Montreal: Mont Royal (Because Vacation, That's Why! Part I)

My past few travel adventures have involved more than one destination. In February 2013, the week was filled with both Georgia and South Carolina. This past March, I split a week between Oregon and Alberta. At the end of August, 2014, I was beside myself with excitement to do it again.

Stop one: the breathtakingly beautiful city of Montréal, Québec.

We flew into Montréal and hit the ground running. Our intention to get a taxi to Hôtel Ambrose quickly went out the window when we realized we could get a 24-hour bus pass for $10 and hop on a city bus right from the airport. No idea where we're going? Don't speak the language fluently? Meh, we got this.

We checked into our room, quite literally dropped our bags, changed our shoes, and headed out for our first of a number of walking tours of the city. Our aimless wandering brought us upon a somewhat entertaining street sign. The entertainment value is purely Canadian, but so very Canadian indeed.

"If this place smells like burnt toast, I'm outta here!"

As the area did not smell like burnt toast, we kept on going.

Then....hmm., this looks like a nice park....
What we didn't know is that we had stumbled on Parc du Mont Royal, a 200-hectare stretch of land frequented by joggers, bikers, sun worshippers, and tourists alike. As we started to walk the well-maintained roads, trails and footpaths, we learned quickly what we were up against. With the number of folks travelling up the side of the mountain with us, we figured there must be something worth the trek, so we continued. We were NOT disappointed.

Eventually you come out at an open expanse of well-landscaped fields, ponds, and locals sunbathing, playing catch, and generally enjoying the day. It turns out there's a parking lot at this point that you can drive to from the other side of the mountain. There's also a cafe, and a number of side-paths, one of which, continues upward.
"Do you suppose this is the top?"
"Let's go up there just in case there's anything else. I feel like there is."

You could say that.




What a feeling to suddenly find yourself on top of the world.

 

and what a time to discover your phone takes panoramic pictures! Yup, that's right. This one below was with my Samsung Galaxy Ace II. Product plug deserved.

My stunning travel companion. *love*

There was also a  'public piano' and indeed there was a guy playing when we first arrived.  It was old and beat up, and absolutely ridiculously cool.

 After taking in all of the view that we could handle (and a yummy ice cream each to boot!) we decided to take a different route back to street level. It was much more direct through the woods, and equally as gorgeous as the way up.

and then a bit of a side trek back to the hotel.

That night, we had supper at a restaurant called Dunn's Famous that had been recommended by a friend, although I couldn't tell you which location we had stumbled on, but I'm sure it doesn't matter. Fantastic service, poutine with smoked meat on top, naturally (because Montréal, that's why!) and then, dessert in a shotglass!

We spent that evening wandering the streets to see what we could of Montréal night life. There we were, three unaccompanied ladies in a strange city surrounded by strangers, and I have to tell you, I felt perfectly safe. We did wander close to some potentially shady areas, but had no trouble in turning around and taking in a whole lot of this:

This guy was cool. I had no idea the drum beat we could hear was being made by a dude on the side of the road with some strategically placed buckets. 

Unbelievably, right across the street was this old and glorious church! This city is AMAZING.

 

 It had been one crazy long day. We made our way back to the hotel and fell asleep almost immediately, excited to see what another full day in this gorgeous city had in store.

Montréal: The Old City (Because Vacation, That's Why! - Part II)

We had decided to make our way to Vieux-Montréal for our one full day in the city, and that we would walk so we could take in everything possible. After a breakfast of crêpes from Paris Crêpe (again... because Montréal!) we made our way in the general direction we figured we needed to go.

Along the way, this bit of spectacularness.

It's Cathédrale Marie Reine du Monde, and  "It looks like we can go in..."

 

Yes, I took a photo of a lady praying. I know, I know. But I did say a little prayer on her behalf as a thank you for her unknowing participation in my craft.



We then made our way back out into the sunshine, and when our eyes had adjusted, we were treated to another whole view of what has to be the most beautiful city in Canada.

Eventually we arrived on the waterfront.

including the clock tower on the Saint Lawrence River.

...which we climbed to the top of.

Then we walked the boardwalk...

...before stopping at Le Magasin Général du Vieux Montréal Bistro for some delightful lunch!

When we were good and full, we decided we had best make our way back to the hotel to get ready for a big night out. Cheryl's bachelorette was to be the highlight of our stay, and we needed to be good and prepared. But first...

Old, dirty-looking construction fence? Why not just cover that up with something pleasant! You guessed it: Montréal, that's why!
"Well played, Montréal, well played."

That evening we made our way to a residential area of the city, where we met up again with the guest of honour and five other ladies who had travelled from far and wide to be released on Montréal in celebration of the nuptials of the one thing we all had in common: Cheryl. They were all staying together at a rented apartment which, much to my delight, had a rooftop pool and patio and an amazing view!

That night was a Tuesday. It turns out thtat in Montréal, even a Tuesday is a great night to hit the town. We had supper at Milo's Restaurant, a high-end Greek seafood place that blew us out of the water with their amazing service, incredible food, and washrooms that were phenomenal enough to warrant mention. Then we spent some time getting acquainted with our new-found friends at the apartment with some ice-breaker games and general ridiculousness Afterwards, we danced the night away after acquiring ourselves some free cover and drinks on the house at one of the local clubs.

I will go back to Montréal. I expect I will learn better French first, but I will go back. For this trip, however, we were content with all we had accomplished in our day and a half, and ready to hit the train station for travel to destination #2... the capital city of Canada: Ottawa, Ontario.