Au revoir

We arrived back in Montreal on Monday evening after more than eleven hours on the Adirondack train up the Hudson from Manhattan through such New York state highlights as Poughkeepsie and Schenectady. It is not like riding the dome car through the Rockies. Not to mention the hour plus time waiting at the border for inspection. And they don't even look in your bags!
So nice to be back in Montreal. We immediately noticed fewer people, less traffic and the air even felt lighter and smelled fresher, if you can believe it. Compared to midtown Manhattan, downtown Montreal seemed almost deserted. Tuesday we walked about Montreal watching for protests, found none where we were walking, although the metro orange line was shut down because of an occupation at Lionel Groulx station.
Wednesday we hiked up through the pleasant leafy streets of Mount Royal -- saw the Belvedere Kondiakor, like a big chalet, that overlooks the city from near the summit of the mountain -- then down the back side
and over to St. Laurent Blvd. to meet nephew Dan for lunch. A fantastic walk except for the couple of thunder clouds and brief rain storms we had to shelter from.



As we hiked through the park we were amazed at all the trilliums growing. What a beautiful site.



There were fields of them. Can you spot the uncommon pink ones?



Lunch was at Lawrence just down the block from Dan's office. He is working for a really exciting company called N/A. See their web site www.naisgood.com Check out what they do! It is exciting!
For lunch Norm had the dish I had thought about having - fiddleheads, leaks, Parmesan, beans and tomatoes. It was delicious. Sorry no picture. My cheese sandwich was also excellent. Dan's burger I think is posted on his page somewhere.



And last night we had dinner with Ineke and Lynn at Burger de Ville. Guess what they served -- burgers. They were some of the best burgers I've had. A quick walk around the block brought us to Kem CoBa, a delicious ice cream place named for the Montrealer man and his Vietnamese wife who make the ice cream and sorbets, and serve it to you. We had every kind from Chai, Nutella, Vanilla, Mango, chocolate and more. Next door was Fairmount bagels. Just had to check them out too. And then home to try and pack all the items we seem to have collected since arriving in Montreal. Success - got it all into two suitcases, sort of.
It has been a great trip. Looking forward to coming home to our cats and chickens and friends. See you soon.

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Location:Montreal airport

Leaving New York City

We leave New York City tomorrow. Today we spent the day in true New York style. We did what every New Yorker would do on a hot Sunday. We went to the markets, ate lunch at a side walk cafe, walked around Central Park, listen to jazz in the park, walked from 88 St to 34 st and more, then finished the day at McDonalds.



Peeking out under Bridge 28 in Central Park.




View from the reservoir looking into the city.



Jazz in the park.



How the rest of the city spent the day at the park with us.

We've enjoyed our time in the city. It is an incredible place. So much happening, so many sites, and so many sounds, smells and noises! Looking forward to coming back to Canada.



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Location:NYC

Markets

Today is market day. We managed to see four! We started with Hell's Kitchen at 10 am since we could walk from our hotel. Interesting items, some antiques, used "junk", many tourist t-shirts and jewelry. Next we rode the F traito downtown and under the East River to the Brooklyn flea market. This one was excellent. Both Norm and I managed to spend money. We started with pastries, doughnuts ($3 apiece, but 50 per cent bigger than any others) and fresh sweet pineapple for breakfast, then went shopping. This market had designer items, old stuff, lots of jewelry, good food, old postcards! And more. Lots of Brooklyn hipsters who make neat crafts. They even sold deep fried anchovies. I didn't try some so early in the day, maybe next time.






Off we walked into Brooklyn to Prospect Park and found another market. This one was more of a farmer's market selling plants, fresh breads, vegetables and some crafts. We bought MacIntosh apples here. The weather was seriously hot today and wanting to keep cool we walked through Prospect Park which was full of families everywhere. What a beautiful space. You've got to love green spaces!






Next on to the subway and back to Manhattan to the Hester Market. We got off the subway it seemed like we were in Times Square with the number of vendors and people. We were actually on Canal Street, known for its bargains. We quickly moved on through Chinatown and into a trendy cafe to grab a quick (well not so quick once we sat down) bite. The cafe was called Brown and the toasted wheat bread with smoked salmon and avocado with fresh salad we shared was delicious.
We are on to our fourth market of the day now. This one was quite small and sold nice upscale items. Not needing any products we decided to go for dessert. We shared a strawberry and whipped cream crepe.
By now my poor feet were getting sore since I had worn shoes yesterday that gave me a blister. But here was our chance to see downtown Manhattan. So off we headed down Broadway to Wall Street, passed the new One World Trade Center Tower (not finished yet, but as of two weeks ago, the tallest building in NYC) to the waterfront.



Our last stop was Battery Park where we could see the Statue of Liberty and the ferry to Staten Island. Sitting at the Beer Garden drinking a beer was the perfect way to end the day before the subway home.




We just have to tell you about the New York site we noticed just across from our hotel on 8th Avenue. We saw a couple of rats scurry out of the grates, into some garbage bags, take some food and back under the street. Welcome to New York City:)


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Location:Brooklyn and NYC

Two days in one

Free city tour is our morning destination. Norm has arranged a tour of mid town. We meet at Times Square after a refreshing vendor breakfast sitting in Bryant Park. Then for the next 2 1/2 hours we got an interesting look at Times Square, Rockefeller Center, Bryant Park, NewYork Public Library, Grand Central Terminal, MetLife Building (most expensive real estate), Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, St. Patrick's Cathedral, and 5th avenue. I am sure there was more but those are the highlights. The tour guide, Garett was entertaining and informative. Once finished, Norm and I checked out some of the spots we had only briefly seen in the tour - the NY Public Library and walk along 5th Avenue to Central Park.






Central Park was beautiful and the weather was perfect. Lots of walking! As we headed back to our room and seeing the line up for half price tickets for theater (TKTS) we decided to go right to the box office at the Jacobs Theatre and buy tickets for the musical show, Once.
Dinner was at a really nice restaurant at the Bryant Park. My meal was fresh rigatoni with grilled tomatoes, ricotta and rapini. Norm had a tasty dish of mushroom risotto, spinach, and some kind of "foam". It was really yummy. And of course dessert, hot chocolate cake with ice cream!
The show, Once was a great evening. Our seats were in the balcony and excellent views of the singing and dancing. The love story between an Irish male guitar player and the female Czech piano player. Live theatre in New York!
Since it was late when we got home, didn't finish till today........

This morning we tried oatmeal in the city with New York bagels, not bad. Then off we walked to Central Park and on to the Guggenheim Museum. On the way we stopped by the Dakota. When it was designed in 1880-84, the Dakota was way out west hence the name Dakota. It was New York's first luxury apartment and where Lauren Bacall, John Lennon, and Judy Garland have lived.



On to the park. It was wonderful. All of a sudden the noise level drops, and you'll find lush meadows, fantastic out cropping of rocks to climb on, lakes to row, thousands of trees and baseball diamonds. It is 843 acres. And today was a balmy 70' F.




The Guggenheim had an exhibit of James Chamberlain, a three dimensional abstract artist using car parts for his sculptures. They were amazing, mostly large and twisted metal, brightly coloured. The names of the pieces were equally unusual - Miss Lucy Pink or Lord Suckfist.








The building was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and finished after his death in 1959. The design is unique. We went up to the top by elevator and then slowly walked down the ramp looking at art as we descended. Nice!
With such a beautiful day we decided to eat (street vendor) as we walked to the other park- the High Line Park. What a great space. From the meat packing area to West Chelsea, raised railway lines have been transformed into walkway above the traffic. It is one continuos garden pathway. An oasis in the busy city.







We were surprised as to how many people were walking there on a Friday afternoon. Now we had to walk home. I guess we could have taken the subway but the weather was so nice we didn't want to be underground. Our sore feet got us home for a rest then we went out for a snack. And since it is Friday night we thought we should see what is happening at Times Square. We saw Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Batman, Captain America, Hello Kitty, Statue of Liberty, Naked Cowboy, a wedding proposal, and more all in the square. New York has it all!



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Location:Midtown NewYork

Dumbo

Attached to our hotel is a restaurant, the Tick Tock Diner. It must seat well over 100 and this morning it was full. What an experience watching the crowds of mostly tourists get their day going. When you get your bill they hand you a card explaining the amounts expected for tips - 15%, 20% or more. The first time there, the waiter checked at the cash register to make sure Norm hadn't forgotten a tip!
After breakfast we checked out the subway, efficient, pretty easy to figure out but not the cleanest place. We headed to the Tenement Museum in the Lower East Side, got tickets for a 3 o'clock tour and since it was only 11 we had time to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. It was completed in 1883, the longest suspension bridge and the first to be constructed of steel. The cables consist of 19 strands of steel wire bound together and compressed into one cylinder. Really cool except there is huge amount of construction going on right now so it's not so perfect to look at.




On the other side of the bridge is Brooklyn and the area below it is called Dumbo - Down Under Manhattan Bridge Overpass, of course. Saw a bit maybe too much of the industrial area but managed to wander through some gentrified parts and had excellent pizza at the Dumbo Kitchen. We caught the subway back to Bleeker street to Cones for delicious gelato. Pizza, coke, and ice cream - my 3 favorite foods!
We got back just in time for the tour, Hard Times. A really good chance to see firsthand a four-storey apartment block that was mostly unchanged from the 1870s when a German family of five (the Gompertzes) lived in three rooms and later in the 1920s and '30s an Italian family of four (the Baldizzis) lived in another apartment. Living conditions were harsh and families worked hard to survive.
Needing to walk again we started home, first going to Washington Square. The sun came out and so did the people to enjoy this beautiful green space in the city. This park was once a cemetery and when excavation began they exhumed 10,000 skeletal remains. The marble arch completed in 1895 was built to mark the centenary of George Washington's inauguration.




You actually see the Empire State building through the arch. Neat eh! We walked along Fifth Avenue to the Flatiron building. What an awesome sight! Really amazing how it sits there, where Broadway angles through the right-angle street grid of the city.



Originally the Flatiron was named the Fuller building after the construction company that owned it and was the tallest building in the world when completed in 1902. It became known as the Flatiron for its unusual triangular shape.
Right next door is Eataly, an Italian restaurant. But this is unlike any restaurant you've ever been to. It is huge with many different eating areas for you to choose from -- coffees, desserts, seafood, meat, pizza, pasta.... And I am sure more. We went to the pasta/pizza section. Wonderful fresh pasta, Italian bread and a glass of wine. Life is good!
Then the remaining 15 blocks home. It felt good to be back and put our feet up.



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Location:Brooklyn

New York

We discovered New York today. First we climbed 69 floors to the observation level of the Rockefeller Centre (by elevator; we walked up stairs on the last two). Even though it was a little cloudy, it wasn't raining. Amazing views from more than 700 feet up in the air! On such a grey day, the only splashes of color seemed to be the numerous Yellow cabs on the streets below.



In the distance, that's the Empire State Building, built in the early 1930s and until last week, the tallest building in New York. Then the builders of One World Trade Centre stuck a piece of steel on top which put it just over the ESB. It will top out at 1,776 feet -- see three pictures down.
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Here is Central Park from up on Rockefeller Center, as big as Stanley Park but surrounded on four sides by buildings. That's Fifth Avenue running up the right side of the park, chock a block with museums.


The Rockefeller Centre -- yes, that's 30 Rock -- is an amazing art deco building built between 1931-1940. Actually, it's a grouping of several buildings, including Radio City Music Hall and NBC studios, where they produce the Today show and Saturday Night Live.


A circle tour of Manhattan by boat was next on our agenda. It was an excellent way to see the city. The Circle Line boat left from a dock in midtown near our hotel and circled Manhattan island counterclockwise, down the Hudson, past Battery Park at the bottom, out to near Ellis Island and a sail past of the Statue of Liberty. (They sure do love their symbols here, the George Clooney-sounding guide talked about her as "Our Lady" several times.)



Then we headed up the East River, under the famed Brooklyn Bridge and 19 other steel suspension, swing and lift bridges, plus one disused aqueduct that used to bring water into New York, now obsolete since a massive miles-long tunnel has been bored deep through the rock.
A trip along the New York shoreline also shows how real is that symbol of New York, the round conical-roofed water tank. They are everywhere and made necessary because even the huge tunnel under New York can't deliver the water pressure to push it higher than 90 feet.


New One World Trade Center.



Chrysler building and the United Nations.


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Location:New York City

A Multimodal Day from Gibsons to Abbotsford

We left Gibsons today in the pouring rain. But the experts say sun is on its way! Before catching the ferry, Norm wanted to check out Camp Elphinstone where he was a camp counsellor almost 48 years ago.





It's still there! We had barely set foot in the camp when we asked what our business was by "security" people. A quick look about and off we headed to the ferry.
Caught the ferry from Langdale to Horseshoe Bay, then biked Marine Drive to West Vancouver. What a beautiful drive! Marine Drive twists up and down through rain forests and to the sea. Narrow roads and no bike lanes made it a little difficult at times but drivers are mostly polite. Once we got to the commercial district of West Van it was hectic. Fortunately Norm found a bike path along Ambleside park, Hollyburn Sailing Club and under the Lions Gate Bridge. What a relief from the busy highway. In the picture below, you can see the bridge beyond the trees, and the Capilano River that runs through the Musqueam reserve, and divides West from North Vancouver.




We stopped for lunch at the Daisy Cafe in a business district in North Van. What a treat. Yummy home made soup and panini. Got directions to the Seabus terminal for the next mode of transportation. We arrived via the Seabus at the Vancouver Waterfront Station. Used the elevator to get to the main floor. Then not wanting to bike through the city and out the traffic-clogged Lougheed Highway, we took the train out the valley to Mission on the West Coast Express.







It's wonderful being able to put your bikes on the train and relax on a really smooth ride for just over an hour. It was all we could do not to fall asleep. Mission is where I was born. And where I left the day after I graduated at age 17. So deciding to get back on our bikes and head to Abbotsford was a great idea. The sun came out and the wind almost pushed us across the Mission bridge. Biking on flat roads with wide shoulders made the trip easy until the last long steep hill heading to our accommodations for the night. There is such a feeling of accomplishment when you think you won't make it and then you're there! Yeah! Today 28 1/2 miles.
So we went by bike, ferry, Seabus, elevator, train, and foot to get to Abbotsford today. Tomorrow USA.

Location:Abbotsford

Dandelions and graduation

You do miss home cooked meals when you are traveling for a while. So it wonderful when you find a restaurant that makes good food. This morning we headed away from town looking for Walgreens and accidentally came upon the Spot, a Pacific 66 garage turned into a surf themed bistro. Burlington is not on the ocean so surfing isn't that common here. The owner, Russ Scully came from the west coast and decided to honour surfing in his eatery. Norm had crab cake eggs Benedict with fresh fruit. I had granola, yogurt and fresh fruit. So good!




Norm had planned to catch a collectors show in Essex Junction where he just might find some old postcards today but getting there proved too difficult. Buses don't run on Sunday. So instead we walked from Burlington to Winooski, about 3-4 miles. The weather was perfect. We got to see the Winooski's falls, have a bite to eat and then walked all the way back to our motel.




One thing we have noticed walking around here that there are thousands of dandelions, everywhere. We even talked with a fellow bus passenger about why there were so many. No real answer but maybe not using pesticides has made a difference. I think the answer is to find beauty in the dandelions!




Tonight we decided to have nice dinner and celebrate Norm passing his last exam towards his degree! He officially graduates this June with a Bachelor of Arts! We went to the Leunig's Bistro and had an outstanding feast. Norm had Spring Pea Bisque (bacon, sweet peas, leeks, creme fraiche) and Oysters Trio (6 cornmeal dredged & fried, 4 Rockerfeller and 4 raw with champagne mignonette). I had Grilled Halibut crusted with pineapple tomato pesto served with polenta fries and arugula salad with hearts of palm, gooseberries, dates, almonds, mango, avocado, papaya with a coconut balsamic vinaigrette. Delicious.
We shopped for snacks for our train trip to New York Monday morning. The local co-op grocery, City Market was perfect. Norm was in awe of the bulk food section. He counted 45 bins for granola! I think that is a record.
Tonight we are in New York City. Left Burlington at 6:45 am,walked to town, caught a bus to Essex Junction and by 9 am were heading to NY. It was a 9 1/2 hour train trip but we got to see a lot of the country along the way. Once we checked into our room we did a walk about. We found Times Square, Rockefeller Centre, Saks 5th Ave, the New York Times building and many people. Norm says by the time our week in up we will not longer feel like country bumpkins and stop staring up all the time.

Location:Burlington, Vermont

The Bel-Aire

We found the busiest breakfast place in Middlebury, Bagels & Deli. So busy we couldn't find a table to sit at but with so many people we figured it had to be good. And it was.
After breakfast we explored more of Middlebury. Norm wanted to see Middlebury College, a pretty hilltop campus right in town, and the main reason for the town's existence these days. At the Marble Works, where they once cut up marble into slabs and blocks, we found a local market selling everything from eggs to cinnamon buns, plants to bird houses.
We packed up and drove by back roads to Essex Junction to find the train station. So here we are trying to find a place to stay, figure out how to get back to catch a train Monday morning, drop off the car at Burlington airport by 1.30 and find a bus back to Burlington. I drive, Norm navigates. There are times when we don't always agree on the "interpretation" of the map. It is now 1.25 and we have just disagreed on an airport directional sign. Norm says go right and we see the rental office, but it is closed. We go back and follow my direction which prompted Norm to say, "you were right, Mary." Got to the airport at 1:30, dropped the car, caught a bus into Burlington and found a great pedestrian-friendly happening downtown. "You were right, Norman."
We checked out the shops, bookstores, pottery stores, pewter and art galleries.




Lots of musicians, food vendors, and university students. Not quite ready for our Bel-Aire motel, 20 minutes from downtown, we went to a movie and saw the French sub-titled, A Kidwith a Bike. It was quite good. And here we are relaxing in our convenient motel. We'll let you know tomorrow how well it works out. (I did check for bedbugs and saw none).

Location:Burlington, Vermont

Irene and Vermont

The Grind is where we started our day in Woodstock. It is a coffee shop and I had an excellent breakfast of oatmeal full of dried cranberries!
Before leaving Woodstock we took a quick detour to see the Billings Farm & Museum - Gateway to Vermont's Rural Heritage. We just didn't have enough time to take the $12 tour. The museum is run by the Woodstock Foundation, a charitable, nonprofit institution founded by Mary and Laurance Rockefeller. Yes the same Rockefellers of New York. (This was their summer place, cooler than the muggy big city in August.)"
So instead of the tour, Norm had a moment with the Jerseys. Cute girls aren't they?



Then off we went to Ottaquechee where we heard there were 450 vendors at an antique mall. There might have been that many but we left with nothing, not even one postcard. But on our way back we stopped to check out the Quechee Gorge. Now that was impressive!


The bridge crosses the Quechee river and we walked across to see just how far down it goes. Norm says it is about 400 feet.
We headed south to Weston, home of Vermont's Famous General Store. What a place! It goes on and on and on. You can find everything there. And the town is again so well maintained and beautiful.



This old water mill was built in 1780 and actually was a saw mill with a tinsmith sharing the building, as the sign says. There are many old buildings in Vermont, amazing how well some have lasted. We headed towards our final destination for the day, but on the way we stopped for coffee at Brandon. All along our travels we have seen the devastation done by Hurricane Irene last August. Roads were washed out, homes pushed off their foundations, and rivers overflowed their banks leaving trees, rocks and debris everywhere, but Brandon was something else.




This is a picture just a few feet off the main street, where a pizza joint used to stand. The force of all that water punched it out of the way and undermined the foundations of the brick building on the right, a tavern, now closed as big cracks opened up the masonry. Runoff spilled across the street and undercut the foundations of several more buildings, before flowing back into its usual channel. These 18th century towns across Vermont are vulnerable as the founders picked sites along streams and rivers to provide water power for early industry. Even neat and tidy Woodstock was still cleaning up flood messes from nine months ago and rebuilding the stream banks. Some bridges are still waiting for repairs.
Now it's Friday night and we are staying in Middlebury, another of town where the river runs through it, and a much bigger one than Brandon's stream. Middlebury used water power to saw marble into slabs for shipment via railway to the northeast's big cities. Stone is everywhere here, and many towns still use lengths of stone, not concrete, for curbs along the streets. We've even seen slabs of marble used for sidewalks in or two villages, odd-shaped leftovers that weren't good enough to ship to the cities.
We are staying at the Middlebury Inn, one of the historic hotels of America. It is within walking distance to town and when we arrived we got to have afternoon tea. Not quite the same level as the Empress. Here you help yourself to tea, coffee, cookies, lemon slice, coconut scones or brownies. But it was yummy at 5pm in the afternoon. Norm even got a HUG (hotel up grade) so we are in a suite, pretty nice. We then explored a bit of the town, had some American flatbread (pizza). Now to relax and see if we can find anything on the tv related to Canada.

Location:Middlebury

Ice cream for lunch

Breakfast at the Bee's Knees and on the road heading south. First stop after leaving Morrisville was Stowe. Check out the covered bridge just for for pedestrians.




Driving in Vermont is such a chance to travel back in time. The houses are from the 1800's and have such wonderful porches and dormers. And there are virtually no tourists here.
Now Norm and I have a philosophy about travel. It stems from a friend who biked all the way to the end of PEI and didn't want to spend the $5 to see the Potato Museum. We figure if you have gone all this way, spend the money and go for it. So we did just that. Ben and Jerry's tour in Waterbury was worth it! And guess what only $3 for seniors! Not only a tour but a free sample - vanilla with chocolate chunks and crispy wafers. But why stop there, we had a full cone before leaving. I had the New York chocolate chunk - white and dark chocolate with almonds, walnuts and pecan, so good. Norm had cinnamon swirl, a test flavor which may not make it to market.




So that was lunch. Next to the state capital of Montpelier and a drive into the hills to check out the Green Mountain Rug Hooking store at Maple Corners. Just had to get a bit of fabric for the rug I am making.
Norm found covered bridges on the map and although we missed them at first, we turned around after asking directions and saw 3 bridges right near each other at Northfield Falls, and not a soul in sight! It's easy to miss some of the sights as there are historic markers, signs and heritage bits and pieces all over. We zipped right by the birthplace of Joseph Smith, founder of Mormonism, and I don't think we'll see the birthplace of Chester A. Arthur, a former U.S. president, either. Calvin Coolidge's hometown (home hamlet, really) might be on tomorrow's route.


Our last stop was to get to Woodstock before the day was gone so we resorted to using the freeway for part of the drive. Then Norman finds a short cut......shorter, I am not sure but we did see some Vermont countryside off the beaten track on a gravel road. I was sure we were lost but yes, Norman you were right!
Wow Woodstock is a lovely picturesque town. Walked about, found an inn, had a meal and went back to our room overlooking the river to relax. So tasteful it almost makes your teeth hurt. That's Norman being a bit sarcastic. Vermont is a tidy state and scenic too. We like the place, and its towns and villages founded in colonial times, usually on a river since water powered sawmills, gristmills and textile mills. Even now you see small hydro power dams along rivers, turning out electricity today. Tomorrow, less ice cream and on to the famous Vermont Country Store.

Location:Woodstock, Vermont

The holiday begins, again

We have left Montreal! Had a good time visiting family and friends but it was time to move on.
You may recall that we didn't quite have the next part of our journey figured out. Well it has now fallen into place. We purchased train tickets to Plattsburgh, New York. Up early this morning and after 3 1/2 hours on the train we arrived in Plattsburgh. We rented a car and headed to Vermont. What a great feeling to be on the road not really knowing where we are going. I drive while Norm gives directions. Took the ferry across Lake Champlain, named for Samuel de Champlain, founder of Canada!




That's our black Chevy Impala in the picture. Weather is getting nicer and you can see Norm - no sweater!




We had a great time driving the back roads to Morrisville where we had a wonderful dinner at the Bees Knees CSR (community supported restaurant).




Dinner was roast chicken and Gouda mashed potatoes for Norm and a hamburger for Mary, very delicious home-style cooking. Vermont is such a fascinating little place, hamlets and villages in the hills everywhere, and every second business seems to involve antiques and collectibles. Lots of new age therapists, progressive thinkers and writers abound. Tomorrow we're going back to the BK for breakfasts, and to pick up some non-antique gifties -- Vermont peanut butter and maple syrup. Okay Quebec is full of the sweet stuff, but we'll compare and contrast the syrup from here. Vermont is the biggest maple syrup producer in the U.S. They don't grow peanuts here yet, but they make a variety of flavoured peanut butter. Chocolate sounds good for starters, don't you think?

Location:Morrisville, Vermont