Day 0 (March 30th 2012): Left office early so I could stop by Anjappar for lunch. Chicken rasam and plain rasam were awesome. Got back on the road with a full stomach and headed to NYC for some personal stuff. Then drove up to Glens Falls, NY and rested for the night.
Day 1: First stop was at Ausable Chasm on the US side. It was a nice water falls. Then entered Canada. Suddenly I went through the same feeling that I experienced when I landed in Mexico. Pretty much every sign was in French. But that only added to my excitement. And I was happy that I could finally put my 2 years of studying French to use. ( I barely know 10 words in French!!!) Reached Montreal, checked in at “La Maison du Patriote” hostel. Since I hadn’t had breakfast that morning, decided to grab brunch at “Schwartz’s”. This smoked meat joint was recommended by a Montreal guy who I met in New Orleans. He claimed that the restaurant served the best smoked meat in the world and was very popular among tourists and locals alike. The queue to get into “Schwartz’s” was very long. Grabbed a smoked meat sandwich. I must say that this was the best smoked meat I’ve ever had. It was very soft and tasty, definitely worth the hype. Then drove around the town not knowing where I was headed next. One of the striking features of the Montreal skyline is the Olympic stadium. So decided to head towards it. Checked out the bio-dome and Olympic stadium. There was not much at the bio-dome that I hadn’t seen before. Then grabbed bagel at “St. Vaiteur bagel and Café”, which is one of the other popular places to eat in Montreal. The bagel was soft and I liked it. Then visited the Montreal church on Mount Royal. It was very unique and modern. Then hung around Old Montreal for the rest of the night.
Day 2: Took pictures of Old Montreal. Bought a little piece of art from a street-side vendor as a souvenir. Taught the vendor a couple of words in Tamil in exchange for a $5 discount. Breakfast at “Creperie”, a neat French restaurant that specialized in Crepes. Visited the “Bio-Sphere”. It was all about conservation, staying green and global warning. All the exhibits and presentations were very nicely put together, and the dome was also very beautiful. Spent a lot of time attending various presentations. Felt very disturbed about how we humans have managed to ruin the planet we call home. Then went to Notre Dame cathedral, which was more traditional looking compared to the one on Mt. Royal. Stopped by “Schwartz’s” one last time for lunch. Drove to Quebec City and checked-in at “La Belle Planete Backpackers” hostel. Walked along the decorated streets around the hostel and ate at "Subway"!
Day 3: Parked the car at the Information Center just outside walled city and decided to visit the fortified city by foot. Visited Quebec’s parliament and took a guided tour. Since this was the off-season, I had the privilege of being the only one on the tour! The building was very beautiful but what struck me more was that the parliament was scarcely guarded. This was in contrast to the government buildings in US, which are heavily guarded because of the paranoia that prevails in the US. That, I believe, is the cost of being the most powerful and irresponsible country on the planet. Then I entered the walled section of Quebec City for the first time. It felt great! This is every “Age of Empire” fanatic’s (like I was in college) dream come true. All the houses and shops were very pretty. Checked out “Chateau Frontenac” and clicked pictures. This is apparently the most photographed hotel in North America, and I sure did contribute to the claim. Grabbed brunch at “Buffet de L’Antiquaire” – a place recommended at the Info center. Ordered the house special pie, which was a 3 course meal (salad, meat pie and dessert). Very delicious. Then went to the local Quebec market. Most shops sold products made from maple tree such as syrup, candies and wine. Decided to go back to the place for breakfast the next morning. Then took a guided tour of the citadel, nothing special but has good views of the surrounding area. Walked around Champlain Street and Place Royale, which had boutique shops. Then walked all the way up to the observatory building only to find it was closed for the day. By now I was really tired from walking all day. Drove the car to Montmorency falls. Then dinner at “La Cuisine”. The restaurant was really unique in that it was setup like an actual kitchen and living room. The orders were cooked right in front of you in the kitchen. Very cool place and homely food. Checked in at “Auberge Internationale de Quebec” hostel, which is within the walled city.
Day 4: Went back to Quebec local market for breakfast. Ate smoked salmon, chicken roll & lamb roll, dessert (made of egg white, honey, almonds and dry fruits) and chocolate cake. Then bought tomato wine (yes, tomato wine) and collection set of wines made from strawberry, blueberry and other fruits. Also bought maple syrup as souvenirs for colleagues. Then went to the observatory. The view of Quebec city from the top was just stunning. It was a great way to end a memorable trip to the walled city. I will always cherish visiting this beautiful city. Drove to Ottawa and checked in at “HI-Ottawa Jail” hostel. This is a jail that has been converted into a hostel. How cool is that! Did a guided tour of the jail. Apparently a lot of prisoners were tortured here and 3 were “officially” hanged at the jail. The jail is supposed to be haunted. Had a good night’s sleep nevertheless.
Day 5: Got ready early in the morning knowing that I had a busy day ahead of me. Stopped by the jail kitchen for the free breakfast. Met Lisa, a Brit who was on a 6 month vacation! We decided to hang out together for the day. Stopped by Information center. The guy at the center recommended a hiking trail at the Gatineau park. So the two of us drove to the park and hiked the hill. The view was beautiful. Had interesting conversations about traveling, evil corporations and photography. Lunch at a Vietnamese restaurant in the Byward market area and then ate dessert at bakery within the market. Then headed to check out the Canadaian parliament. All the guided tours were full for the day. So visited the senate floor while it was in session. It was a really cool experience. Then did a guided tour of Canada’s Supreme Court. After that went to the currency museum. Bought a few currencies and coins for my personal collection. Dropped off Lisa at the bus station and then checked in at “Ottawa Backpackers Inn” hostel. Went to Byward market to grab dinner. As I was strolling along looking for an interesting restaurant, a guy by the side walk asked for a dollar or two. I just said “sorry” and as I walked past him I heard him say “have a nice day”. I liked that he wished me a nice day even though I didn’t help him. So I went back to him and handed him a dollar. Then I asked him for a restaurant suggestion. He introduced himself as Louie and and offered to walk me to a diner that served “poutine” (French fries with cheese and gravy) – a very Canadian dish. He asked me if I could buy him something to eat. So I decided to share the “poutine” with him. Over dinner, we discussed about his past and present. Very interesting dinner.Day 6: Breakfast at Byward market (smoked salmon sandwich, and Florentine for dessert). Took a guided of the Canadian Royal Mint. Very informative. Stopped by at Notre dame cathedral on my way to the parliament. Wanted to attend the House of Commons question hour, but the question hour was moved to earlier in the day. I felt very disappointed because I was looking forward to seeing the Prime Minister of Canada during the question hour. Then drove over 5 hours to the south-west of Ottawa to reach a city that is right on the India-China border. The most surprising aspect of the city was that over 20% of the people were Caucasians. This must be the Asian country with the highest % of Caucasians!!! LOL!!! Anyways, checked in at “Clarence Castle” hostel. Walked around a few blocks to get a feel of the city. Ate chicken kabab for dinner at a wonderful Lebanese restaurant in the neighborhood.
Day 7: Woke up late and headed out to the iconic CN Towers, which was only 2 blocks from the hostel. Even though the place was over crowded and I had to wait in long lines for everything, the trip to the top was well worth it. The clear sky facilitated a great view of the Toronto area, which is an endless array of concrete structures. Then purchased the day pass for the public transit system and went around Toronto downtown. Ate brunch at another Lebanese restaurant. Again, the food was great. Used the cable car to visit Yonge shopping area, China town, St Lawrence market (closed due to Easter) and entertainment district. Didn’t find Toronto interesting. It was like any other North American city, only a little more diverse. Went to the hostel to rest for a while and then went to Kensington Market for dinner. Ate pecan pie for dinner.
Day 8: Woke up late and had brunch at Chez Cora, a small chain that serves healthy breakfast and lunch. Then drove down to Niagara fall and checked-in at “Niagara Falls Backpackers” hostel. After that, drove/walked around the falls area and also visited the Niagara whirlpool spot. In the evening, went to Casino Niagara to gamble with left over Canadian dollars.
Day 9: Drove to Rochester and met with Gary for breakfast at “South Wedge Diner”. Then had lunch with John at “The Owl House”. After that, hit the road for a 6 hour drive to Wilmington.
Overall, the trip went wonderfully well. Visited a lot of interesting places, but Quebec is my pick of the trip.
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