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26 Aug 18, 08:04 PM |
#1
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Imagineer
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Toddler Trials sponsored by Timmies, Canada 2018 Day 9 Bagels & Maple Syrup - Exploring Montreal
Toddler Trials sponsored by Timmies, Canada 2018
Day 9 Bagels & Maple Syrup - Exploring Montreal I’m Emily, my husband is Gary and this was our first overseas holiday with our 17 month Libby. We visited family near Toronto and spent a few days in Montreal too. We all slept really well in our pitch black, quiet bedroom . Libby cried out a few times during the night but slept through and we all woke up about 7.30. We had some cheerios and toast and let Libby have some chill time playing away. We left just before 10am. It was chilly again this morning. We were off to St Viateur Bagel & Cafe on Avenue du Mont-Royal. I’d read that Montreal bagels are different as they boil them then bake so we weren't going to miss out on trying them. We found the café quite easily and headed in. We weren’t in a rush and it wasn’t too busy so we asked to sit in. In peak season this place gets really busy, so we decided to stick with our chilled out pace and enjoy it while we could. This wasn’t the flagship bakery btw, they have a few cafes throughout the city. I ordered a bagel with jam and Gary got cream cheese. These were SO good . Libby loved the cream cheese and probably would have happily eaten her own bagel! Hurry up Dad I had wondered if this place was over hyped but definitely not, the bagels were the best I’d ever had. I had a latte which was also delicious and Gary got fresh orange juice with filter coffee. We paid $20 and headed out for the day, intending to come back to pick up more bagels before we left Montreal (spoiler - we didn’t make it back ). We walked back up (down? who knows) Mont Royal Avenue and I was drawn into a macaroon shop Boutique Point G. Oh my goodness! We chose 3 flavours each for a box of 6 to go with our post-Libby’s bedtime drinks. Shortly after leaving the macaroon shop, we noticed we had a bit of nappy leakage. This resulted in us changing Libby down a back alley! One negative about Canada in general was the lack of baby changing facilities, especially in big cities. There was a really cool mural on the wall though! We got her changed and went into a chemist to get some bigger size nappies. We continued walking back to the apartment and noticed Gary had shoplifted 2 tiny shower gels from the chemist, which he’d put on the hood of the pram to pay for with the nappies and forgotten about . Thankfully they only came to $1. We got back about 12, changed Libby’s outfit as she was damp from her nappy incident and we were ready to head back out at 12.30. This worked quite well as the car had to be moved for rubbish collection between 1:30 & 2:30. We planned to go up Mont Royal anyway and we were taking the car. Off we go We parked at Chalet du Mont Royal parking and got out. The parking meter confused me a little then didn’t want my money but I worked out it out and we were on our way. Libby had started to fall asleep in the car and we managed to get her in the buggy with the rain cover on as it was spitting a little, so she had a nap . We walked up to the Chalet and viewpoint. What a view! We took some photos and headed in to use the restrooms and get a drink. There were wooden chairs all along the top of the steps leading to the chalet so we claimed 2 of those and enjoyed our drinks and snacks in peace, while Libby slept. We only got one Sirop d’erable milkshake (maple syrup milkshake) to share as we thought it would be really sweet and sickly, but it was absolutely delicious! Gary had a marshmallow krispie thing and I had a cookie. Libby woke up and realised she’d missed snack time, so she had a banana and some juice. We planned on an early dinner since we’d had bagels as an early lunch so were just keeping her topped up. Still not loving the camera We took her to see the view and she then had a run around, climbing up and down stairs while I chased after her! On our walk back down to the car we met mounted police and they stopped so Libby could see the horses. Gary asked if we could take a picture and they were more than happy to oblige . We got back in to car and drove down the mountain back to our apartment. Since all the cars had to move at the same time but not all were back yet, we got parked no problem in the correct part of the street, phew! We’d been a bit sceptical about whether they took having to move for just an hour each week seriously or not, but there were 3 cars on our side of the road that hadn’t moved and now had parking tickets on them. Checking the map We quickly freshened up and headed back out again, this time for another taste of Montreal's famous food, smoked meat! We walked to Swartz’s deli in about 15 minutes. This is a real Montreal staple and I’d read about queues of people outside in reviews. Thankfully the place seemed deserted! A mixture of still being off season and it not being quite dinner time yet I think. We decided just to get take out and go back to eat in the apartment again. We ordered 2 sandwiches (I’m sure they were slightly different but I can’t remember how, sorry) and also got some coleslaw. The guys serving were really nice and chatting away to Libby. We went into a delicatessen/coffee place for cheese and some juice on the way home. They had so many different cheeses and it was all in French so I picked a couple and hoped for the best! We headed home to eat. If I’m honest we didn’t really get the smoked meat thing. It was tasty but we didn’t get the hype and to us the sandwiches were wayyyy over filled for normal slices of bread. I would have preferred a big baguette or ciabatta or something. Libby just wanted to eat cheese! After dinner, we got her changed (again) and headed to the park. The sun was out and it was a lovely evening . The neighbour stopped us on the way, we’d waved at her that morning as she was painting her balcony railings. She was so lovely. She’d lived in Montreal her whole life and her English wasn’t great but we had a lovely chat. She said her daughter now lived in Paris and it’s quite common for them to move to France when they’ve grown up in Quebec. She asked about Libby and when we said we were off to the park she told us about another one the opposite way. We thanked her and said we’d go a loop and do both parks! We went to park via Boulangerie Les Co’pains d’abord. I wanted a coffee and also got a sneaky chocolate pastry. We went to the first park and Libby had great fun running around. She was shouting Hiya at a little boy who seemed quite taken aback by her . She's quite forward with other children, not shy in the slightest! After a while, we dragged her away and walked down the street behind ours to the next park our neighbour had recommended. This street was so pretty, I was in absolute awe! This park was bigger and we could see why she’d mentioned it. It was busy, there seemed to be lots of dads meeting family’s after work and it had a lovely atmosphere. Libby played on the slide, going round and round and not letting the bigger kids deter her! We headed home up the pretty street again and via a local shop for some beer for Gary. Libby was in bed by 7pm, she went out like a light . We enjoyed some drinks on the balcony and our macaroons, coming in to watch Netflix once it got dark. We loved exploring Montreal, it's a stunning city! |
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26 Aug 18, 10:18 PM |
#2
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Imagineer
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Hang on... no Timmies today?!
Those bagels looked delicious, I can't resist a bagel with cream cheese! Loving all Libby's outfit changes today too! |
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27 Aug 18, 05:07 PM |
#3
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Imagineer
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Another great day!
I didn’t rate the bagels as you know - but I wonde if they are better eaten fresh? Love the view from Mont Royal! As a veggie, the sandwich doesn’t do much for me Libby got some good park time
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Index of my trip reports 2016 Quebec - Kuala Lumpar - New York City 2017 Dubai - Eurocamps France - Ontario and Quebec - So-Cal 2018 Montreal - Bangkok - New England 2019 Argentina - Quebec City - Hong Kong - 2020 Switzerland 2022 Arizona - Costa Med Cruise - Oslo 2023 Hong Kong - Gothenburg |
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28 Aug 18, 09:49 PM |
#4
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Imagineer
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Montreal looks fantastic
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Sue June 1996 & 1998 - DLP Camp Davy Crockett August 2000, Oct 2002, Sept 2008 & Sept 2016- DLP Offsite June 2001, August 2003,2007 &Sept 2010 - WDW Offsite June 2005 - DLP Davy Crockett Ranch |
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31 Aug 18, 02:48 PM |
#5
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Thread Starter
Imagineer
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I know! I think I mentioned right at the very start, we had Timmies every single day except one and this was it. Somehow I managed to survive! Just
Definitely need to try them fresh Mel! I found them sweeter than the kind we get here but I have a sweet tooth so that suited me. The parks dotted around the city were lovely, we were really impressed at how many there were and how well used they were. It was fab, we really enjoyed visiting xx |
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28 Dec 18, 10:46 PM |
#6
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VIP Dibber
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Wow Montreal looks like such an interesting place! Thanks for sharing.
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Orlando 1993, 1995, 2005, 2011 Paris 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 Orlando - May 2015, October 2016, October 2017 |
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