Montreal!!!

It hasn't been long since my last post, but I've been having a blast in Ottawa and Montreal.

I had a great time exploring Ottawa with my Uncle Glen for a couple days. We went on a tour of the parliament buildings, had incredible poutine, and watched the horse races (I lost $6). There was lots of wonderful food for the whole time I was there.

Looking across the Ottawa River to Quebec from Parliament Hill.

A yoga class on the lawn in front of the parliament buildings. Lululemon had set Rachel up to do fundraising at the class.

My first time doing yoga ... hard and relaxing at the same time!

Touristy Canadian moment.

Ottawa has an incredible network of bike paths. I was able to ride from 20km South of downtown to the waterfront without even having to cross a road! The paths were well maintained and wide enough that you could still use them if you were in a rush.

Entering Quebec!

I had a wonderfully happy moment on the bridge to Quebec. Parliament buildings in the background.

Once in Quebec I found myself on La Route Verte. This is an incredible bike path that runs from Gatineau to Gaspe (a really long ways!). I followed it from Gatineau to Laval, just North of Montreal. The path wandered on and off roads, along the shore of the Ottawa River, and through many neat little towns.

Canadian flags have been replaced with Canadiens flags and Fleur de Lis'.

It absolutely poured rain for my first day from Ottawa, but for some reason I was happy enough that I didn't care. I misunderstood French directions to a campsite near Grenville and spent that night camped behind a mini-storage. My bright orange and reflective tent is not so great for squatting! When I awoke in the morning, my shoes were still so wet that I didn't bother putting on dry socks. Again, the wonderful bike path (and better weather) had me in good spirits.


A section of La Route Verte.

Bike paths in Montreal. This is right downtown.

Yesterday in Montreal I had a wonderful day playing in a competitve beach volleyball game, going for a swim in the St Lawrence, and climbing. Later I spent my second night at the African Nights festival, dancing to drum music with some folks I met there. The African Nights and Just for Laughs festivals are happening in Montreal right now. Both are fun and free, but I've been spending the majority of my time at the African one ... better food and music! Today I explored the city by bike by going up to Mont Royal, down to old Montreal, around L'Isle de St. Helene, and doing some bouldering.

The African Nights festival. Awesome and completely free.

Downtown Montreal from Mont Royal.

Montreal and the St. Lawrence

The Museum of Biodiversity (this one's for you Dave!). I was too late to go in, but they had some pretty cool information outside.

This makes for rough riding.

I'd heard horrible things about the drivers in Quebec, and most of them are true. But there's a lot of respect for cyclists here ... after running stop signs, swerving, honking and yelling at each other, drivers slow down and give cyclists space on the road! Not a single car came close to me in the two hours that I was totally lost on my way to downtown Montreal.

Now it's back onto La Route Verte on my way to Quebec!

Dave