As my 30th birthday loomed, I knew that I wanted to do something kind of special for it. It was my entrance into spinsterhood—a life destined to be lead in solitude—one in which I’d acquire a lot of cats without realizing it, and spend my days eating lean cuisines, sitting in a La-Z boy, and learning how to crochet (okay, so I learned how to do that at about age 10). My sisters and I joke about how we’ll all end up sad and alone, sitting in chairs in front of the TV watching old episodes of Golden Girls.
And thus, an idea was born: Montreal. I tossed around the idea of hanging out in a hut on a beach somewhere, but then I decided that Montreal was a much better idea—a cosmopolitan city in North America that still has a European feel and is so exotic that they speak another language!
I pitched the idea of a girls’ getaway birthday extravaganza in Montreal to my friend and former roommate, Katie, who immediately put “get a passport before Megan disowns you” on her to-do list (that’s literally what it said) and before we knew it, we were in my car on an 8-hour road trip from Pennsylvania to Montreal.
Then began our über girlie weekend.
Eating
We visited Maison Christian Faure, a patisserie that opened in August of 2013, where we were treated to a little behind-the-scenes tour of the school; a meet-and-greet with the chef; some freshly made truffles; and champagne and macarons. I loved the ambience of this little patisserie and if I lived in Old Montreal, I’d probably be spending entirely too much in the café.
Because we were in Montreal, we also had to check out a few staples: we tasted some Montreal bagels; had smoked meat sandwiches at Schwartz’s; taste-tested poutine from multiple places; indulged in some cronuts; shared a bag of squeaky cheese; and bought half a dozen cupcakes from a local bakery to ring in my actual birthday.
Shopping
Boulevard St-Laurent is home to a lot of boutiques and vintage shops, where Katie and I spent a lot of time browsing, pointing out cute things to one another, and buying matching bracelets. While most of the places we visited were a bit too expensive for my full-time traveler budget, they had some seriously awesome things.
Jean-Talon market is home to tons of different stalls touting gourmet foods and cheeses, flowers, and more. It reminded me a bit of Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia, but a lot less chaotic inside. It’s a great place to buy lots of local goodies from squeaky cheese (used in poutine) to maple syrups.
St-Sulpice and Notre Dame Ouest in Old Montreal also have lots of awesome little shops that range from touristy junk and imported tea from China to Christmas shops and crazy weird novelty shops.
The Arts
We took in the Nutcracker presented by Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montreal one afternoon. It was an awesome performance and the costumes were worlds better than the ones in the performance I saw in Houston.
Other Stuff
Because it was deemed a girls’ getaway birthday extravaganza, we’d intended to visit a spa, but instead, we woke up to a snowstorm one morning. The weather gods had dumped over a foot of snow on us, making it rather difficult to get around. Instead, we opted to pop into a few shops, eat lots of food, watch movies, and make snow angels. Additionally, in the month of December, every Saturday night there’s a fireworks display over the river—it’s a show called Fire on Ice and, if you can brave the bone-chilling temperatures, it’s a lovely thing to watch.
Some of my trip to Montreal (including Schwartz’s, the ballet, a girlie tour of the city, and partial stay) were courtesy of Tourisme Montreal. As always, opinions are my own.
Since I travel with my wife and try to plan a lot of things she would enjoy, I actually end up going on my fair share of “girlie” trips. Montreal is one of the cities we’ve been meaning to get to for some time. It looks like you have the blueprint for our eventual visit.
Lance | Trips By Lance recently posted..5 Ways to Celebrate Elvis’ Birthday in Memphis
Awesome, Lance! I really liked Montreal and hope that you and your wife have a great time when you make it there. (And get to do some of the girlie stuff I mentioned!)
What a fantastic trip! I love that food photo collage… yum, bagel!
wanderingeducators recently posted..How to Survive New York City
Thanks! And yeah, the food was fabulous!
Looks like you had an awesome time! I love Montreal.
Alli recently posted..13 Top Photogenic Moments of 2013
Thanks, Alli! I did have a great time! Montreal is an awesome city.
I LOVE this! And congrats on this being mentioned on Nat Geo!! Amazing! I went to Montreal with my sister and parents years ago (gosh, 6-7 years?) during the late spring. It was amazing- totally loved the European vibe. I want to go back for a girls weekend now!
Lindsay recently posted..Trending Travel Destinations for 2014 – Some May Surprise You!
Thanks, Lindsay! And you should definitely plan a girls’ weekend now! It was so much fun! I can’t wait to go back again. :)