Days 46 to 48: Three Rest Days in Montreal

I spent three days in Montreal, which is a decent amount of time to explore a city and to rest for a day.

On the first day I visited Olympic Stadium, which is in walking distance from Élise’s apartment. It has a futuristic looking tower. Then I walked to the nearby Jardin botanique de Montréal. I was too early and the botanical garden was closed.

I took the subway to Chinatown in downtown and walked a long time to see Habitat 67, a cool looking apartment complex. On St. Helen’s Island, I visited Parc Jean-Drapeau where there’s the Montreal Biosphere. I couldn’t walk back to downtown since my feet were hurting from all the walking so I took the subway back to Chinatown.

After having some Chinese noodles in Chinatown I took some photos of Notre-Dame Basilica of Montreal then went to the Old Port. It was early afternoon when I decided to take the subway back. That night, I made some spaghetti with marinara sauce for both Élise and I.

The following day, I biked to Mount Royal Park in the morning and explored the area. Then I met up with Anas, the Warmshowers host who will cycle with me to Quebec City. We discussed about our trip details over tea. I feel we will have a great time riding for at least three days together.

Around 4:30 PM, Élise and I cycled to Vélo Québec, a house for cyclists, to attend a meeting. The discussion was about a bicycle themed mural that an artist will paint on the walls outside the building. I also met Élise’s friend, Jeanne, who is the Warmshowers host who referred me to Élise when I was looking for hosts in Montreal.

The three of us sketched our mural ideas. The artist said that he liked my mountains and will include that in his mural.

After the meeting it rained outside. We decided to walk across the street to La Fontaine Park. After a little stroll Jeanne had to go home. Then Élise and I had some delicious dumplings at Le Petit Coin Dumpling before we cycled back home.

This morning Élise had to go to work early so I bid farewell to her. I stayed in her apartment to take a shower and do laundry. After relaxing for a while I packed my bike and cycled less than two miles to Anas’s apartment. For the rest of the day I watched some YouTube videos and listened to some music while Anas set up his bike for tomorrow.

In the afternoon, Anas and I walked to a dollar store nearby to buy some snacks. I’ve tried most of the Canadian candy bars so I picked some of my favorites, such as Coffee Crisp and Mr. Big. Anas also bought a travel size liquid soap container at a store on our walk back.

I feel like I can stay a couple of more days in Montreal, but I might never leave. Montreal is ranked as the number one bicycle-friendly city in North America according to the Copenhagenize Index. It’s ranked in the top 20 cities in the world for cycling. I feel like I’ve only scratched the surface of this city.

Tomorrow, Anas and I will cycle to Berthierville where we will stealth camp since we couldn’t find a Warmshowers host. I might not be able to write tomorrow’s blog post since I might not have internet. We shall see.

This futuristic tower looks like something out of an anime.

Olympic Stadium

Jardin botanique de Montréal

An OSGEMEOS mural

The arch at Chinatown

A sculptural fountain

Reminds me of Paris

Habitat 67 apartment complex

Downtown Montreal

Parc Jean-Drapeau

The Montreal Biosphere

Place Sun-Yat-Sen

Notre-Dame Basilica of Montreal

The sculpture fountain in front of Notre-Dame Basilica of Montreal

Street sculpture

Saint Paul Street

Jean Vauquelin Monument

Montreal City Hall

Old Port

La Grande Roue de Montréal

Bonsecours Market

Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel

Montreal Museum of Fine Arts

Another building of Montreal Museum of Fine Arts

Cool sculpture

Waterfall in Mount Royal Park

Downtown Montreal from Mount Royal

The pond in Mount Royal Park

The wall that will soon be painted with a mural.

Jeanne and Élise drawing their mural sketches

La Fontaine Park

Élise, me, and Jeanne