There's no place like home

Happy to be heading home today.  I miss everyone and the pets!

Spent our last evening listening to music in the square followed by pizza.  Nice low key evening. 

Can't wait to sleep in my own bed tonight.  Didn't get much sleep last night.  My shoulder is aching.  The bike ride - especially across cobblestones - did it in.  Hoping to sleep on the plane. 

Great vacation!

It doesn't get much better than this

It's a gorgeous day - cool and sunny!  I grabbed a bagel and some coffee this morning and took it down to the canal for a breakfast picnic.  I planned on eating alone but was soon joined by a seagull.  We enjoyed the bagel together.   My fine feathered friend wasn't much of a talker but was a good listener.   I've now become the lady who sits in the park and talks to birds. 

After breakfast, I rented a bicycle and headed down the bike trail along the canal.  It's a beautiful ride.   I rode for an hour and found myself outside of downtown.  Remembering I also needed to ride back, I turned around.  Such a peaceful ride with plenty to see along the way. 

I headed down to the place where the canal meets the river and sat in the sun watching people and the water.  The fast moving river water churns where it meets the calm canal water.  Fish were jumping,  boats were out and the water was sparkling in the sun.  I could have sat there all day.  But, instead headed down the river to explore in the other direction.  It was a perfect morning!!  It doesn't get much better than this :)

Olympic View

,,On Tuesday, I headed to the 1976 Olympic Park.  We can see the tower and stadium from our hotel from.  But, the park is far enough away I had to take the Metro.  Once again, the wonderful concierge at the hotel helped me out.  She gave me a Metro map and circled where to transfer trains and where to get off. Finding the Metro station was harder than riding it.  I seem to lose my bearings underground.  I found a station, not the one I was trying to find, but a station nonetheless. See the pic below of the building where the station is accessed.   I was on my way and the train dropped me off right next to Olympic Park.

It's great going during the off season because there aren't any lines.  I purchased a ticket for the Biodome and the Tower.  The Biodome has for environments for plant and forest life.  The rainforest is beautiful with tropical birds, monkeys and fish.  It was also very steamy!  I was happy to head to a cooler climate.  They were all beautiful but my favorite environment was Northwestern with the fir and birch trees, raccoons and a bobcat.  I LOVED the penguins.  I swear they are trained to pose for tourists.  They are playful and would swim up to the glass by me as if begging me to take pictures.  

Next stop, the tower.  The tower holds the world record for the tallest slanted tower.  It seems to defy gravity.  A funicular takes people up and down the front incline.  The views are spectacular!!!  It's a little bit of a tummy-dropping and ear-popping ride, but in a good way.  The 360 views at the top are incredible.  It was clear day so I could see everything.  It's worth the price of admission.  

After my Olympic adventure, I headed back to Old Montreal and Old Port for a walk. There is an old church across from Old Port that has figures on top that seem to be watching over the water.  It was open yesterday for viewing.  I learned that the church is dedicated to Mary, who protects sailors and their travel.  When sailors encounter rough storms, they often bring in a small boat to hang from the ceiling as a gift of thanks.  There are several boats hanging from the beautiful, ornate ceilings.  The church dates back to 1771.  Beautiful architecture and artwork!

I headed to the square next to see what the street vendors had to offer.  I checked out the art and watched the man making giant soap bubbles.  Delightful watching kids chasing bubbles on a beautiful sunny day.

I capped off my afternoon adventure with a walk along the river.  The have great walking and biking rep trails.   

Eric and I had a pre-dinner cocktail at the hotel's absinthe bar.  I couldn't leave Montreal without having one of their signature drinks - an absinthe and limoncello blend.  We followed it up with dinner at Barraco.  I follow them on Facebook and have been dying to go because they have paella, one of my favorite dishes.  We started with charcuteries, a board of chorizo, prosciutto and salami with olives, pickes and bread.  Eric had the chimmichuri and I had the paella.  It was so good - a smoky dish of saffron seasoned rice with shrimp, scallops, calamari and squid.  I was a little squeamish about the squid at first but it was very good.

With full tummies, we headed back to our room to watch the Habs play.  Lots of hockey excitement around here.  Habs are doing well.

A few of my favorite things

Monday afternoon I visited a few of my favorite spots - Notre Dame Cathedral, Old Montreal, Old Port and the Farine Five Roses sign.  The sun came out in the afternoon - a perfect day for a walk.

First stop, Notre Dame Cathedral.   They charge to look around, but it's worth it.  The cathedral is a breathtaking work of art.  I overheard a tour guide saying it took over 20 years to finish the inside decor.  The painted ceilings and columns are works of art in of themselves. The alter is mesmerizing.  I sat for a long time trying to take it all in.  I've been here before, but had to see it a again.

Next, I headed through Old Montreal.  I love the cobblestone streets and old buildings. We headed back down to Old Montreal tonight for dinner.  There are lots of fantastic restaurants down there.  Tonight's dinner - coq au vin.  Very good.

Old Port was another stop for me today.  I walked along the river looking at ships and the old grain silos.  I love the industrial look of this area.  It's a very peaceful walk.  I continued farther than I've gone before.  I wanted to get close to the old flour mill to get a picture of the sign.  I love this sign at night.  It's a landmark in Montreal. 

By the end of the day, my feet and legs were hurting from all the walking today.  I spent most of the day walking around.  Tomorrow I'll give them a little break.  I'm going to take the metro to the old Olympic park and the biodome.  This will be my first time on the metro.  Hoping I don't get lost.  

Stay calm and drink coffee

This morning I set off on an adventure on my own while Eric is in school.  Since it's a drizzly, cold day, I decided to tackle the underground and find the shopping.  Parts of the tunnels are deserted so it feels a little odd walking by myself. I decided I was going to get past it and just do it.  So, I stopped to see the concierge and got a map.  

The tunnels have lots of turns and sometimes go up thru buildings and back down again.  It makes you feel like a mouse in a maze.  I got to a point where I was lost.  So, I went up to ground level to try to get my bearings.  Nothing was familiar - I just started walking.  Luckily, I do know some landmarks and can find my way if I can either see the bridges over the river or the tree covered hills in the other direction.  I found a familiar street and walked.  Eventually, I made my way to St. Catherine's Ave (where all the posh shops are) but it was starting to rain.  That's when I received a sign :)  Actually, it was a sign that said "stay calm and drink coffee."  So, I did. 

I made my way to Starbucks and got a cup of coffee and directions.  I had overshot my destination by several blocks.  So, I headed back out into the drizzle and finally found the entrance to the underground shopping.  

Wow!  There is a lot underground and some areas go several stories above ground too.  Again, I felt like I was in some sort of a maze, often walking in circles.  However, in this maze, there are shops every where you look and food courts galore. 

I did a lot of window shopping but did have to stop in my favorite bath/beauty product store, Lush to buy some goodies. After grabbing a cold sandwich to go from the food court, I headed back to the hotel thru the tunnels.  I did a lot better finding my way back.  I ended up outside just a couple blocks from our hotel.  

The skies have cleared.  After a short rest and a little repair on my hair, I will head back out for an afternoon adventure.  

Send in the clowns

Forgot about the clown noses.  As we are driving around Montreal today, we saw LOTS of people wearing red clown noses walking the streets.  Just learned that there was a fun raiser for teens with cancer.  The town was trying to set a record for the most people wearing clown noses.  Sadly, they fell short of the goal.  

Not going to rain on our parade

It's a wet, rainy day, but that didn't stop us.

Some interesting sites on our drive from Quebec City to Montreal.  It seems someone near the town of Madrid is doing a booming business selling giant roadside attractions - i.e. Giant animals of all sorts, people, dinosaurs and even shoes.  It was a wet drive, so we welcomed the fun sites.  We stopped (at my insistence) at the gas station/McDonalds to see dinosaur land.  I couldn't resist a selfie with this cutie.

 

I LOVE being back at the Intercontinental in centre-ville Montreal!! The hotel is beautiful and centrally located to Old Montreal, downtown Montreal, the St Lawrence River and has access to the underground.  We have a great view.  We can see the river, bridges, old Olympic stadium, bio dome, Chinatown, and part of Notre Dame from our 24th floor room.  

We headed out for an early dinner since we had no eaten since breakfast. While trying to find a place in little Italy, we came across an outdoor market.  They were selling fruits, veggies, meat, salami, cheeses, fresh seafood, breads, spices, flowers, etc.  It was foodie heaven.  We walked around the market and took in the sites and smells.  Then, we found some restaurants lining the block in front of the market.  We chose Casa Cacciatore and we are so happy we did.  We love the atmosphere and the food.  They make their own pasta.   Eric got the lasagna.  I had pasta with red sauce and shrimp, calamari, clams and mussels. Fabulous!!!  

Monday - Eric is in school while I explore the city.