Follow Kathy's and Dave's 10 days in Montreal, Canada, July 14 to July 25, 2017. We're looking forward to the cooler weather and even some rain!

Fri
July 14
A fond farewell to our two cats, Ben Ben (right) and Mona Bona (left). Then off to the Tucson airport for a direct flight to Denver and then another direct flight to Montreal. We arrived just past midnight local time and after customs and passport control, it was close to 1 am so we stayed the night at the Sheraton Montreal Airport Hotel. We paid for this night on our airbnb reservation but Marc could not accommodate a late arrival. There is 3 hours time difference so we're planning to stay up 3 hours later during our visit.

Sat
July 15
We checked into our airbnb accommodations, which was a very stylish loft that was previously in an old industrial building. Next, we headed directly to the indoor/outdoor Jean Talon Market with its many stunning displays of food items. After some purchases for our lunch and dinner, we returned to the loft for lunch and a nap. Then off again on bus 55 that took us into town and Sainte Catherine Street, which was totally shut down for a festival of events and food stalls. After some sampling, we headed back home via the Metro and dinner. In the evening, the fireworks competition show (pix); this one was the Polish entry.

Sun
July 16
Breakfast at Boulangerie Au Pain Doré by the Jean Talon Market then some food shopping, especially at the fabulous La Fromagerie HAMEL. With the US Dollar valued 20% higher than the Canadian dollar, a $5cn purchase is just $4us. Next, was Bus 55 to Old Montreal and a harbor cruise with Bateau Mouche, where we got a close-up view of Habitat 67. Here is Kathy's flower photo for the day. Back home for a rest, then a meal to remember at Restaurant Salmigondis.

Mon
July 17
A cafe breakfast at the market, then off to downtown to do some exploring. Our first stop was to browse Montreal's largest bookstore, Archambault, then a snack at La graine brûlée, which was amusing because the bathrooms are lit only by strobe light. Smile! We loved Blanc, the open-sky art gallery (pix); next was a stop at the Renaissance thrift shop (purchases were made) followed by lunch back home. After a long rest, we headed out again for our evening entertainment, a film in the Fantasia Festival called "The Little Hours."

Tue
July 18
We toured Montreal by public Bus 11 that circles Mount Royal. To our delight, a large group of 7-to-9-year-olds boarded the bus (pix), chatting away with each other in French and then English with us. Lunch at Boccone, a destination restaurant in Little Italy. Then home to do some laundry and rest; later, out again to sample the African Music Festival, visit the Eva-B Thrift Store, and, finally, a late dinner at the Indian restaurant, Atma.

Wed
July 19
We explored a suburb of Montreal called Pointe-Claire (pix) today, which was settled in 1686 and is beautifully situated on the St. Lawrence River. Bus 211 got us there in about an hour. We purchased two coffee mugs from the Ten Thousand Villages store. Back home for lunch and a nap, then out for the evening to see another night of fireworks. This time our viewing point was the Terrasse sur l'Auberge in Old Montreal.

Thu
July 20
Off on Bus 24 to explore Sherbrooke Street, the site of 29 monumental sculptures called "Balade pour la Paix." A favorite, Tenderness (pix). Next, a noontime organ concert at The Church of St. Andrew and St. Paul by Maria Budacova, a student at Mcgill University. Lunch at L’Autre Saison, a French restaurant (impressive food and service). Home again for a rest, then out for the evening to attend the movie "Dunkirk" at an IMAX theater (all movie, no story). We finished with a late-night snack at the Brasserie Harricana.

Fri
July 21
We started the day with a light breakfast and then at noon joined the Old Montreal Food Tour at Cafe Crew (pix) for a leisurely lunch of small plates at six restaurants. At the end of the tour in a light rain, we took shelter at the 8th floor Terrasse Place d’Armes just as the sky opened up. Like others, we were soaked, with the result that we took a taxi home and had a nap. In the evening, we were out for dinner at the stunning Restaurant Lucca.

Sat
July 22
Off to the market and then on to the huge Saint-Michel Flea Market, where we spent most of the morning (purchases were made). Back home for lunch and a rest, then downtown for the famous Twins Parade (pix), where 1,500 sets of twins create a kaleidoscope of color. Home again for a picnic at the Parc de la Petite-Italie, and later in the evening, cocktails at Marconi's and then more fireworks, this time the contest entry from France.

Sun
July 23
We are going to seriously miss our breakfasts of croissants à la confiture at Premiere Moisson, which is located in the Juan Talon Market. We started the day with a real estate walk that was close to a popular park in Montreal called Parc Westmount (pix). This House for about $1,900,000 was our favorite. Back home for lunch at a Vietnamese restaurant My Tien, then out again to Parc Westmount in the evening for Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing. Excellent!

Mon
July 24
While it is well known that United Airlines can beat up their passengers, also note that United Airlines and American Airlines do not allow carry-on suitcases if you buy a Basic Economy ticket. For this class of service, your carry-on must fit under the seat in front of you. If you show up at the gate with a carry-on suitcase, you pay $25 to check it and $25 penalty for a total of $50. The solution is to pay for Economy Plus seats at $50 additional cost per seat. Either way, you lose.

Tues
July 25
The flight from Montreal was 2 hours late and we missed our United Airlines flight to Tucson. There was one other flight on American Airlines that we could have taken, but United Airlines has no "agreement" and said we would have to pay for it. But United did offer a motel room and a $39 dinner voucher. The motel, Quality Inn (pix) was rather ordinary but OK, and the dinner voucher was for frozen dinners that we were supposed to microwave in our room. We declined and had a pizza instead. We were back in Tucson by the middle of the afternoon.