In 2016, my partner and I travelled to Canada. This blogpost was supposed to be published on the website of Touroperator Montana, the business of my mother-in-law and my partner. Because of changes to their website, this never made their website. That's why I post it here, to make sure I didn't do this all for nothing 🙈
Please lean back and enjoy my travel journal!
Day 1: flying
after 22/03
The world is a book and those who do not
travel, read only one page. – Saint Augustine
Saturday
March 26th, 2016. Four days after the attacks in Brussels, we were
supposed to take a flight to Montreal at Brussels airport. Eventually we
changed our flight and flew from Amsterdam to Toronto and then to Montreal. We
got up at 4 am and got there really early because we expected a lot of extra
security checks, but this wasn’t the case. But even though we had a lot of
time, we still both got really stressed out. The flight was overbooked so we
weren’t sure we would have a seat until 5 minutes before departure. Eventually we
both had a seat four rows apart. I sat next to a very sweet Belgian lady and
her daughter. This, combined with a good meal and the movies ‘Steve Jobs’ &
‘Pan’ made up for the stress a few hours earlier.
After an
eight-hour flight, we arrived in Toronto. We had 1.5 hour to get our next
flight to Montreal. We had to get through customs, get our bags, put them on
the baggage carrousel again and go to our next flight. We got there in time and
our flight left at 5 pm.
The flight
took only one hour. When we arrived in Montreal, we went to Alamo to get our
rental car. We asked for a Toyota RAV4 but we got a Ford Edge. What a giant! We
drove to our first hotel and stopped for McDonald’s on the way. We got to the
Estérel resort, where we were staying for two nights, around 8.30 pm and got a
welcome cocktail.
In this hotel there are two parts: Evolution and Emotion. We
were staying in the Emotion part of the hotel.
The
receptionist asked us where we came from. When we told her we came from
Belgium, the first thing she said was: “I’m sorry about what happened in
Brussels.” During our entire stay, almost every person who asked us where we
came from, said almost exactly the same. I was really touched by this sympathy
that far from home. After that, she gave us the hint to check the sunrise from
our room because it is a really spectacular view.
After this
drink we went up to our room. It was dark already, so we couldn’t enjoy the
lake view, but what a room! There even was a fireplace at the foot of our bed!
We were exhausted from the trip - we had been awake for nearly 24 hours, so we
went straight to bed. We checked when the sunrise would be: around 5.30 am.
That would have to wait until the day after tomorrow.
Day 2: Sunrise
in your eyes
No matter how dark the night, somehow the sun
rises once again and all shadows are chased away. – David Matthew
And that’s
how we started the next day. Because we went to bed quite early, we were awake
quite early as well. So while we were at it, we put on some warm clothes, took
our mobiles and cameras, took a coffee and went out. Damn, that lady was right:
I have never seen a sunrise this beautiful. The setting was perfect: it was
cold but not too cold, the lake was frozen and covered in snow and there were
some magnificent trees to top it all off. At one moment, I saw a fox walking on
the lake. I get emotional whenever I am so fortunate to witness these types of
nature’s wonders. That first morning of our trip to Canada immediately was my
best and it will be a moment I will never forget.
After this
spectacular view, we took a shower and went to the Evolution part of the hotel
for our breakfast. This morning got even better after an amazing sunrise: what
a breakfast! There were different types of fruit juice and you could also press
your own juice using lemons, limes, oranges and tangerines. There were eggs,
bacon, yoghurt, different kinds of (dried) fruits, you could ask to make you
any kind of egg, and last but not least: there were waffles and pancakes, with
maple syrup! And of course they had big windows so that people can enjoy the
view that comes with the hotel.
After a cup
of tea on our sunny balcony, we went for a walk in the winter wonderland. The
hotel has a scenic route through the woods and next to the, now frozen, lake.
Because it was frozen, we could take beautiful pictures while standing on the ice.
Back in our room we just enjoyed the sun a bit before we took the car and drove
to Saint-Marguerite-du-lac-Masson and ate spaghetti at the Rest-o-pub du Lac
Masson.
Afterwards we drove to Saint-Hippolyte and enjoyed the sights of
Canadian nature. But this wasn’t our main reason to visit this place. Here,
next to Lac Morency, we would go for a round of dog sledding. The guides
transported us up the hill with snowmobiles. They assigned us to a sled with
some beautiful huskies. The names I still remember are Koboy, Odi, Beluga and
Beebop. One of us had to sit on the sled and the other one had to stand behind
it. Because it was the end of the winter season, we couldn’t go on the lake so
we had to go through the woods. There were a lot of ups and downs, so this was
a very tiring experience for the person standing behind the sled, as he had to
push and help the dogs a lot. Our Russian guide luckily surprised us with a
little detour so we had a fantastic view over the lake. When we eventually got
back at the start, we had some time to pet and cuddle the dogs.
After we
were brought back to our car, we drove back to the hotel and changed clothes.
Around 6 pm we went to a wine tasting and tour in the wine cellar of the
Estérel resort. We tasted a red and white wine from Domaine Queylus in Ontario.
Around 8 pm we went to Bistro à Champlain, the hotel restaurant, for a five-course
meal. As ‘amuse bouche’ we got shrimps
and goat cheese. Then we had 2 starters: first a soup with shiitake and then
salmon tartare. Our main course was sablefish and as a dessert I chose a
typical dessert of the Quebec region: poutine. These are some kind of small,
sweet fries. Along with this meal, we drank a South-African white wine,
Bonheur. After this delicious meal we were exhausted and went straight to bed.
Day 3:
It’s raining men … nope, just rain
Pluviophile – (n) a lover of rain, someone who
finds joy and peace of mind during rainy days.
I am
definitely not a pluviophile. Never been one and never will be. So when I woke
up at 8 am the next day, my mood wasn’t as good as the day before (that might
also be the fault of that bottle of wine last night). The snow and ice on the
lake were disappearing, so that beautiful view we saw the morning before was
melting away as well.
We enjoyed
the great hotel breakfast before we checked out and started our journey to the
next destination: Mont Tremblant. As a true fan of Disneyland, I am now a
Tremblant fan as well. This small tourist village looks like the houses on Main
Street in Disneyland! So we put on our rain coats and hats and went for a walk.
We ate lunch at the Pizzateria and walked up the hill to the ski run. There are
some shops, bars and restaurants and there is an indoor pool if you’re tired of
skiing. We went back down the hill using the lift and had a little rest in our
room. After this we went for a coffee in Bistro Au Grain de Café and then we
went for a few drinks in Le P’tit Caribou. Because it was low season, there weren’t
many people but during high season this is the place to be for après-ski. After
this we had diner in our apartment and called it an early night.
Day 4:
Allez Montréal!
To play the game is great, to win is greater,
but to love the game is the greatest of all. – Unkown
We got up
at 8 am and were happy when we saw the sun shining again! We took the lift to
go up the hill and have breakfast at Johannsen. After we checked out, we left
for our next stop: Montreal. Around noon we had a stop at the Premium Outlet
Montréal for some shopping and a quick lunch.
We arrived
at hotel Delta Montreal in the early afternoon and had a short rest in our
room. After this we asked the receptionist for a map and went for a walk in the
city. We had a short stop at Starbucks, saw a bit of the underground city and
walked to the McGill university. While sitting there, I saw a logo on the map
and noticed that I had already seen a lot of people wearing a jersey with this
logo. We walked towards this building and the closer we got, the more people I
saw wearing this jersey. Eventually we found the building and it turned out to
be the Centre Bell, home of the Montreal Canadiens, a.k.a. the Habs, the local
NHL team. And if you have the chance to see a NHL game, even when you’re a
total hockey newbie, you have to do it. So we went to the ticket office and
bought two tickets for the game against the Detroit Red Wings.
We went
back to our hotel to leave our gear and went back to the Centre Bell to witness
the warming up before the start of the game. When I entered the building, my
jaw dropped already when I saw all those merchandising stalls, gambling stalls,
etc. We went up, bought some beer (obviously not as good as Belgian beer), ate
a hotdog (duh!) and went to our places. When we saw the arena, we were stunned.
Centre Bell has a seating capacity of 21,273 which makes it the largest hockey
arena in North-America and probably the world.
Before the game began, there was a man who sang the national anthem of
the USA and Canada. The field was also used as some sort of screen. We asked
our friendly Canadian neighbour to explain the rules of ice hockey and he kept
on giving us updates during the game. What I remember is that there are three
periods of 20 minutes and that it is a very fast game. Every few seconds, the
entire team changes and it is really difficult to see where the puck is going.
Besides learning the rules, we also got what we secretly came for: fights! It
seems to be true that hockey players tend to have a short temper and punch each
other really hard when they seem to think it’s necessary. These punches sometimes
lead to real fights involving more than two players. In the end our team
(because of course we supported the home team) won the game with four against
three.
After this
game we went to our hotel and went straight to bed.
Day 5: The
small apple
Let Toronto become Milan. Montreal will always
be Rome. – Jean
Drapeau
We got up
at 8.30 am and walked to the Notre Dame Basilica. For a minute I felt like
being in Paris. We took some pictures, had breakfast at the local Van Houtte
and started our big walk. We walked to the Jeanne Mance Park to get to the top
of the Mount Royal. We asked a couple how to get up the mountain. They told us
there are two routes: a long and a short one. Of course, we chose the short
route. And my lord was that steep! I admit that I’m not the sportiest person in
the world – okay, I’m not sporty at all. But I had to stop a few times to catch
my breath before we got to the top. My Fitbit told me at the end of this day
that I climbed 108 floors and did over 25,000 steps. When we got at the top, I
had to catch my breath again before I could admire the magnificent view. And
boy, it was worth it! Montreal looks a bit like New York, though smaller, there
aren’t as many skyscrapers and there are a lot of old buildings. This
combination makes it amazing to look at from 234 metres high.
We took
some pictures and went back down. We walked next to the McGill University buildings
while thinking that it would be awesome to study in this city and these
beautiful buildings. We went to the hotel and left our coats there before we
went back out. We ate a quick Subway lunch and went shopping in the underground
city and the Rue Sainte-Cathérine (and yes ladies, there is a Victoria’s
Secret!). After a Starbucks stop, we went to the hotel for a nap because I had
a migraine. After that, we went to The Keg Steakhouse for supper. You can find
these steakhouses in 60 cities and villages in Canada and 10 in the USA.
Day 6: It’s
a rainy day
Kebec is Algonquin for “where the river
narrows”.
We got up
and left for Quebec immediately, in the rain. We stopped for breakfast at Tim
Hortons, found all over Canada and the USA. We arrived at our hotel, Manoir
Victoria in the early afternoon. After we put our stuff in our room, we went to
the hotel restaurant, Chez Boulay – bistro boreal. We drank a coffee and made a
reservation for supper the next day. We put our rain coats back on and went for
a walk in old Quebec. We stopped at Starbucks in Chateau Frontenac, the most
photographed hotel in the world. Why? Because it is a beautiful building. I
wonder if the rooms are as beautiful as the building itself.
After a
while, we went back to the room for a bit and then started to look for a place
for supper. We found an Italian place close to our hotel named Mikes. Mikes is
a chain of Italian-styled restaurants all over Canada. We ate bruschetta pizza
rolls as appetizer and it was delicious. After that I ate pasta with chicken
and broccoli and my partner ate pizza. After supper, we went back to our room
and watched a movie while drinking ice cider, a Quebec specialty.
Day 7: Chasing
waterfalls
Life is like a waterfall. It is always moving
and there is always an uneven flow to it. – SooHoo
No rain
today, but a lot of clouds. So after a breakfast in the hotel, we took the car
to the Montmorency falls. These waterfalls are 83 meters, which is 30 meters
higher than the Niagara Falls. But before I talk about the beauty of these
falls, let me tell you a local legend. This legend tells the story of Rose. She
was engaged to a soldier during the Seven Years’ War. In 1759 there was a
battle at the base of Montmorency between the French and the English. Thanks to
the humidity of the falls, the English army’s gunpowder was too wet and they
had to retreat. The French won the battle but of course they suffered
casualties. Amongst them was Rose’s
fiancé. She was completely heartbroken. Because she was mourning, she spent her
days roaming the falls while calling out the name of her fallen soldier. One
night, while in a state of shock, she plunged herself into the waterfalls with
her wedding dress on, never to be found again. This story still lives this day.
Some people say that if you listen closely you can still hear her calling for
her husband.
Luckily we
haven’t heard her screaming but we have witnessed the magnificent beauty of
these falls. It was a bit difficult to find the falls using the GPS, so we
asked a man who lived nearby and he gave us great instructions. We were here on
a weekday in the low season, so we could see everything for free. And even if
we had to pay for it, it would have been worth it. When you stand at the bottom
of such a miracle of nature, you feel very tiny and humble. While we were
admiring the falls, we saw you could also get up to look at the falls from a
different perspective. When the visitor centre is open, you can get up by cable
car. We took our car to drive up to the Manoir Montmorency, a restaurant at the
top of the falls. There are different bridges and stairs so that you can see
the falls from different places. While standing this high, you also hear the
noise of the waterfall, which makes this experience even more impressive.
After this
wonderful experience, we took our car back to Québec and had lunch in a local
pub. We walked to the citadel of Québec, the Chateau Frontenac (again) and took
the funiculaire to the Rue de Petit-Champlain, a small and cosy street. After
our stroll through Québec, we went back to our hotel and had diner in Chez
Boulay – bistro boreal, the hotel restaurant. When you are in Québec, you
should definitely try to get a table here. Chef Jean Luc Boulay acted as a
judge in the 2010 season of the ‘Les Chefs’ TV series. His accomplice Arnaud
Marchand was one of the two finalists in this season.
Day 8: I’m
coming home
All good things must come to an end.
The last
day of a journey is always awful. You have to travel for several hours, without
reaching a travelling destination.
We had a
late breakfast and went to the Chateau Frontenac for the last time. We checked
out, took our rental car back and started our journey home. From Québec we flew
to Montréal, then Paris and there we took the train to Brussels.
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