pkondz
Brace yourself for immediate disintegration
- Joined
- Mar 9, 2007
Found Doris in Montreal
Once more unto the breach.
Hey look everyone! It's the never-ending TR!
A few of you were foolish enough to ask me
to write about Ruby's and my quick trip to Montreal.
So, since I am (and apparently you are)
a sucker for punishment...
I said yes.
Stupid of me, really.
But, well... here we go.
First a modicum of backstory
to inform and elucidate.
Redundancy is my middle name.
So is redundancy.
Ruby's job takes her places
once or twice a year.
Occasionally out of the country
(See: Just a silly little TR - Run away!)
but usually to places within Canada.
Ruby hates travelling alone.
So she usually asks me to go with her.
And I am usually more than happy to oblige.
It's pretty much a win, win, win, win situation.
Win #1. We get to travel to places for
1/2 the airfare and no cost accommodation.
Win #2. I go, so she's happy.
Win #3. She works during the day,
so I do whatever I want.
Win #4. After work, we do whatever she wants.
But there was this one time.
This time.
She was going to Montreal.
And I just wasn't feeling it.
I've been to Montreal a few times.
Once as a kid.
Once for work.
Once with a group of buddies.
Once with Ruby.
Once with Elle for a dance competition.
So I didn't really feel an extreme need to go,
you know?
Now it's not like I'm a Montreal expert,
indeed, far from it.
But... well...
Then Ruby looks at me with those baby blues of hers and...
So we're going to Montreal!
We leave June 14th and return on the 17th.
I didn't know it at the time,
but there was a big fringe benefit to that.
You want to know what it is?
I'll tell you at the end of the update, okay?
For now, we'll just continue on with our little tale.
Fair warning!
I didn't take any notes this time.
I wasn't sure if I was even going to write this
and I just didn't feel like it.
So be prepared for a certain.... sparseness
with the details.
Our WestJet flight was for June 14th at 9:50am.
A good time... and the only time to go.
Good, because it didn't involve waking up
at stupid o'clock in the morning.
And it just happened to be the only non-stop flight of the day.
So that pretty much settled that.
We got up, finished packing, threw the suitcase,
my laptop and a carry on in the trunk of the car
and zoomed off to the airport.
In our wake we left frozen food
and a stack of cash for the kids to survive on
in our absence.
Once we're out of the house,
they can fend for themselves.
All I ask is that we have a house
to come back to at the end of it.
Sometimes it happens.
We get to the airport, park the car,
and I ask Ruby (just to be safe)
if she has any liquids in the carry on.
"I don't have anything in the carry on." She says.
"I put everything in the suitcase."
Uh.... then why are we bringing it?
I just assumed she'd want a carry on,
but everything she needs is in her purse.
I empty out the two or three things from the carry on
and dump them in the suitcase or in the laptop bag.
The carry on stays in the trunk of the car.
Well that was easy.
We're already checked in (did that the previous day)
so all we have to do is dump off the suitcase,
which we do in short order, and get through security.
Or try to.
As I go through the metal detector,
I turn my head to check on Ruby.
A burly guard grabs my arm
and yanks me through.
Before I even know what's happening,
I'm slammed up against a pillar.
my feet are kicked apart
and my arms are pinned behind me.
I hear sirens going off.
A voice hisses in my ear.
"What are you looking at? What are you trying to hide?"
I stammer. "I... I... I was just checking on my wife!"
The sirens stop.
The guard releases me.
"Okay then. Well, have a nice flight. Off you go now."
Oh... wait....
Sorry.
Like I said.
I didn't take notes.
That didn't actually happen, now that I think of it.
For once, neither one of us sets off the metal detector
and we were through with plenty of time to spare.
Yeah. That's what happened.
I knew it was one of those two things.
You know. I could never work airport security.
At least not the person who looks at the X-rays.
There's no way I could keep my mouth shut.
"I read that book. It's really good!
Who'd have guessed the butler did it?!?"
"Is there a reason you have fur covered handcuffs ma'am?"
"Do stool softeners really work?"
"How much does a whip like that cost?"
"Good luck with those hemorrhoids!"
Since neither of us had eaten breakfast,
we grabbed some $tarbucks and settled in
to wait for boarding to start.
What goes up must come down.
What goes in must come out.
I decided that I'd rather it come out
while I was on the ground.
So I told Ruby I'd be back in a jiffy
and set out to find a restroom.
I had plenty of time.
They'd just called people with kids,
those seated in the exit rows,
those with good bladder control, etc.
I find the restroom and ...
there's a wait?
What?
I'm a dude.
I don't wait for restrooms!
That's... that's.... so female!
I left.
Gotta be another one around here.
It's an airport for Pete's sake.
And I did find one.
At the other end of the airport.
(Winnipeg International isn't that big.)
By the time I get back to Ruby,
she's got a panicked look in her eyes.
"I take it they called our section?" I ask.
She nods.
We board.
Easy.
I take one quick picture out the window
before we get this Boeing rolling.
That may not have been the right picture.
Or it might have.
Who knows.
No notes.
We take off initially heading west.
But after the pilot performs an Immelmann,
we're soon heading in the right direction.
About two and a half hours later,
we land in Montreal.
Our bag isn't first out of the gate,
but it's far from last, so... I'll call it a win.
But just once... Once!
I'd like my bag to be first.
I would grab it and smugly look at everyone else
with their vaguely panicked expressions
("Did my bag make it???")
as I march off in triumph.
You know you want to do that.
Yes. Yes you do.
Now normally, when we arrive in a new city,
the first thing we do is get our rental car.
But not this time.
Three reasons.
1. Her job will pay the cab fare to/from the hotel.
2. I only wanted a car for one day.
3. There was a rental place a short walk from the hotel.
(Saves on paying the airport rental fees.)
So we hopped in a cab and about
half an hour and $40 later we were at our hotel.
We were staying at the
Montréal Marriott Château Champlain Hotel
Ruth's conference was in a different hotel nearby,
but I guess that one was full or they got a better rate here.
Whatever.
Nice place. I didn't complain.
This is from the hotel website
(as is the above photo of the hotel)
but it's exactly what our room looked like
(well... before we messed it up, anyway.)
Different view, too.
Whatever.
Once we were settled in,
we decided to walk around and explore.
Fair warning, I didn't take many photos today.
Or the next day.
But the day after that I did!
We quickly noticed two differences
between Quebec and home.
1. A lot of people smoke.... A lot.
We've never seen so many people who smoke!
Maybe people here just don't care if they die young or not.
Or perhaps wheezing is their Provincial sport.
2. While there are a lot of smokers,
there are just as many people exercising.
Running, walking, bicycling, skateboarding, rollerblading.
A study in contrasts.
But other than that, it's the same.
No real differences at all.
That's it. Done.
Oh. And everything is in French.
By law.
So there's that, too.
We exited the hotel and walked alongside
a neighbourhood park.
At the end of the park we saw this imposing basilica.
It translates to Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral.
The thirteen statues on the roof
are patron saints of the 13 Montreal parishes
that donated them.
Makes you wonder if there are 14 parishes,
but one was stingy.
When we turned around
(after taking the photo)
I noticed an ad for Finding Dory.
Except it was an electronic ad
and by the time I actually looked at it,
it had changed to something else.
And when it came around again,
I burst out laughing.
Finding Doris????
(With the voice of Anne Dorval!! (who?))
When we got back home,
a few days later,
Elle was going to see Finding Dory.
Both Ruby and I immediately said.
"You mean Trouver Doris?"
For the next few days we were:
"Did you like Trouver Doris?"
"Kay, do you want to see Trouver Doris?"
"When is Trouver Doris playing?"
We continued our tour of the area
and Ruby contented herself
by popping into various shops
that looked intriguing.
Well to her.
I'm not one for shoe and clothing stores.
It was already afternoon and we were hungry.
I spotted Dunns deli and suggested we grab a bite.
Ruby was game.
We grabbed an outside table
ordered a couple of soft drinks
and some grub.
Ruby had some onion rings...
(she said they were good.)
...while I settled on
a hot dog poutine.
Sooooo good.
And good for you!
It's got something from each of
the four food groups.
Fries, gravy, cheese curds and a wiener.
What more could you possibly want???
We spent the rest of the afternoon popping
in and out of shoe stores, clothing stores,
clothing stores and clothing stores.
Oh, well. At least SWMBO was happy.
And truthfully, I was too.
We were together, relaxed and happy.
Not a bad combination.
She found some shoes and some clothes...
And didn't buy anything.
She likes to think about it first.
We could always come back later.
We would, too.
Eventually afternoon turned into evening,
and we returned to the hotel to freshen up.
She had to go check in for her conference too.
We decided that she'd do that and then grab a bite.
I wasn't particularly hungry... no idea why...
but Ruby was.
I had seen a place either on line or in a tour book
that looked interesting and not far away.
I suggested it and Ruby said it sounded good.
So we wandered over to Wienstein & Gavino's.
Wienstein & Gavino's is an Italian eatery located
on a fun, restaurant lined street.
We were led to a table by a window on the second floor.
The view inside:
(it was still early. It filled up as we sat.)
And the view outside:
We ordered some drinks.
Ruby got a Sangria and I had a special
that had grapefruit juice in it.
Wasn't bad, but Ruby's Sangria was one
of the best she's had.
One odd note about my drink.
I went to take a sip from the straw...
it's not a straw.
It's a long toothpick or skewer.
Nothing on it. Just a stick.
Odd drink décor.
We ordered food and it arrived fairly quickly.
Which is not what I was hoping for.
I still wasn't all that hungry.
I ordered the spaghetti bolognaise...
...while Ruby had a Margherita pizza.
She liked her pizza, although I found it odd
that the basil was one leaf in the middle
as opposed to torn and spread around.
Still, she said it was good.
My spaghetti unfortunately was just okay.
I make much better.
It was starting to get late
and with the entire nightlife of Montreal
at our disposal...
We went back to the hotel and rented a movie.
Well, it had been a long day.
And don't forget, Ruby has to work in the morning.
We tried to watch "Carol".
Cate Blanchett Oscar nominated for best actress,
Rooney Mara nominated best supporting actress,
nominations in cinematography, music, writing...
We only got about half way through it.
Boring!
I guess that explains all the nominations.
Anyway, that was our arrival and first day in Montreal.
I've prattled on enough for now.
I've got a busy day planned for tomorrow.
But I don't think it'll be what you expect.
And I'll be honest. You'll find it boring.
But the day after gets better, okay?
One last thing before I close out this update.
Remember earlier how I mentioned
going to Montreal had a fringe benefit?
A couple of days ago, I got my work schedule
for August/September.
I have leave booked from September 15 - 25.
Ruby's busy for parts of September, but...
"Any chance you can get some time off in September?" I ask.
She had brought home her schedule so we took a look.
"I can't go the first week of September." She starts.
"What about the week of the 19th?" I ask.
"I can do that." She says.
Sweet!
Now Ruby is not a Disney fan.
She'll tolerate it. But she doesn't like rides.
She doesn't like heat.
And she sure doesn't like getting up early for rope drop.
But that doesn't mean I'm not going to throw it out there.
"Well, how about a trip to Disney? Just for a few days?
We could check out Universal too. Maybe drive down to the Keys?"
She answers. "Well, you keep coming with me for work..."
Okay...
"So I guess I can go to Disney with you."
It gets... better.
Yesterday, I'm looking at rates and free dining vs discounts.
I clicked on a link and... hmmm....
Conversation from this morning:
Me: "Remember when I said we could drive down to the Keys?"
Her: <nods>
Me: "Well, you know how we've never been on a cruise?"
Her: <nods again>
Me: "There's a Disney 3 day cruise that leaves on the 16th.
It might be a good way to try it out. See if we like it."
She thought that was a good idea.
So we've gone from zero to HOLY CRAP in 24 hours.
Don't get too excited yet.
Not sure if we can find a flight to get us there before
the cruise departs.
Working on it.... working on it...
And just to tide you over.
Here's a recent photo of
two kitchen mooches pooches.
Once more unto the breach.
Hey look everyone! It's the never-ending TR!
A few of you were foolish enough to ask me
to write about Ruby's and my quick trip to Montreal.
So, since I am (and apparently you are)
a sucker for punishment...
I said yes.
Stupid of me, really.
But, well... here we go.
First a modicum of backstory
to inform and elucidate.
Redundancy is my middle name.
So is redundancy.
Ruby's job takes her places
once or twice a year.
Occasionally out of the country
(See: Just a silly little TR - Run away!)
but usually to places within Canada.
Ruby hates travelling alone.
So she usually asks me to go with her.
And I am usually more than happy to oblige.
It's pretty much a win, win, win, win situation.
Win #1. We get to travel to places for
1/2 the airfare and no cost accommodation.
Win #2. I go, so she's happy.
Win #3. She works during the day,
so I do whatever I want.
Win #4. After work, we do whatever she wants.
But there was this one time.
This time.
She was going to Montreal.
And I just wasn't feeling it.
I've been to Montreal a few times.
Once as a kid.
Once for work.
Once with a group of buddies.
Once with Ruby.
Once with Elle for a dance competition.
So I didn't really feel an extreme need to go,
you know?
Now it's not like I'm a Montreal expert,
indeed, far from it.
But... well...
Then Ruby looks at me with those baby blues of hers and...
So we're going to Montreal!
We leave June 14th and return on the 17th.
I didn't know it at the time,
but there was a big fringe benefit to that.
You want to know what it is?
I'll tell you at the end of the update, okay?
For now, we'll just continue on with our little tale.
Fair warning!
I didn't take any notes this time.
I wasn't sure if I was even going to write this
and I just didn't feel like it.
So be prepared for a certain.... sparseness
with the details.
Our WestJet flight was for June 14th at 9:50am.
A good time... and the only time to go.
Good, because it didn't involve waking up
at stupid o'clock in the morning.
And it just happened to be the only non-stop flight of the day.
So that pretty much settled that.
We got up, finished packing, threw the suitcase,
my laptop and a carry on in the trunk of the car
and zoomed off to the airport.
In our wake we left frozen food
and a stack of cash for the kids to survive on
in our absence.
Once we're out of the house,
they can fend for themselves.
All I ask is that we have a house
to come back to at the end of it.
Sometimes it happens.
We get to the airport, park the car,
and I ask Ruby (just to be safe)
if she has any liquids in the carry on.
"I don't have anything in the carry on." She says.
"I put everything in the suitcase."
Uh.... then why are we bringing it?
I just assumed she'd want a carry on,
but everything she needs is in her purse.
I empty out the two or three things from the carry on
and dump them in the suitcase or in the laptop bag.
The carry on stays in the trunk of the car.
Well that was easy.
We're already checked in (did that the previous day)
so all we have to do is dump off the suitcase,
which we do in short order, and get through security.
Or try to.
As I go through the metal detector,
I turn my head to check on Ruby.
A burly guard grabs my arm
and yanks me through.
Before I even know what's happening,
I'm slammed up against a pillar.
my feet are kicked apart
and my arms are pinned behind me.
I hear sirens going off.
A voice hisses in my ear.
"What are you looking at? What are you trying to hide?"
I stammer. "I... I... I was just checking on my wife!"
The sirens stop.
The guard releases me.
"Okay then. Well, have a nice flight. Off you go now."
Oh... wait....
Sorry.
Like I said.
I didn't take notes.
That didn't actually happen, now that I think of it.
For once, neither one of us sets off the metal detector
and we were through with plenty of time to spare.
Yeah. That's what happened.
I knew it was one of those two things.
You know. I could never work airport security.
At least not the person who looks at the X-rays.
There's no way I could keep my mouth shut.
"I read that book. It's really good!
Who'd have guessed the butler did it?!?"
"Is there a reason you have fur covered handcuffs ma'am?"
"Do stool softeners really work?"
"How much does a whip like that cost?"
"Good luck with those hemorrhoids!"
Since neither of us had eaten breakfast,
we grabbed some $tarbucks and settled in
to wait for boarding to start.
What goes up must come down.
What goes in must come out.
I decided that I'd rather it come out
while I was on the ground.
So I told Ruby I'd be back in a jiffy
and set out to find a restroom.
I had plenty of time.
They'd just called people with kids,
those seated in the exit rows,
those with good bladder control, etc.
I find the restroom and ...
there's a wait?
What?
I'm a dude.
I don't wait for restrooms!
That's... that's.... so female!
I left.
Gotta be another one around here.
It's an airport for Pete's sake.
And I did find one.
At the other end of the airport.
(Winnipeg International isn't that big.)
By the time I get back to Ruby,
she's got a panicked look in her eyes.
"I take it they called our section?" I ask.
She nods.
We board.
Easy.
I take one quick picture out the window
before we get this Boeing rolling.
That may not have been the right picture.
Or it might have.
Who knows.
No notes.
We take off initially heading west.
But after the pilot performs an Immelmann,
we're soon heading in the right direction.
About two and a half hours later,
we land in Montreal.
Our bag isn't first out of the gate,
but it's far from last, so... I'll call it a win.
But just once... Once!
I'd like my bag to be first.
I would grab it and smugly look at everyone else
with their vaguely panicked expressions
("Did my bag make it???")
as I march off in triumph.
You know you want to do that.
Yes. Yes you do.
Now normally, when we arrive in a new city,
the first thing we do is get our rental car.
But not this time.
Three reasons.
1. Her job will pay the cab fare to/from the hotel.
2. I only wanted a car for one day.
3. There was a rental place a short walk from the hotel.
(Saves on paying the airport rental fees.)
So we hopped in a cab and about
half an hour and $40 later we were at our hotel.
We were staying at the
Montréal Marriott Château Champlain Hotel
Ruth's conference was in a different hotel nearby,
but I guess that one was full or they got a better rate here.
Whatever.
Nice place. I didn't complain.
This is from the hotel website
(as is the above photo of the hotel)
but it's exactly what our room looked like
(well... before we messed it up, anyway.)
Different view, too.
Whatever.
Once we were settled in,
we decided to walk around and explore.
Fair warning, I didn't take many photos today.
Or the next day.
But the day after that I did!
We quickly noticed two differences
between Quebec and home.
1. A lot of people smoke.... A lot.
We've never seen so many people who smoke!
Maybe people here just don't care if they die young or not.
Or perhaps wheezing is their Provincial sport.
2. While there are a lot of smokers,
there are just as many people exercising.
Running, walking, bicycling, skateboarding, rollerblading.
A study in contrasts.
But other than that, it's the same.
No real differences at all.
That's it. Done.
Oh. And everything is in French.
By law.
So there's that, too.
We exited the hotel and walked alongside
a neighbourhood park.
At the end of the park we saw this imposing basilica.
It translates to Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral.
The thirteen statues on the roof
are patron saints of the 13 Montreal parishes
that donated them.
Makes you wonder if there are 14 parishes,
but one was stingy.
When we turned around
(after taking the photo)
I noticed an ad for Finding Dory.
Except it was an electronic ad
and by the time I actually looked at it,
it had changed to something else.
And when it came around again,
I burst out laughing.
Finding Doris????
(With the voice of Anne Dorval!! (who?))
When we got back home,
a few days later,
Elle was going to see Finding Dory.
Both Ruby and I immediately said.
"You mean Trouver Doris?"
For the next few days we were:
"Did you like Trouver Doris?"
"Kay, do you want to see Trouver Doris?"
"When is Trouver Doris playing?"
We continued our tour of the area
and Ruby contented herself
by popping into various shops
that looked intriguing.
Well to her.
I'm not one for shoe and clothing stores.
It was already afternoon and we were hungry.
I spotted Dunns deli and suggested we grab a bite.
Ruby was game.
We grabbed an outside table
ordered a couple of soft drinks
and some grub.
Ruby had some onion rings...
(she said they were good.)
...while I settled on
a hot dog poutine.
Sooooo good.
And good for you!
It's got something from each of
the four food groups.
Fries, gravy, cheese curds and a wiener.
What more could you possibly want???
We spent the rest of the afternoon popping
in and out of shoe stores, clothing stores,
clothing stores and clothing stores.
Oh, well. At least SWMBO was happy.
And truthfully, I was too.
We were together, relaxed and happy.
Not a bad combination.
She found some shoes and some clothes...
And didn't buy anything.
She likes to think about it first.
We could always come back later.
We would, too.
Eventually afternoon turned into evening,
and we returned to the hotel to freshen up.
She had to go check in for her conference too.
We decided that she'd do that and then grab a bite.
I wasn't particularly hungry... no idea why...
but Ruby was.
I had seen a place either on line or in a tour book
that looked interesting and not far away.
I suggested it and Ruby said it sounded good.
So we wandered over to Wienstein & Gavino's.
Wienstein & Gavino's is an Italian eatery located
on a fun, restaurant lined street.
We were led to a table by a window on the second floor.
The view inside:
(it was still early. It filled up as we sat.)
And the view outside:
We ordered some drinks.
Ruby got a Sangria and I had a special
that had grapefruit juice in it.
Wasn't bad, but Ruby's Sangria was one
of the best she's had.
One odd note about my drink.
I went to take a sip from the straw...
it's not a straw.
It's a long toothpick or skewer.
Nothing on it. Just a stick.
Odd drink décor.
We ordered food and it arrived fairly quickly.
Which is not what I was hoping for.
I still wasn't all that hungry.
I ordered the spaghetti bolognaise...
...while Ruby had a Margherita pizza.
She liked her pizza, although I found it odd
that the basil was one leaf in the middle
as opposed to torn and spread around.
Still, she said it was good.
My spaghetti unfortunately was just okay.
I make much better.
It was starting to get late
and with the entire nightlife of Montreal
at our disposal...
We went back to the hotel and rented a movie.
Well, it had been a long day.
And don't forget, Ruby has to work in the morning.
We tried to watch "Carol".
Cate Blanchett Oscar nominated for best actress,
Rooney Mara nominated best supporting actress,
nominations in cinematography, music, writing...
We only got about half way through it.
Boring!
I guess that explains all the nominations.
Anyway, that was our arrival and first day in Montreal.
I've prattled on enough for now.
I've got a busy day planned for tomorrow.
But I don't think it'll be what you expect.
And I'll be honest. You'll find it boring.
But the day after gets better, okay?
One last thing before I close out this update.
Remember earlier how I mentioned
going to Montreal had a fringe benefit?
A couple of days ago, I got my work schedule
for August/September.
I have leave booked from September 15 - 25.
Ruby's busy for parts of September, but...
"Any chance you can get some time off in September?" I ask.
She had brought home her schedule so we took a look.
"I can't go the first week of September." She starts.
"What about the week of the 19th?" I ask.
"I can do that." She says.
Sweet!
Now Ruby is not a Disney fan.
She'll tolerate it. But she doesn't like rides.
She doesn't like heat.
And she sure doesn't like getting up early for rope drop.
But that doesn't mean I'm not going to throw it out there.
"Well, how about a trip to Disney? Just for a few days?
We could check out Universal too. Maybe drive down to the Keys?"
She answers. "Well, you keep coming with me for work..."
Okay...
"So I guess I can go to Disney with you."
It gets... better.
Yesterday, I'm looking at rates and free dining vs discounts.
I clicked on a link and... hmmm....
Conversation from this morning:
Me: "Remember when I said we could drive down to the Keys?"
Her: <nods>
Me: "Well, you know how we've never been on a cruise?"
Her: <nods again>
Me: "There's a Disney 3 day cruise that leaves on the 16th.
It might be a good way to try it out. See if we like it."
She thought that was a good idea.
So we've gone from zero to HOLY CRAP in 24 hours.
Don't get too excited yet.
Not sure if we can find a flight to get us there before
the cruise departs.
Working on it.... working on it...
And just to tide you over.
Here's a recent photo of
two kitchen mooches pooches.
Last edited:
3 day weekends are great!
That would be so nice!
She must like you a lot.
bucket list the new poutine place at Disney springs keeps calling my name. When we were there in may, it wasn't open yet- it opened like 2/3 days later 
A blockbuster for sure!
I'm excited about this. 
Can I come too? I'm sure I only exceed the luggage weight limit by a few ounces..... 
