Montreal, Canada

I suggested that we take a road trip this time instead of flying somewhere.  I have nothing against flying but there is something freeing about a good road trip.  I'm not talking about the kind you do in a musty old camper.  That's not me.  But a drive along scenic routes in a new rental SUV is thing to look forward to. We settled on Montreal.  I also wanted to make sure the kids could take a 6-8 hour drive in one day if we were to ever visit East Coast beaches further than OBX.  We left NY after a breakfast of fruit, fought Manhattan traffic, and finally hit the open road.

After settling into our apartment, we took a walk to explore our neighborhood and buy staples for dinner.  The next morning we knew the little ones needed to stretch those legs so we spent most of the day at the Jardin Botanique de Montreal walking their manicured acres. Everyone's favorite was the Chinese Garden.  We even had a great lunch at the garden's cafe.  As a side note, if you ever visit the province of Quebec, you should partake in their roast chicken.  The boys, especially BB, love a good roast chicken and so do the French Canadians. Everywhere we went, delicious roast chickens were on the menu.

While at the Jardin Botanique, we also bought tickets to check out the Insectarium.  The space is small but filled with some great installations and the boys really had a great time.  At night, we took a quick trip to a nearby restaurant (La Banquise) for Montreal's best poutine.  I wasn't in love but C enjoyed it. Oh, and that was the beginning of the bottle cap collection.  BB and DD started trolling the streets for discarded bottle caps (lots in Montreal) that they wore as "badges."  BB's favorite was the rare Fentimans Curiosity Cola.