We rose and packed, then checked out and
headed across the street at 8:07 am to the Daybreak restaurant for breakfast
with Cliff and Anna. It was a nice little place and we got huge
breakfasts. Maria ordered just coffee and we had enough extra to load
her plate up and feed her well.
Then we set the GPS route and drove to
downtown Toronto. On the way, I dropped off a package for a friend in
Toronto who won an eBay item from a seller who does not ship to Canada.
We continued on from there and arrived near
the CN Tower at 9:55am
for a ride to observation deck and a simulator log ride, not to mention
taking in the view from the world's tallest structure...
We hunted around for parking and after
retreating from an underground garage that was not tall enough, found
parking near the Sky Dome. This would be the beginning of a recurring
theme on the trip: The Jeep is too tall (with roof box) to park in
underground parking garages. We were unable to park in any of
the hotel parking garages for the entire week. That meant several long
lonely walks for the driver...
Once inside Cliff and Anna very generously
hosted our visit to the CN Tower. We took some pictures in the lobby
before going up the elevator express to the observation deck.
It goes without saying that the view was
spectacular, even on this overcast day. The kids and I took pictures
and we all went on the glass floor.
After that we went down and took a ride on
the
Himalamazon 3D simulation of super trees traveling from seed to harvest
in the forest.
Ted skipped the ride and Tom went twice!
We visited the gift shop where we all got some stuff. I chose a
T-Shirt with a nice graphic showing a Noorduyn Aviation Ltd Norseman
aircraft.
We got a quick drink and then, at Noon,
headed over to Pizza Nova in Cliff's childhood neighborhood.
We sat and visited for a while and then
said our goodbyes to Cliff and Anna. Then we hit the highway for
Montreal! We stopped for coffee and donuts at
Tim Horton's on exit 431
in Bowmanville at 2:19 pm. Tim Horton's in Canada and northern New
York is roughly analogous to Dunkin' Donuts. This too would become a
recurring theme on the trip.
At 4:05 We stopped for gas at near
Kingston.
We stopped again for gas near Lancaster.
This to avoid potentially higher gas prices in the city we were approaching,
and to allow us to leave the city tomorrow and get out without needing gas.
We would visit this location again on our way back later in the trip.
While stopped for gas I saw several large
flocks of geese. The photo does not do them justice.
We reached the Marriott in Montreal at
7:35pm. We unloaded and checked in. The parking garage roof was
too low for the Jeep so I took it next door and arranged to house it in the
entrance of the Holiday Inn parking garage. This worked out well since
it was covered, in constant view of the valet, and only a few yards from the
front door of our hotel. It was literally the best parking we had on
the whole trip.
After unloading and checking in, we took a
walk to dinner at the
Caverne Grecque, after a nice walk there.
The restaurant was quiet and we had a
wonderful meal. This would mark the beginning of a series of memorable
meals. In all the places we would go to eat, meal after meal, we were
greeted with warm welcomes, great food, wonderful ambiance, and tolerable
prices.
After dinner we walked back to the hotel
and got the kids into bed. They were really tired. The walk took
us through a lovely neighborhood of homes and apartment buildings that were
very nicely maintained and many that were being renewed. The kids
noticed a real estate sign on property for sale near hotel in Montreal by
Paule Provencher (www.pauleprovencher.com).
As I have said many times, my name is like "John Smith" in Canada...
During the drive I noticed the mileage on
the Jeep was improving gradually, from a starting point of 9 miles per
gallon when we first took delivery, to 11.4 when we started the trip,
gradually increasing, and at this time 13 mpg. Obviously this is not
in economy car territory, but it's equaling the mileage of my Wrangler and
will likely improve as the engine breaks in.
