Final Day in Montreal

Day 13  It Rains

We spent time in Chicago, Niagara Falls, and Toronto without rain-now on our final afternoon in Montreal it rained steady and pretty hard.  We spend time this morining in the Mount Royal park, very large with many trails.  We walked one of the trails at the top of the park and then walked down 250 steps to the city and through McGill University.  From there we went to the Fine Arts Complex, walked around looking for a restaurant and got quite wet.  We finally found the restaurant and discovered that it did not open for awhile so we went back to our B&B, finished our pasta from the night before and relaxed a bit.  This evening we went to another pub, had some pretty good food and now we are getting ready to head for Maine.  We will be back in the US tomorrow and will be to use our phones.  Texting and calling will be options.

Fine Day in Montreal

Day 12: Walking, Eating and Drinking in Montreal

We met with our hostess and planned our day--7 locations to explore.  We made 6 of 7.  Our first major excursion was the Museum of Archeology and History, a structure built on one of the original building sites in Montreal and much of the foundation was stone walls that were a part of the original buildings.  The most exciting thing at the museum was a very extensive Etruscan Exhibit.  Artifacts and all, it was quite amazing.  We then caught the subway (on the way we went by the Church of Notre Dame) and went to a large bustling farmers market.  Very impressive!  We bought some vegetables and sausage for our evening meal.  On the way back we stopped at a brew pub that I found by reading the Independent, UK newspaper.  They had 17 of there beers on tap.  All the beer was brewed on site.  This evening we cooked our sauce and pasta, some green beans and had a quiet meal here with some nice red wine from France.



Church of Notre Dame



Farmers Market



Ground Cherries at the Market




Our Dinner



Arrival in Montreal

Day 11:  On to Montreal

We said goodbye to our host Roger, the Pug Budda, the Cavalier Spaniel Holly and drove towards Montreal.  It took us about 6 hours to make the drive.  I was surprised at the presence of cattails along the highway.  Like the song, miles and miles and miles. I mention this because in our region they are not nearly as abundant and were an important part of Native American life. Our B&B here is beautiful.  We have access to a lounge and kitchen as well as our bedroom and bath that has a beautiful shower.  We plan to go to a farmers market tomorrow afternoon and purchase some stuff to cook our meal tomorrow evening.  Our hostess is very helpful.  She will help us plan our day each morning at breakfast.  I was surprised that only French is spoken here.  We found that out when we went to a nearby pub and bistro this evening.

Beautiful Day In Toronto

Day 10:  Our Last Day in Toronto

Fall Vegetables

CN Tower

U of Toronto Campus



Plundered Risotto

We have a very helpful and generous host at the Baldwin House in Toronto.  When I made our reservation a couple of months ago, I did not realize how close it was to the things we wanted to do.  Until this evening, the car has been parked since we got here.  We started the day by going to a farmers market called Indulge.  Very professional, lots of produce, flowers, baked goods and value-added items.  A stage for music and three or four vendors with food included pea pork sandwiches.  We then went on a boat ride to the islands just off shore from downtown with beautiful views of the city and the CN Tower.  Then we briefly explored the underground city, came back to our BB and went on a hike to explore the University of Toronto campus.  Mostly we walked by and through some of the older buildings and the new library which holds some very old manuscripts including an ancient tablet.  This evening we went to a higher end restaurant which sources most of its food locally.  It is called Global/Earth and its byline is "Eat local, think global."  That should remind you of Hale's Ales slogan.  We ordered 7 items from their menu (not including drinks).  The multigrain risotto was wonderful.  On to Montreal tomorrow.

Toronto

Today, we went on a bus tour around Toronto. This a very multi-cultural city.iIt feels like we are a minority in this neighborhood. Near our B&B is one of the five Chinatowns. We walked through it today. We are also near Kensington Market which is a large area with many shops, including those selling fruit, vegetables, nuts, dried beans, fish, and meat, lots of restaurants selling a variety of ethnic foods, coffee shops and more.  We saw much of the downtown core and visited the St. Lawrence Market which is an indoor market with lots of meat vendors, cheese vendors fruit and vegetable vendors and lots of other items. It has the most fantastic offering of meats and seafood I have seen anywhere and the meat is cut up on site.  Beautiful !! I would do all my shopping for meat there if I lived in this city.  They even had air dryed chicken. We ate at the market (a peameal bacon sandwich from one vendor, with olives and cheese stuffed peppers and eggplant from another). We walked to Little Italy for a gelato, then went to the Art Gallery of Ontario. It was interesting to see several rooms devoted to Canadian artists. Now to bed to get ready for another day here!

On to Toronto

Day 8  Travel and an Evening in Toronto
On our way to Toronto we stopped by the Welland Canal.  The canal connects lLake Erie and Lake Ontario.  We saw a 222 meter freighter move through lock 7.  We had hoped to see ships move through lock 3 but could not wait for them.  There were 5 ships going through late Tuesday. 
Here we are in another large city--a population of over 2 million.  We found our B &B with no trouble.  Very different from Niagara Falls.  Our Niagara Falls lodging was on a quite street in a residential area.  Our Toronto location is in the middle of the downtown core.  We found a nice pub in Kensington Market (really a region of hundreds of small stores and restaurants) and walked a bit in the Little Italy.  Toronto has more Italians than any place other than Italy.  Our host is very pleasant and helpful and gave us more ideas than we can handle for our stay here. 

Niagara Falls

I did not know there were two different falls at Niagara Falls-The American Falls and the Horseshoe Falls.  Here is a picture of a segment of the Horseshoe Falls and one of the couple on this tour.  Al

While at the Falls, we took the Lady of the Mist boat tour which takes you quite close to the falls. That is where I took this picture. We got quite wet even with our plastic ponchos. We took a long walk along the gorge, visited a botanical garden, and then took a car tour around the area. We visited Niagara on the Lake (Lake Ontario) and saw acres of grapes. This area has many wineries and was a suprise to us. We then drove to the south side of the peninsula to visit a pub (of course) that is located on the canal. While we were sipping our ale, a large freighter passed by in the canal. The nearby bridge was raised. Quite interesting.
We are staying in a B&B close by the Falls. It is Tuesday morning and we will be leaving for Toronto today. We are off now for a walk and one last look at the Falls.
Ciao for now...Evelyn

Leaving Chicago

On Saturday night, after our tour of Chicago, Al, Nancy, Mike and I went out for tapas at a neighborhood tapas bar. The tapas were quite good and ranged from stuffed mushroom caps to bacon wrapped dates, to grilled talapia. We also shared a liter of sangria, one of my favorites.
On Sunday morning, Al and I packed up and headed for Niagara Falls, 500+ miles from Chicago. Luckily it was Sunday morning and we got out of Chicago quite easily. We drove with few stops from Illinois, through some of northern Indiana, into Michigan and into Canada at Port Huron. We were happy to see our B&B at around 5:30. We got some food and then went to see the falls. They are quite spectacular and we saw them when they were illuminated at dark. I cannot get over the amount of development...huge Mariott, Embassy Suites, etc. hotels, a large ferris wheel, a casino, and it goes on and on. I was trying to envision what it must have been like when only the indigenous people were here, but it was difficult.
Tomorrow,  we will play tourist and take a boat tour, but then will strike out for some hikes in the area. We'll let you know how that goes. Hope all is well for you all and that the smoke is lessening in WA.

A Personal Tour of Chicago

Day 5 Driving Around Chicago

Nancy graciously offered to take us on a tour of the city she loves and knows well. We started by going past Wrigley Field, the home of the Chicago Cubs. It is in nestled in a neighborhood, with lots of restaurants and pubs around it. Then, we toured some neighborhoods and visited Nancy's church, St. Clement's which is quite beautiful and reminiscent of the churches in Italy. We then went downtown and went to Millenium Park which was quite interesting. Chicago has many green areas and many pieces of public art. We then visited the Chicago Cultural center which has a large dome made of Tiffany glass. We toured more neighborhoods (including Little Italy) and Kristen's sister's salon.
We met Mike, Nancy's husband, and had lunch at one of Rick Bayless' Mexican Restaurant. It was quite good. Then Mike took us on a tour of South Chicago. We saw the White Sox stadium, The University of Chicago, Museum and Industry and Technology (also housed in buidings from the 1893 World Fair), and one of Frank Lloyd Wright's homes. On the way home, we saw Soldiers Field and we drove along Lake Shore Drive which borders an extensive green area along Lake Michigan.
Tomorrow is a long travel day to Niagara Falls. We are having fun!! Our hosts have been wonderful and we are indeed grateful for their hospitality.

Out of THIS World

Day 4  Schwa

We took the Red Line "L" to the center of the downtown loop and walked up to Michigan Ave, checked in at the Architecture Foundation and signed up for a historical tour of skyscrapers of Chicago.  Then after a mid morning snack we went to the Art Institute--a massive art gallery located in one of the original buildings from the 1893 World Fair.  New wings have been added to this structure.  I am not sure how many rooms are located in this structure but perhaps 100's.  Each room is filled with art from various world regions.  The Institutes claim to fame is a very large collection of Impressionists paintings.  We made it to the Institute at about 11 and wandered about until nearly 3:00.  Amazing--one could spend days there.  We then went on our 60 minute walking tour of the skyscrapers (and buildings which were not) beginning with a building from the early 1900's and concluding with the Trump building.  The post-modernist library was exceptionally striking.  The excitement of the day was only a prelude to the extra-terrestrial evening.

We left Nancy and Mike's place about 6:00 in the pouring rain to find our way to Schwa Restaurant (I guess you could call it a restaurant).  Schwa is the original Lovitt Restaurant that Norman and Kristen sold to chef Michael.  I don't have words for this experience.  Evelyn kept saying  "I have never experienced anything like this."  If you know Evelyn she has a lot of experiences and to say this means something special.  First of all the restaurant is a hole in the wall with only about 24 seats.  Second, it is very difficult to make reservations since no one seems interested in answering the phone.  Third it is well known in Chicago.  Fourth there is no menu.  Fifth, it is BYOB. Sixth, the chefs were also the waiters.  Stepping through that hole in the wall door was like walking into another world.  We were served a 12 course meal that was 4th dimensional in about every sense you can imagine.  It is the closest to El Bulli that I can imagine.  E.G.  Thai soup that was a custard.  Rap music not so much in the background.   Presentations that were delicate and beautiful.  Plates and dishes of many shapes and sizes.  Foods of many textures, flavors, and foams.  We have pictures of each course. It was a thrill to meet chef Michael when he came to our table to talk with us for a brief moment. I am sure I will always remember this once in a lifetime food experience which in and of itself made the trip to Chicago wonderful.

Actually Going To Chicago

Day 3 Actually Going To Chicago

Spokane-Salt Lake City-Chicago-6320 N. Paulina:  We left Spokane at 6:15 am and arrived in Chicago at 3:30 and found Kristen's Mom's home by 5:30.  The "L" in Chicago is amazing.  We took the Blue line from OHare to downtown--a very long way- about a 45 minute ride.  We found the Hertz rental building, got our car  (a white Yaris) and made it to Nancy and Mike's.  They were exceptionally gracious--gave us directions for day 4 and recommended an Indian Restaurant near their home.  The dinner was very authentic and quite spicy The neighborhood definitely was Indian-beautiful clothing displays in shop windows.  We have our own bedroom, bath and access to kitchen and living area.  Very generous and very nice.






































actu

Day 2 in Spokane

Today was a little hectic...lots of last minute things to get done. I forgot my ipod (darn) and a couple of other things. But, we are on the way. We had a problem with Chris and Alexis' GPS. It needed an update which necessitated a stop at the Chewelah Library. For those of you who know that I volunteer at the KF library, I could not keep from organizing some of the books.
We had stopped at Lovitt and got some last minute information and hugs from the Sixes.
We had our first pub stop, right here in Spokane. We had a brew at the Manito Brew House. Now we are at Joanne's (Lisa's mom) and she and Al are watching a Mariners game. I am off to bed as we have an early day tomorrow. Our plane leaves at 6:15! Our next post will be from Chicago.

Frantically Getting Ready to Leave the Farm

We are frantically preparing to leave the farm and head East.  Pears, ground cherries, potatoes and other items from the garden have been harvested.  New clothes have been purchased and packed with our existing wardrobe choices--probably too many.  We have Chris' GPS unit, regional maps, state and provincial maps and city maps as well as Evelyn's smart phone to guide us. We meet with Kristen and Norman Wednesday morning to get our final instructions for Chicago and Kristen's mother has been in touch and given directions to her house.  We will be staying with her mother Nancy and Mike while in Chicago.  And for those who frequent Lovitt Restaurant, we are looking forward to seeing Mateo who will be our guide for awhile.  I am pretty sure we are going to Wrigley Field.  So tomorrow morning we load our RAV and head to Spokane, stay the night with Lisa's mother and then board our flight to Chicago around 6am.