May/June 2015 - East Canada Tour

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June/July 2015 – East Canada Road Trip

After travelling through west Canada, Ryan and I were thrilled to have the opportunity to visit the east coast! Our friends Alicia and Tim were getting hitched and after the party we were heading on to Kingston, Montreal, Quebec City, Ottawa, Algonquin National Park and back to Toronto. Excited, yes we were!



Throughout this trip we did so much that I better stick to the best bits otherwise you will be snoozing!



Toronto:

We arrived in Toronto around 13:00 local time. This was fine apart from needing to be ready for evening fun on board the HMS Alicia and Tim! Once on board the boat the party was ace! We were so pleased to be around old and new friends and have a great time. The weather was chilly but the sunset over the city was stunning. Every evening we had in Toronto was the great. We enjoyed local beer and the people we were with, although the hangovers were much to be desired the next day!





After being in Toronto a few years ago and having been to the major attractions, CN tower, Niagara and the classic Vineyard tour, all brilliant, we decided to keep it new. We headed into Kensington Market just off China Town; the area is full of quirky, vintage, urban shops and is packed with people. On Sundays they close the area to traffic and all the stalls and shops drift out into the road. We really enjoyed Rileys aquarium near the CN tower, it was massive and really enjoyable for any age! We saw sharks, turtles, swordfish, jellyfish etc. I even got to stoke the stingray.



Tim and Alicia’s wedding was fabulous, honestly, Alicia looked like Princess Jasmine! The drinks were flowing and the food was delicious! We both really enjoyed meeting new people and making new friends. After 5 days here we were sad to say goodbye to all our friends and all the new people we had met.

We picked up a hire car and headed out on the open road! Ryan upgraded to a larger vehicle, that was slightly unnecessary but hell, it sure was comfy!



Kingston:

A small city located on the mouth of Lake Ontario we weren’t here for long but we learnt a lot about French Canadian, the British and American battles. Poor Canada it’s been through so much! We visited Fort Henry. Here we experienced a British fort built to protect Canada from American invasion. This is well worth a stop off on your way through. We had a free guided tour and without this we wouldn’t of had a clue what we were looking at.



Montreal:

Montreal is a busy, vast city. In the old town we had a look at the basilica, city hall and the grand buildings. Canada is a relatively modern country in comparison to Italy, France and Britain where the history dates back thousands of years, coming here everything still looks relatively new. This made it difficult to determine what was old and what was new made to look old. The shopping streets near the waterfront are nice, cobbled streets link them together and the French feel comes through. The metro system is so easy to navigate day and night. Every evening we headed to the golden mile; a long street with a massive range of bars and restaurants. There is so much choice it won’t disappoint. This is where we tried Poutine for the first time; it is Quebec’s delicacy, Chips (French Fries), Gravy and cheese curd. This food was okay but one of those meals I would eat after a night of drinking! One morning we headed up to Mount Royale. Its not really a mountain more of a hill that has a brilliant view of the city, it put the whole place into perspective. This is easily accessible by car, bus or on foot.



Quebec City:

Quebec City is like a mini France, its very beautiful and a city wall surrounds part of it. The smaller streets, the way the buildings have been constructed and the lack of high-rise make it feel European. It's all easily navigated on foot with a map. We saw beautiful views of the Saint Lawrence River, the Fairmont hotel and the old French looking buildings. We walked around the North wall of the Citadel (fort), which was mostly parkland where the battle between the British and the French took place to win the city. We saw the cathedral Norte-dame built in 1643, oldest in North America, and rebuilt after the fire in 1922. It isn’t much from the outside and is very deceiving, the inside has gold statues and beautiful art. There are all sorts of nooks and crannies to explore here in the city and is truly relaxing and chilled!

Within Quebec I did experience some language barriers, I know little French, to be honest, I know none! Ryan asked for a McFlurry and I went to get it, I came out with a cappuccino, 2 ice cream cones and a grumpy Ryan! Whoops! The international language of McDonalds was not effective for me!



Ottawa:

I love Ottawa; I really liked the time we spent here. We got up early the first morning to collect tickets to see the houses of Parliament. The tour is free but you have to collect tickets from the ticket office and they only give out a certain amount each day. We got the full tour and entry to the peace tower. The parliament building is beautiful outside and inside. We were fortunate enough to have a full tour; sometimes it is cut short depending on what is happening in the parliament. The tour gave us a history of Canada and the expansion of states across North America and how the parliament/senate works which was interesting. It's very similar to the British government but instead of the queen having to sign off laws she nominates an Attorney State General who will serve on her behalf. The library was the wow moment. It was beautiful; really old fashioned and designed in a Victorian Gothic style, its circular shape, designed to protect it from fire reminded me of Harry Potter. We ascended the peace tower in a lift; it was a beautiful day so the views across the city and Ottawa river were brilliant. You could look up and see the clock ticking and the bells chimed every 15 minutes. Everywhere you look in Ottawa there is something to see and look at there is many pieces of art works and tributes to war heroes and police officers. The war memorial had guards standing all day respecting the lost heroes. Every hour the piper came out and they changed the guard. We sat watching the locks open and fill for the boat coming up, it's pretty short compared to Devises cane hill but it was a pretty canal. We walked to the market and spent time exploring the stalls we stopped here for lunch and enjoyed cocktails! We walked the market some more then we had to try the local specialty beaver tails. They are long flat donuts covered in whatever topping you like so I chose Oreos and vanilla cream.... Yummy! But they were big! After a day of wondering and seeing the sights we headed out for dinner and drinks... We ended up at the bier market drinking beer for the night!



Algonquin National Park/Huntsville:

This place is beautiful, it exceeded our expectations and as you enter the park the smell of fresh air and pine was a welcome break from the city air. The bugs will bite you but it will be worth it! The walks we enjoyed were great we had views over Beaver lake and rapids. We had fun trying to spot moose, sadly we had no luck. However, I saw a raccoon, turtle, snake, and a ginger hairy thing (I don’t know what it was it was big and hairy!) All the walks in the park are clearly sign posted and you sign your name in the visitor book. You can collect a guide booklet at the start of the walk, they are free and you can either post them back in the box or pay to keep it. They are very informative and give you lots of information about the wildlife, life cycles, plants and the history of the area you are walking through. I wish we had more time here, that’s the only thing I would change.





Driving in Canada was great the roads are easily navigated with some exceptions around Toronto. We got to see so much of the country and enjoy the little stops on the way that we never expected. There is very few places where you can drive for an hour and not see anyone it was great. Every time we have been to Canada we always feel safe and welcome no matter where we are. We stopped in a gas station and started talking to an old guy who owned the farm in the distance. His great grandfather brought the farm in the 1918 and it had grown to 1000 acres, he was a nice guy and he made his money by selling cow meat. Everyone has a story you just need to take the time to stop and listen.







Thank you Canada!

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Comments

[Mrs Virginia Baldock]

Canada
It sounds as though you had a wonderful time. You look a little over dressed in the national park!!! Interesting tour of East Canada. Like the look of the Fairmont Hotel, my sort of holiday destination!