memorializing montreal

Went for a run in the pouring rain this morning... it was actually kind of nice. For once I welcomed the downpour, because it helped to wash away the smoke from the Quebecois wildfires that hung heavy in the air yesterday. When I woke up in the morning I attributed the smoky smell to the multitude of BBQs that were undoubtably firing up in force in preparation for Memorial Day festivities... but no! K and I had planned to go for a bike ride around the Champlain Islands, but the smoke and haze discouraged us and our plans fell to pieces. Oh well, some other time!

This weekend K and I took a lovely little day trip up to Montreal for some shopping and sightseeing. We walked down St. Catherine and I bought a delightful little dress from H&M (very bad behavior for someone as broke as I am), and then we walked down to the vieux ville for some lunch and looking around. We were being kind of wishy-washy about where we wanted to eat, so when a kind gentleman suckered us into looking at the courtyard terrace of his restaurant we decided to stay (we always get suckered in... the same thing happened when we were aimlessly wandering around the Old North End in Boston last year). It was a good choice:

(my view of the corner, behind K's head)

(image courtesy of MP website)

The restaurant was called Montreal Poutine, so it was only appropriate that we try the famous poutine of Montreal (which I've never had, even living so close to the border for my whole life!). It is deliciously, heart-stoppingly unhealthy, but so worth it--french fries, vegetarian gravy and cheese curds, oh my!

(image stolen from MP website)

It was divine, but next time we have poutine we're definitely getting the kind with peppers and onions on top... it looked so good. The food itself was also good, but a little pricey. We probably wouldn't have been satisfied with the small portions if we hadn't also had the poutine. I wanted the roast chicken, brie, red onion and caramelized pears (sans chicken) but the sandwiches were apparently made in advance and couldn't be altered, so I opted for the three cheese (brie, blue cheese, chevre) sandwich. It was good, but small. K got the smoked meat and mustard sandwich on rye bread and it was adorably miniature but had enough meat on it to feed a hungry alligator (or boyfriend).

We walked around some more, but failed at finding a nice place to sit and have a couple of cocktails. Any Montreal-ites out there? I'd love some recommendations for places to go next time we visit... any excellent live music venues or cocktail lounges? Delicious places to eat with vegetarian options?

All-in-all it was a good day. When we were getting ready to leave we realized we probably should have listened more carefully to the parking garage attendant, because the whole place was completely closed down and locked up. We circled the block several times trying to bust in before realizing that we could, in fact, go in the way we came out... if we pushed the little doorbell-style button by the door to be buzzed in. We can be such idiots sometimes. I blame the fact that we couldn't find a bottle of water in the entire city. How do those Canadians stay hydrated???

Anyway, back to the present/outfit: whenever I wear flats (usually only for the sake of "mixing it up") I immediately regret it and wish I had worn heels.

You know? Just sayin'.

(slip dress: UO; shorts/belt: Bargain Boutique; cardigan: Old Navy; moccasins: Minnetonka; scarf: F21; bracelet: gift from K)

Oh! Also--forgot to mention: K and I went to see SATC2 on Sunday evening and I loved it, of course. He even chuckled a few times. That evening was kind of foiled as well because we went to Monty's Brick Tavern to hear some of the live jazz they advertise as happening on Sunday (4:30-8 pm)... and it was silent in there! Not a sax or a drum set in sight! I was incredibly disappointed, mostly because it just felt wrong to go see the SATC movie without having a cosmopolitan at some point within the same 24 hours. I'm going to have to figure out what went wrong there... because I feel like I've been duped by some seriously false advertising.

Also, not twenty minutes into the movie a crazed looney of a man (I sensed extremely pent-up frustration of some sort) aggressively turned around and told the guy laughing loudly behind him to "Shut the f*ck up!" and stop ruining the movie for everyone. Needless to say, this was not that sort of crowd, and everybody jumped to the defense of the laughing-man, which only angered the looney more. He just kept yelling at the relatively unresponsive laughing-man until his date (that poor, poor woman... I pray they were not seriously involved) got up and dragged him out... but not before he leapt on the laughing man and attempted to punch him in the face.

...

Needless to say, I was horrified, and thanked my lucky stars for my wonderfully obliging boyfriend. I cannot believe some of the people who walk this planet.