Montreal

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We arrived in Montreal Sunday, October 9, at about 8pm and grabbed a cab to the Loews Vogue hotel where we had stayed six years ago. This hotel has a boutique feel and is located right in the center of downtown Montreal with easy access to lots of restaurants and shops. Olivier, the concierge, pointed us at any number of local restaurants which were open on a Sunday at 8:45pm and off we went, choosing a bistro which served both steak and seafood and was pretty full. We started out being the new couple, but people were coming in when we left at 10pm. Monday was the Canadian Thanksgiving holiday so people were out late Sunday and out and about Monday. We got a good night's sleep and headed out on foot to explore Old Montreal and the port. It was great weather, in the mid-70s, and everyone thought Summer had returned. The walkways along the harbor were crowded with families on bicycles, skateboards, pedal cars and on foot. We wandered around on the cobblestones of old Montreal and chose to have lunch/brunch at a place that had crepes and fondues. We had dinner around the block again that night and on Tuesday we headed back down to the harbor area to the Museum of the History of Montreal, located in a former Dutch Fire Station. It was very interesting, expecially since Daryl had lived in Montreal from age 5-16 and a lot of the history was familiar. Our next stop was the Museum of Archeology and Architecture where you could go down several levels and see the various foundations of the old town through the centuries. Then we headed back uphill to the hotel through the busy St. Catherine St shoppping area. We had eaten only a light breakfast that day as we had a reservation at one of the best rated restaurants in town, Europea, at the only available time, 8:45pm. We got to the restaurant, less than a block away, a little early and they found us a table. The meal was more than fantastic, it was a true experience, and included about 10-12 different "gifts" from the chef interspersed throughout the meal. The chef has command of mixing various ingredients, most of them local to Quebec, and making everything delicious. At the end of the meal and the 3 pre-desserts and 3 post-desserts we were given a take-out carton full of Madeleines and a bag of meringues for "later." Our waiter took us on a tour of the kitchens, but we had just missed the chef so could not get his autograph on the cookbook they gave us. However, when we had arrived we were given an envelope with a note to "have a wonderful dinner" signed by him, so we have it with the book. A meal at Europea is worth coming to Montreal for!