Settling into vacation

 It's Friday morning and we've been in Montreal since Tuesday afternoon.

Although Mal cried walking down the jetway to get on to our first plane, as soon as we got seated and he saw that "Sonic 2" was available on the in-flight entertainment, he was pleased. He actually watched the whole thing without sound, captions on, as he said, "This is how Deaf people watch movies all of the time."

The trip out (flying from Austin to Detroit, connecting there to Montreal, getting through customs, taking a bus to the city center, then walking about a kilometer to the hotel) was pretty uneventful, which is preferable to almost any other alternative.

We were able to check straight into our hotel, and after unpacking and resting for a while, we walked to get dinner at Ma Poule Mouilée, which is a poutine place that features Portuguese chicken (they also have food besides poutine, but this was our first meal in Canada, so when in Rome, as they say...

We walked over to Parc La Fontaine to eat so Mal could play. He'd had a Subway wrap on our way out of the Montreal airport, so we was fine waiting.

After we shared some of our dinner (but none of our dessert -- a delicious cannoli and a bigger flan than I'd intended to order) with a very friendly squirrel, James and Mal walked back to the hotel while I went to McDonald's to get Mal his "usual": poulet McCroquettes.

Wednesday morning, we enjoyed a nice continental breakfast at the hotel before heading out to Mount Royal. We took a bus up to the top (I know, we are cowards, but it was our first day in town and I didn't want to ruin things for Mal by making him hike up) and found the playground... along with class after class of children there for what was apparently a kind of field day. It seemed mostly to be one long run around a pretty big area of the park, and it also seemed to be mostly English-speaking kids.

Mal played for a while, then we walked around Lac aux Castors and meandered up to the Kondiaronk Belvedere to look out over the city. We did walk down the mountain, which I know shouldn't count, but James's and my calves definitely felt the use later. 

We were heading to a vegetarian cafe that we knew wouldn't have anything Mal liked, but it just so happened that a pizza-by-the-slice place was on the McGill campus about a block before Lola Rosa, so everyone got fed. James had this beautiful curry at the cafe. The menu said that it was spicy, but there was barely a tinge of heat under the deep coconut flavor. It was extremely tasty. I had a salad with chickpeas marinated in lemon confit... it was also good but I made the mistake of stirring the whole salad together before I noticed that the olives weren't pitted. Kept me on my toes, anyway.

We took a break at the hotel, then snagged the train up to March Jean-Talon. We got some produce for the room. We don't have a fridge or microwave, but wanted some apples, bananas, and impulse-bought a tray of cucumbers. Everything was so inexpensive! I asked for a kilo of apples, but got about 3 pounds, and it was $3.50C so about $2.60.

We would love to take some syrup home, but since we're not checking anything, we instead got some cute little maple candies. James and Mal had little hard candies in the shape of maple leaves. I got a little cone full of thick syrup. Then we got a few chocolates that had maple nougat. We ate those and Mal had an apple there are the market. I drooled over the many different types of baklava and am thinking I might go back for some later.

Mal was happy to ride back on the train. He is enjoying the subway a lot.

By then, everyone was ready for a rest at the hotel, but I was antsy because I had packed with the idea that the highs would be in the low- to mid-60s all week. Literally the day we left, it showed that Thursday and Friday would be in the mid- to high-70s, and I had been plenty warm walking around in the clothes I'd packed for cooler weather. I know you're supposed to pack layers, but We have to build up a wardrobe of layers, I guess. The stuff I have is too heavy to wear under anything else, except for the tank top I wore on the plane on the way here. 

So while James and Mal rejuvenated, I took the train over to a commercial center and bought a couple of things for Mal and me to wear until it cools back off. Now the big question is: Can get get it back into the bags to bring home? I guess we'll find out!

James brought dinner in from Bergham, and I'd picked up, you guessed it, McD's for Mal.

Thursday, we took the train out to Stade Olympique to visit the botanical gardens and Biodôme. There's a lot of construction going on around the stadium and at the gardens' main building, so getting started on that was kind of tricky. But we eventually got to walk around and see some beautiful tulips. We were hoping to see some cherry blossoms, but it looks like we're maybe a week early. The magnolias, which are also that striking pink, are in full bloom now and we've loved seeing those in the neighborhoods.

Between the gardens and Biodôme, Mal noticed what he thought were bounce houses, but I thought was construction stuff. Turns out he was right. After we went through the museum and he got to see both penguins ("This is my best day in Canada!") and otters, among other animals in 5 different biomes, he asked to go to the bounce houses. It was only $10C, so about $8.50ish, and it gave James and me a chance to sit down for a few while he got some energy out.

When we went to Disney World, I'd read that people might think it's ridiculous for there to be playgrounds on-site when kids get so tired walking. Apparently, there's a difference in a forced march and being able to run and play. It definitely rejuvenated Malcolm.

We took the train and then a bus connection to a very late lunch at Wilinskey's. James and I had the special with cheddar, and lemon/lime and grape fresh-made sodas. Mal had a hot dog and ordered a chocolate soda, which they warned him he would not like. He still wanted it. He did not like it, which was lucky for James and me because it was spectacular. Even the people working there said it was a "special" drink that they doubted people actually liked. But we did. It was so refreshing!

Mal got some chocolate gelato just up the street, and we got a few Fairmont bagels. The "bozo" bagels (plain bagels with poppy seeds on one side and sesame seeds on the other) had just come out of the oven, so we had to eat one on the walk home. 

It was a longer walk back to the hotel than I had thought it was, but we got to take in more of the neighborhoods' personalities, which I really enjoy.

We rested for a few hours, then went out to find food. Our first choice stops serving children at 5 PM, so we opted for Frites Alors! where Mal was able to get chicken tenders and French fries. James got a guacamole burger, and I just wanted fries and sauce.

Now I'm up and have eaten breakfast. The guys are still asleep so I'm sitting out on the steps of the hotel writing this. They have a lovely terrace that is pretty quiet, even though we're on an active road. 

Oh! Our room is a half-basement, and we have a large window that lets in natural light... and I'm shocked at how quiet it is! We've all been sleeping very well and I'd highly recommend Hotel Manoir Sherbrooke if you're ever visiting Montrèal!