This weekend, post midterms, a bunch of us rented a car and took off to Montreal. I investigated the Communications MA program at McGill which was sadly a little too survey based for me. However the rest of the weekend was a blast and involved a fair bit of eating and drinking - including a magic moment involving a petit pain au chocolate & a cappucino.

On Friday night we hit up a bar in Old Montreal, the only somewhat reasonably priced joint we could find that was within crawling distance of our hostel. Many beers and peanuts were consumed. The next morning we went to Olive and Gourmando, the most beautiful bakery / cafe in the world. I had the best cappucino in my life and was, for the moment, 100% content. There’s something about being miles from home, perfectly caffeinated, and blissfully stuffed with chocolate that makes for a good morning. Post Olive and Gourmando we wandered the Old Port for a while, stopped in at the Science Center & a glass blowing factory and then decided on a mini road trip to St. Viateur Bagels! I ate three of those glorious dough beasts in one sitting. We grabbed some cream cheese and salmon and returned to the hostel for wine and more eating.

On Sunday we got up fairly early, checked out of the hostel and wandered the length of St. Catherine street trying to find a good breakfast joint. We decided that massive quantities of meat fit the bill, and so we wound up at Reubens, a big smoked meat place in the heart of downtown. We must have spent three hours there eating and drinking coffee and preparing for the night of music ahead! Fueled, we headed off to Metropolis for the Decemberists show.

After the concert we ate more bagels, drove around the city in the dark, and then, sadly, returned to the cold and cruel world of Kingstonia. Despite the brutal climate and lack of real jobs, I think it’s where I’m headed next. Montreal just knows how to operate!