We spent Labour Day weekend (+ Friday) in Montréal and tried to take in as much as possible during our short time there; we saw some sights, met up with some friends, and just enjoyed the city in general!
Montréal
After arriving in Montréal on Friday, we decided to explore Old Montréal, which wasn't too far from our hotel. While we were there, we visited the Montréal Science Centre as well as the Pointe-à-Callière museum of archaeology and history. Both were great, but we were especially pleased with the introductory multimedia video at Pointe-à-Callière because it provided a great overview of the history of the city from the very beginning.
The next day, we visited the Biodome, the Olympic Park, and the Botanical Gardens. The Biodome is an indoor facility that recreates various ecosystems including a tropical rainforest, a maple forest, the Gulf of St. Lawrence, the Labrador Coast, and Sub-Antarctic Islands. It is similar to a zoo, except visitors actually walk through the various ecosystems and the animals don't seem as restricted as a typical zoo. Obviously our favourite part about the Biodome was seeing all of the animals close up, and Luke even had some fun with a penguin who was trying to grab his camera through the glass; it was one of our favourite places we visited.
Then we went to the Olympic Tower, which is next to the Biodome. It is the tallest inclined tower in the world, and was constructed for the 1976 Olympic Games, hosted in Montréal. Visitors take a funicular to the top, and are provided with a 360 degree view of the city. Unfortunately, the weather was slightly overcast when we visited, so the downtown area wasn't completely clear. It was a great view nonetheless!
Then we visited the Botanical Gardens, where they were hosting a special exhibit called Mosaïcultures internationales 2013. It was comprised of approximately 50 horticultural works created by artists from 25 countries. The gardens were extremely busy, so we tried to weave in and out of the crowded parts of the gardens, and take some time to enjoy the nature. All of the works were incredible.
Our third day was full of museum-going in the downtown area. We visited the Canadian Centre for Architecture, the Musée des beaux-arts, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, the McCord Museum, and the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal. Out of those museums, we were especially surprised by the McCord Museum as we didn't know what to expect.
We showed up at the museum fairly late in the day and only managed to take in two of the three exhibits; Wearing our Identity: The First Peoples Collection, and From Philadelphia to Monaco: Grace Kelly - Beyond the Icon. Wearing our Identity explained the meaning behind many traditional First Nations, Inuit, and Métis garments, and allowed us to learn about the impact that their culture and heritage had, and still have, on their clothing. The garments themselves can communicate messages about a person's social, cultural, political, and spiritual identity. Grace Kelly was also a enjoyable exhibit, and as it was an audio tour it was a great way to take a break from reading, which can be intensive at museums.
In between museums, we decided to sit down in a park in downtown Montréal, called Dorchester Square. While we were there, we noticed that there were a few people wearing latex suits that were being photographed by one of the monuments. We thought it was a bit unusual, but before we knew it, the park was flooded with people who were either wearing latex costumes, taking professional photographs of people in latex costumes, or both. We didn't take any pictures, but the images will be in our minds forever... After a quick Google, we just discovered that last weekend was Montreal Fetish Weekend, which would definitely explain it.
We showed up at the museum fairly late in the day and only managed to take in two of the three exhibits; Wearing our Identity: The First Peoples Collection, and From Philadelphia to Monaco: Grace Kelly - Beyond the Icon. Wearing our Identity explained the meaning behind many traditional First Nations, Inuit, and Métis garments, and allowed us to learn about the impact that their culture and heritage had, and still have, on their clothing. The garments themselves can communicate messages about a person's social, cultural, political, and spiritual identity. Grace Kelly was also a enjoyable exhibit, and as it was an audio tour it was a great way to take a break from reading, which can be intensive at museums.
In between museums, we decided to sit down in a park in downtown Montréal, called Dorchester Square. While we were there, we noticed that there were a few people wearing latex suits that were being photographed by one of the monuments. We thought it was a bit unusual, but before we knew it, the park was flooded with people who were either wearing latex costumes, taking professional photographs of people in latex costumes, or both. We didn't take any pictures, but the images will be in our minds forever... After a quick Google, we just discovered that last weekend was Montreal Fetish Weekend, which would definitely explain it.
Dorchester Square
Then on Monday, we took some time to explore the Plateau - Mont Royal area. We visited Mont Royal park, and were interested to find out that it was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, who also designed Central Park! The view from the top of Mont Royal is usually pretty impressive, but we encountered some fog, yet again. Although we were lucky because it was supposed to be rain and thunderstorms all day, but that didn't start until the evening; so we could still walk around comfortably during the day. Unfortunately, the thunderstorms and heavy rain later on did cause a "red alert" at the airport, so our flight back to St. John's was delayed 2 hours.
Overall, the weekend was a lot of fun. Even though Elizabeth completed two work terms in Montreal a couple of years ago, we still managed to see a bunch of things that were new to her as well. Luke enjoyed his first time in Montréal and got to try some Quebec delicacies such as smoked meat and poutine.
Plus, a tip for anyone who plans to visit Montréal - the Montréal Museum Pass is worth it if you want to take in a few museums. The 3 day Museum Pass costs $80 per person and includes access to 38 museums, an unlimited 3 day public transit pass (including airport transfers), as well as additional coupons. We visited 8 attractions that were part of the deal and ended up saving $72.50 each! It's absolutely worth it, especially since many museums cost $20 per person.
Also, another tip: if you go on Labour Day weekend, or any holiday weekend, make sure you know what's open on the holiday itself. We had a couple of things planned for Monday, but when those things didn't take as long as anticipated, we were stuck wandering around, and eating at a restaurant (which was still fun).
Here are some more pictures from our weekend!
Plus, a tip for anyone who plans to visit Montréal - the Montréal Museum Pass is worth it if you want to take in a few museums. The 3 day Museum Pass costs $80 per person and includes access to 38 museums, an unlimited 3 day public transit pass (including airport transfers), as well as additional coupons. We visited 8 attractions that were part of the deal and ended up saving $72.50 each! It's absolutely worth it, especially since many museums cost $20 per person.
Also, another tip: if you go on Labour Day weekend, or any holiday weekend, make sure you know what's open on the holiday itself. We had a couple of things planned for Monday, but when those things didn't take as long as anticipated, we were stuck wandering around, and eating at a restaurant (which was still fun).
Here are some more pictures from our weekend!
