticket booth is nice, and the general layout is pleasing. It is not oppressive feeling. The escalator out is not ridiculously long like say Namur (subject of a future post).
There's a great little Vietnamese sandwich shop in the Jarry metro building, and there is a standard little magazine shop too.
Jarry is my stop, and I can identify with it. It is just trying to get by.