A Snowy Retreat: January in Montréal

      For Christmas this year, rather than giving each other physical presents, my boyfriend and I decided to do something a little different--we took each other to Montreal for a week of exploring and relaxing. 
      In grand American tradition, we took an overnight Greyhound bus up from New York City (after an absolutely wonderful New Year's Eve spent with friends) and arrived in the early morning. Because we had several hours to explore before we were allowed to check into our room at the wonderful Hotel Le Roberval, we decided to take a walk down Boulevard René-Levesque (and initially intended to see some art museums).

Montréal has a noticeable Catholic influence, so on our way through the Quartier Latin (home to the École Polytechnique de Montréal, the Université de Montréal, and the Université de Quebec á Montreal), we passed beautiful old buildings and many, many churches. 

Although we never made it inside (as apparently they no longer give tours), we saw our first Montréal landmark: the Molson Brewery.

  

Having dropped our bags at the hotel, and having realized that we were heading in a completely different direction than we intended, we decided to to scrap our original plans and head instead towards Old Montreal. 

Across the way from the our ultimate destination--the Chateau Ramezay (which was obscured by a lot of cold-weather additions, so I won't picture it here)-- stood Montreal's City Hall, one of the most gorgeous government buildings I've ever seen.

  We then spent a few hours exploring the Chateau and headed to the gorgeous Old Port, where we stepped into the Héritage Gallery to look at some Inuit art. This particular gallery is partly a showcase of the work of some really great Inuit artists and partly a fur shop. Most of their wares were, as expected, just a tad out of our price range, but we still took a look.
  

  Among the things we saw and really, really wanted to take home was this polar bear. We were this close to adopting it for my new apartment--a total bear necessity if you ask me--, but we didn't think the folks at Greyhound would appreciate us bringing home an extra passenger. 

    Having sated our curiosity about this (pretty magical) Inuit gallery, we made our way to the Old Port and stopped into Montreal Poutine for a bite and a brew. MP is admittedly very touristy and a little spartan--if you're looking for a fancy, boutiquey gastropub, this is not it. When you enter, you'll walk up a set of stone steps that lead to an attic, where the menu and beer list are short and the wooden tables are mostly full.  But don't be discouraged--if you're looking for a low-key place with good food and a lot of attention to detail where food and drink are concerned, MP is just the place to go. We ordered Poutine with Montréal Smoked Meat and Rickard's White Ale, and though we'd been a little skeptical, I'm pleased to say Montreal Poutine was well worth it!
      
    Anywho, that's enough for today, but be sure to stay tuned for more of our Montreal adventures! On the docket for tomorrow's post: some of the other sites we visited and one of my absolute favorite art installations (you'll see why). 

A domani,

Caroline 
Xx