Since driving across Canada, we have slowed down a bit and are enjoying a break from travelling. We arrived into Montreal in mid September and are staying with family, having regular showers and appreciating indoor plumbing! We spent a few days exploring Montreal, using transit, the Metro, and even renting Bixi bikes to cruise around looking at the gorgeous murals.
We explored multuple neighbourhoods, enjoyed lots of great food, including some authentic bagels, and smoked meat sandwiches! We had lots of fun getting lost and exploring Mont Royal Park, Old Port, and using the metro! The weather was great, warm and sunny and we ate our way around town.
After Montreal, we loaded up in the truck and headed north to the Laurentians where we had booked an AirBnB near Joilette to spend a few days in the fall colours and some time to unwind. We timed it perfectly and really got to see tons of colours, from yellow to gold, from orange to maroon, it was a spectactular! We had access to a canoe and kayak and were right beside a nice little river where we could paddle for hours.
Nearby our AirBnB was a Monastary, the l’Abbaye Val Notre-Dame which is famous for its beautiful walking trails and amazing fall colours. The Monks there have made a vow of silence, and their gorgeous property was easy to lose our words over.
After our relaxing time at the AirBnB and the Abbey, it was a nice thanksgiving with family back in Montreal, where we enjoyed a turkey dinner with all the trimmings. We had a great time catching up with family and tons of delicious food. We wrapped up the meal and started packing for our next trip, where we took the VIA train to Quebec City for the week ahead.
We had an incredible time in Ville de Quebec and had wonderful fall weather while we were there. We stayed right in the old town, near the wall, and walked thousands of steps every day, exploring almost every street downtown.
We had one special night planned for Quebec City, a delayed anniversay dinner from earlier in our summer. Quebec City is a special place for us, as it is where we got engaged here over 10 years ago, and also visited again for our 5th anniversary! We love the revolving restaurant there and had a delicous and romantic meal as we watched the city below us.
The rest of our time in Quebec was equally great, with a visit to the National Art Gallery, as well as a open top bus tour around the city. We saw two protests while we were there, and lots of good buskers playing traditional Quebec music.
We have a lot more photos of Quebec City: Click Here
We have more photos of Montreal and the Laurentians here:
Finally, here is a short video of some of our highlights and explorations from all over Quebec: