Québec City

Posted on 2017-09-24 by Zory

We arrived in Québec City on a stormy afternoon after a four-hour train ride from Montreal. Although it sounds long, we thoroughly enjoyed riding the train. We read, played, napped, listened to podcasts… what’s there not to love?

After a very short taxi ride from the train station we got to our little hotel, conveniently located just a couple of blocks away from Terrasse Dufferin and the Château Frontenac. We checked-in, and went to take a first look at this beautiful boardwalk.

The next morning we headed straight to La Citadelle to experience the changing of the guard and to take a good look at Batisse, the Royal 22e Regiment’s mascot, a pretty regal-looking goat.

We then took the steps back to Terrasse Dufferin, admiring the ramparts, the only remaining fortified city walls in North America north of Mexico.

We continued our way down towards the Petit-Champlain district by taking the “Breakneck Stairs” (Escalier Casse-Cou). We ended up on Rue du Petty-Champlain, a charming little street and one of the oldest commercial streets in North America. We took a break at the quaint Parc Félix-Leclerc and people-watched, before heading back to the Upper Town on the Funiculaire du Vieux-Québec.

We had an early dinner at Conti cafe and ended our day touring the lobby of the Château Frontenac and exploring the streets of Upper Town.

The next day we had breakfast at the popular Café-boulangerie Paillard and then headed to the Marché du Vieux-Port. After purchasing some fresh fruit and cheese curds at the public market we continued our walk along the St. Lawrence River. It was a beautiful day and a lovely walk. It was also very warm, so when we walked by this unique bar we decided to stop and have a drink while we dipped our toes in the water and our little guy dipped a bit more than just his toes (thankfully I had his swimsuit and water shoes in my bag). After our little oasis break we continued our walk and ended up in a fun splash park by the Old Port.

We hoped on the ferry to Levi and enjoyed a great view of the city. It was a short ride to Levi and back, but it was wonderful being out on the water on such a fine day!

Next on our list was the Place Royale and the Fresque des Québécois mural, a historical, beautiful quaint part of Lower Town.

We had the opportunity to meet up with a friend of mine from Venezuela who I hadn’t seen in many years and who is now a true quebecois, and she gave us a great tour of the city outside of the walls.

We ended our day with a walk along a section of the walls, with a stop at the playground at Parc de l’Esplanade, where our son played with a local little girl to his heart’s content.

A stunning sunset from Terrace Dufferin marked the end of our visit. The next morning we headed to the train station and were on our way back to Montreal.

Montreal

Posted on 2017-09-22 by Zory

This year our Summer travels took us to the Canadian Province of Québec. We started off in Montreal on a beautiful Saturday afternoon, walking around the Quartier des Spectacles and Rue Sainte-Catherine.

The next day we rode the Métro to the Parc Olympique, where a funicular took us to the top of the Montreal Tower, a fun experience for our little guy. It was a great way to get a bird’s-eye view of the city.

After riding the funicular back down we headed to the Biodôme, where we made our way through four ecosystems found in the Americas. We started with a tropical forest and ended at the sub-polar region, where we had fun watching the penguins and puffins.

The following day we joined our friends Lucy and Olivier, our awesome local guides, on a visit to Vieux Port and Old Montreal. Here we walked, people-watched, enjoyed good food and live music at Jardin Nelson on Place Jacques-Cartier, and had an overall wonderful day. We ended up at Pizzaiole, where we dined on some great pizza.

Our mornings in Montreal were very relaxed, we found a brunch spot close to our hotel with excellent coffee and fabulous food, it was a great way to start the day. We enjoyed walking around, taking in the beautiful architecture and hearing not only French, but many other languages as people passed us by. The Metro was a treat for our four year-old, who loves riding anything that remotely resembles a train.

We ended up riding a real train for a three-day visit to Québec City, a fun experience for everyone. Once we were back in Montreal, we decided to pay a quick visit to the Marché Jean-Talon. I love visiting farmer markets wherever I go; walking around seeing all the produce and flowers, the people at work and buying and tasting good food, fresh fruit and vegetables, it just makes me happy.

After buying some produce and making a quick stop at St-Viateur Bagel to get Montreal style bagels (which, I must say, are pretty tasty), we headed with Lucy and Olivier to a lovely cabin in Bromont, where we spent a couple of days of relaxation and good company before continuing our travels with a fun week in Michigan visiting family.

We had a grand time on our first family trip to Montreal, and with dear friends living there, we hope this will not be our last.

Visiting Victoria, B.C.

Posted on 2017-09-02 by Zory

Victoria, British Columbia has a special place in my heart. I lived there for many years and will be forever grateful to have experienced Vancouver Island’s beautiful, rugged coast, majestic mountain views, spectacular surrounding Gulf Islands, the laid-back island life and the kindness of its people. Victoria was home to me and is still home to friends that I love dearly, so early this Summer I went back with my family for a visit with the main purpose of spending time with my Victoria peeps.

Our first days were spent reconnecting with dear friends who live in Metchosin, and it included dinner at My Chosen Cafe, where we enjoyed looking at the animals in the critter corner after getting ice cream cones from the sugar shack.

My Chosen Cafe Critter Corner, Metchosin BC

After a weekend of backyard cookouts and dinners with great friends, we spent a day exploring downtown Victoria. First we headed to the Inner Harbour to look at the seaplanes and water taxis, hoping on one to Fisherman’s Wharf, where we enjoyed walking around and looking at the unique float homes. We also saw seals, starfish and even a mischievous otter.

After a water taxi ride back downtown we had lunch at Bard and Banker and then walked around enjoying the sunshine and cool breeze coming from the harbour. It was nice to see my old stomping grounds, as I used to work in Bastion Square and enjoyed this view everyday.

After frolicking around downtown we drove to Dallas Road, parked and took the steps down to the Holland Point Shoreline. The low tide allowed us to climb on beach logs and rocks, and look at the small tidal pools and beach pebbles.

We enjoyed views of the majestic Olympic Mountains and the Straight of Juan de Fuca and saw floatplanes and whale watching boats go by.

We headed to Clover Point and watched people paragliding, one of my favorite things to do and a great way to end our wanderings for the day. Then it was off to our friend’s home to enjoy some take out from Pizzeria Prima Strada (still my favorite pizza place outside of Italy) and watch the Stanley Cup finals. Who knew we’d be in Victoria instead of Nashville (Franklin, TN is home for us currently) when the Predators would make it to the finals!

The next days were spent visiting Butchart Gardens and the Butterfly Gardens with friends, having playdates in friends’ backyards, and enjoying playgrounds like the one at Cadboro-Gyro Park, with its Cadborosaurus still standing for the new generations to climb on.

We spent an afternoon exploring the oldest Chinatown in Canada (and second oldest in North America), starting with Fan Tan Alley, the narrowest street in Canada, and ending with a delicious treat at La Roux Patisserie.

A visit to Victoria would never be complete for me without at least a day spent on Salt Spring Island. After a glorious ferry ride with our friend Michelle, we got to Fulford Harbour and, after grabbing a coffee and treats, headed to her sister’s home for some good conversation for the grown-ups and some outside wanderings for the kids.

Then it was off to the beach! The beach is always my happy place, and it makes me smile to see how it is also a happy place for my son, especially when he has good friends to play with. What a wonderful way to end this visit to one of my favorite places on earth.

As I think back on this visit, I’m so very thankful for the friendships I have in Victoria, which have made my life fuller and richer, and I am happy for the friendships that my son is building with their kids and the memories they are making by just being together, laughing and playing. ‘Til next time, Victoria!

New York City with a 3 year-old (Part 3)

Posted on 2017-04-29 by Zory

What to do in New York on a rainy day? Head to a museum! After a breakfast of bagels and really good coffee at Irving Farm Coffee in Grand Central, we geared up to face the rain and were on our way to visit the American Museum of Natural History.

This museum, from dinosaurs to sea creatures, offered our little family hours of entertainment, knowledge and plain fun.

After our day at the museum we went in search of some much craved soup dumplings, which we found at The Bao in East Village. We had a delicious and pretty authentic (according to my husband, who has experienced the real deal in Asia) pork soup dumplings and scallion pancakes, while our little guy enjoyed some steamed rice and entertained himself by trying to eat with chopsticks (with a folded piece of paper and a rubber band, or in this case, a hair tie, you can fashion kid-friendly chopsticks).

With this food craving checked off our list, we headed back to our hotel on the subway, another great day in New York City.

The next day was our last day in New York. Since we had a few hours before heading to the airport, we decided to explore the Grand Central Market (just because we enjoy going to markets wherever we go) and then headed to the New York Public Library on 5th Avenue. Patience and Fortitude (the 2 famous lions, which are carved out of pink marble from Tennessee) welcomed us into this magnificent building. We love books and reading, so we really enjoyed exploring the library, from the Children’s Center with it’s Real Winnie-the-Pooh exhibit (the original stuffed toys that inspired the beloved story), to the impressive Rose Main Reading Room, and my husband’s favorite, the Map Division.

We ended our trip with a visit to the lobbies of the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building, absolutely stunning works of art and architecture from a very different era.

We had a grand time exploring some of the many options that New York City has to offer, it was our first visit as a family, and it certainly will not be the last!

New York City with a 3 year-old (Part 2)

Posted on 2017-04-29 by Zory

On our first family trip to New York City we wanted to experience some touristy things that would appeal both to my husband and I and to our 3 year-old son, so of course we decided to see the city from the top of one of the skyscrapers. We settled on Top of the Rock, mostly because we wanted to actually see the Empire State building, and also because it was a more budget-friendly option. So off we walked to 30 Rockefeller Plaza after breakfast and enjoyed a bird’s-eye view of New York.

After that we got on a bus headed straight to the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, where my two boys had the best time, as only boys with these cool toys can have. Our membership to Nashville’s Adventure Science Center got one of us in for free thanks to the ASTC Travel Passport Program, a great benefit to be aware of when planning your travels.

Time for lunch! We walked a few blocks to the Gotham West Market, where the little guy had some tasty pizza and the adults enjoyed ramen and pork belly buns. After lunch we took the subway to South Ferry station and got a free ride on the Staten Island Ferry, which allowed us a look at Lower Manhattan, the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.

Once we were back in Manhattan we made our way to the 9/11 Memorial. Our little guy is too young to understand the enormity of the tragedy that took place, but we wanted to pay our respects. I went through many emotions: I had a good cry as I remembered the lives lost, I was amazed at how much this area had changed since I was last in New York back in 2003, but most of all I couldn’t help but think about how short-term our memory is as I saw people taking selfies and chatting in the most animated way, when all I felt was respect and sorrow for what had taken place here in 2001.

As we headed back to the hotel we got to experience a significant delay in the subway, which resulted in our little guy falling asleep and staying asleep all the way to his bed. This was our chance to get some take-out we had been craving from Momosan Ramen & Sake, which was just around the corner from where we were staying. Ben had no idea who Masaharu Morimoto was, but as a fan of Iron Chef America, I was really looking forward to trying the food prepared at his restaurant, and I was not disappointed, best take out ever!

For more of our trip to New York with a 3 year-old click here