Write it down, write it down! Days 1 & 2

We started out early yesterday morning at 4:45 AM. It took us nearly 70 minutes to get through check in and security and left on time for our 6:45 AM flight. We arrived in Chicago and walked and walked and walked until we found the Air Canada terminal. With a pretzel in our tummies we got on our next plane with a few minutes to spare.

We landed in Montreal and walked and walked and walked until we found customs. After going through immigration and customs our luggage arrived and we decided to take a cab to our hotel.
Our cab driver came to Canada 22 years ago from Lebanon. He and his family left in the middle of the war and made it by the luck of God to Canada before they closed the borders. They have lived here happily every since.

We found our hotel, checked in and headed out to dinner. We walked and walked and finally found a suitable restaurant called "Les 3 Brasseurs". Best we could figure out is that it is a brewery with multitudes of beer offerings and food. They are known for their brots and sauerkraut which were both very good. We finished our meal with a banana nutella crepe and walked our way home.

After a good night's sleep we headed out this morning to tour the city. As soon as we walked outside we were hit with freezing wind! I at least had on pants while Jim looked and dressed like he was from Arizona. We walked a few blocks and turned around. It was way too cold to be on foot.
We found a bus tour that would show us the main sites of Montreal and signed up for it. Our driver was very funny and whenever he cracked a joke, which was often, he said "write it down, write it down". We didn't know we were getting a comedy routine with our tickets! He filled us in on why there is French signage everywhere. Though the Quebec province is French, a law was passed a few years ago that french was to remain the main language. The only way to go to an English school is if a parent has attended an English school in the past. And then french will be taught to the children from 1st grade on. The Quebec license plate has in french "I will remember" meaning that I will remember my french heritage. They want to remain French and so far they seem to be doing a good job of it.

Lucky for us we have been in France long enough to recall some words so we aren't completely lost. We were even handed a french menu tonight at dinner which was a compliment.

With our travels it is becoming more and more apparent that it is harder and harder for us to travel without any help. As much as we love to use public transportation if it isn't convenient we tend to give up. Montreal's metro system did not mimic Paris' for sure. Our hotel is quite a distance between 2 lines so we have a good walk either way. They don't really criss cross either so it makes using the Metro much harder than it should. With that situation we are a bit hotel stuck unless we want to brave the cold, cold wind.

My goal for tomorrow is to find the local food dish poutine. It is a plate of french fries, cheese curds and gravy poured over it. It is local comfort food and many of the stores offer it. We know where the best is in the city but getting there might be a problem. We might have to settle for 2nd best if tomorrow is as cold as today.

We will attach some photos if Jim remembered his power cord. Hopefully tomorrow will be a bit warmer so we can tour Old Montreal and Old port. We drove by and through both today but didn't get out to walk on the cobblestones on foot. Print this post