Left England at stupid-o-clock, cleared baggage, was searched, prodded and eventually got onto a rather crowded plane. The usual inconveniences of travel ensued. Loved the turbulence coming into land, but that’s just my sense of humour! Arrived in Montreal 7 hours later, and ended up in queue after queue attempting to get baggage, go through passport control and get the scrap of paper that allows me to actually study in the country. This takes about 4 hours, standing in a rather extended line. Then public transport all the way to the hotel.
The hotel is lovely, if a little disorganised. We’re staying in the Hotel de l’institut, which is actually the hotel attatched the University of Hospitality! It is lovely, but with students learning the ropes, the service is a little patchy. Some of the battles we’ve had have been hysterical, namely the “Battle of the Thermos Flask” (Don’t ask)! We went out to eat at a little resturant, which again became a mini-disaster (again, don’t ask), went back to the hotel and collapsed into a small heap. At which point my fold-up bed collapsed and I hit the wall with a thump.
The next morning was an improvement, and after a lovely breakfast we headed out into Montreal. We ended up at the Oratory of St. Joseph, which was interesting but a little disconcerting, and then travelled to the Old Town and went to the most amazing little street market, complete with stocks! Actually quite touristy, but if one avoids that, it’s pretty nice! We ate in a rather horrible place in the end.
The next day was better, but we didn’t do much. Went to the antiques quarter, which was incidentally closed, and then drifted towards the harbour and had a Canadian beer on a little terrace.
To be honest, i’m not enjoying Montreal half as much as I thought I would. It is a lovely place, with character in parts, but the French aspects here just makes me miss the reality of France itself! Also, Quebecois is not French. Part of the issue has been the heat here – it’s reached up to 32 degrees and 90% humidity, which is far too hot for city visiting. It’s not really a problem for me, but my family are all struggling a little.
I’m looking forward to getting to Toronto and starting university already!
Montreal!
August 24, 2008 at 11:48 pm (Comments)
Finally in Canada! And heavens, is it weird.
Left England at stupid-o-clock, cleared baggage, was searched, prodded and eventually got onto a rather crowded plane. The usual inconveniences of travel ensued. Loved the turbulence coming into land, but that’s just my sense of humour! Arrived in Montreal 7 hours later, and ended up in queue after queue attempting to get baggage, go through passport control and get the scrap of paper that allows me to actually study in the country. This takes about 4 hours, standing in a rather extended line. Then public transport all the way to the hotel.
The hotel is lovely, if a little disorganised. We’re staying in the Hotel de l’institut, which is actually the hotel attatched the University of Hospitality! It is lovely, but with students learning the ropes, the service is a little patchy. Some of the battles we’ve had have been hysterical, namely the “Battle of the Thermos Flask” (Don’t ask)! We went out to eat at a little resturant, which again became a mini-disaster (again, don’t ask), went back to the hotel and collapsed into a small heap. At which point my fold-up bed collapsed and I hit the wall with a thump.
The next morning was an improvement, and after a lovely breakfast we headed out into Montreal. We ended up at the Oratory of St. Joseph, which was interesting but a little disconcerting, and then travelled to the Old Town and went to the most amazing little street market, complete with stocks! Actually quite touristy, but if one avoids that, it’s pretty nice! We ate in a rather horrible place in the end.
The next day was better, but we didn’t do much. Went to the antiques quarter, which was incidentally closed, and then drifted towards the harbour and had a Canadian beer on a little terrace.
To be honest, i’m not enjoying Montreal half as much as I thought I would. It is a lovely place, with character in parts, but the French aspects here just makes me miss the reality of France itself! Also, Quebecois is not French. Part of the issue has been the heat here – it’s reached up to 32 degrees and 90% humidity, which is far too hot for city visiting. It’s not really a problem for me, but my family are all struggling a little.
I’m looking forward to getting to Toronto and starting university already!