10 Years
It is hard to believe, but last Friday Gideon and I celebrated our 10 year wedding anniversary. Since we have a very big trip coming up in July, we decided to stay closer to home and visit Montreal. We had heard a lot of good things about it, and while it didn’t quite live up to its expectations we still had fun.
The girls did great on the drive up, which gives me hope for our July trip. Upon arrival, we found out just how hard it is to find parking downtown. After parking, we exchanged some money and then went to the information center. I knew where we wanted to go, but we needed a map to help us get around.
We had a quick (and expensive lunch) and then headed off to Old Montreal. We were going to take a bus, but we found out that the buses in Montreal are not very reliable, so we ended up walking. Old Montreal is very touristy with souvenir shops and expensive eating places.
We were all getting tired at this point, so we decided to check out Mount Royal. It is a city park designed by the same person who did Central Park in NYC. We took the Metro, but there was still a several block walk to the park. Again there wasn’t much to keep the girls occupied, so we didn’t stay long.
We headed back to our car to find our hotel. The parking garage we had found was surprisingly close to our hotel. It still took over 30 minutes to get to the hotel though in rush hour traffic. After getting checked-in, we set out for dinner. The area around our hotel (Latin Quarter) was much more European than Old Montreal. We quickly noticed a theme at all of the restaurants, expensive meals. We found a place to eat and then headed back to the hotel to rest.
On Thursday, we had promised the girls activities that would keep them more interested. First we headed to the Biodome. It is a habitat based zoo/botanical garden. It was a unique experience. We had a lot of fun looking for all of the animals. Malia loved spotting animals and saying “Look Daddy.” We were able to get really close to some of the animals.
Very much like me, the girls are very clumsy. We had a lot of tumbles and trips. At one point while I was comforting Hadley from rolling down a hill (accidently), Gideon walked Malia face first into a tree. Even though we left with two skinned knees and a black eye, we all had a lot of fun.
My plan for the afternoon was to visit the Science Center. When Gideon tried to buy tickets though, we were told that the Science Center is mainly geared for older kids and teenagers. There would be very little for the girls to do. The lady at the information center had mentioned the Biosphere, so we decided to check it out. While there wasn’t a lot for the girls to do there, it did have a great water room where the girls had a blast.
On our way home on Friday, we stopped at Parc Safari. Parc Safari is one of our favorite places to visit each summer. We went straight to the Safari Adventure, only stopping to feed the giraffes. It is always so much fun to feed the different animals. Malia wasn’t as excited as I expected. Instead, she was more interested in making sure the animals didn’t get her carrots and celery.
After the Safari Adventure, we had some vegetables left, so we fed the giraffes some more. Then we headed into the zoo. The girls still love climbing on the statue animals, and I love seeing the lions in the tunnel enclosure.
As we were finishing up the day by the Deer Run, Hadley scraped off a scab, which promptly started bleeding. We ended up calling the first aid station for a band-aid. Hadley got the royal treatment from the medics.
Even though we ended the trip with a few injuries and it wasn’t what we expected, it was still fun. And whenever we think back on our 10 year anniversary, we will remember spending time together, having fun, and maybe even a few of the bumps and bruises.
The girls did great on the drive up, which gives me hope for our July trip. Upon arrival, we found out just how hard it is to find parking downtown. After parking, we exchanged some money and then went to the information center. I knew where we wanted to go, but we needed a map to help us get around.
We had a quick (and expensive lunch) and then headed off to Old Montreal. We were going to take a bus, but we found out that the buses in Montreal are not very reliable, so we ended up walking. Old Montreal is very touristy with souvenir shops and expensive eating places.
Notre Dame Basilica
Malia fell asleep on the way to Old Montreal
Her new pose for all pictures
Playing at Mount Royal
We headed back to our car to find our hotel. The parking garage we had found was surprisingly close to our hotel. It still took over 30 minutes to get to the hotel though in rush hour traffic. After getting checked-in, we set out for dinner. The area around our hotel (Latin Quarter) was much more European than Old Montreal. We quickly noticed a theme at all of the restaurants, expensive meals. We found a place to eat and then headed back to the hotel to rest.
On Thursday, we had promised the girls activities that would keep them more interested. First we headed to the Biodome. It is a habitat based zoo/botanical garden. It was a unique experience. We had a lot of fun looking for all of the animals. Malia loved spotting animals and saying “Look Daddy.” We were able to get really close to some of the animals.
Very much like me, the girls are very clumsy. We had a lot of tumbles and trips. At one point while I was comforting Hadley from rolling down a hill (accidently), Gideon walked Malia face first into a tree. Even though we left with two skinned knees and a black eye, we all had a lot of fun.
The bird greeted us as we entered
American porcupine
Olympic Stadium
My plan for the afternoon was to visit the Science Center. When Gideon tried to buy tickets though, we were told that the Science Center is mainly geared for older kids and teenagers. There would be very little for the girls to do. The lady at the information center had mentioned the Biosphere, so we decided to check it out. While there wasn’t a lot for the girls to do there, it did have a great water room where the girls had a blast.
Seeing how much water it takes to fill a bathtub
City view from inside the Biosphere
Malia's turn to haul water
Walking on water
On our way home on Friday, we stopped at Parc Safari. Parc Safari is one of our favorite places to visit each summer. We went straight to the Safari Adventure, only stopping to feed the giraffes. It is always so much fun to feed the different animals. Malia wasn’t as excited as I expected. Instead, she was more interested in making sure the animals didn’t get her carrots and celery.
After the Safari Adventure, we had some vegetables left, so we fed the giraffes some more. Then we headed into the zoo. The girls still love climbing on the statue animals, and I love seeing the lions in the tunnel enclosure.
As we were finishing up the day by the Deer Run, Hadley scraped off a scab, which promptly started bleeding. We ended up calling the first aid station for a band-aid. Hadley got the royal treatment from the medics.
Even though we ended the trip with a few injuries and it wasn’t what we expected, it was still fun. And whenever we think back on our 10 year anniversary, we will remember spending time together, having fun, and maybe even a few of the bumps and bruises.
posted by Melissa at
3:46 PM
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