That is, it could have been snowing, but it was only raining – with a maximum of 8°C. Canadians might call that spring, but we’d call that winter! However, we can be hardy with the best of them so, having arrived in Montreal according to schedule, we set off sightseeing. (Sue was selected for her first ever full-body security scan much to her consternation as she had no idea how to stand but sure wasn’t going to opt for the pat down!)
First stop was lunch. We headed to Old Town Montreal – our hotel borders Chinatown on its Old Town end, if that makes sense. It was drizzly so we chose a place fairly quickly – La Sauvagine – and chose their Plat du Jour option which for Hannah was marinated wild boar, for Len the lamb shank, and Sue a half Rock Cornish hen. The food was good, the service friendly, the background music excellent (easy jazz style), and, best of all, the place was cosy. We didn’t really want to leave.
However, the tourist life called so off we set, using Montreal public transport, to the …
Biodome
We’ve written before about old buildings being repurposed – such as The Distillery District – but the Biodome is an example of repurposing a new building. At least, we’d call a building constructed for the 1976 Olympics new, and that’s what the Biodome was originally. It was the velodrome.
The decision to repurpose it as the Biodome was made in 1988 and it was opened in 1992. It has four separate ecosystems, all fully enclosed which we guess it would have to be, given Montreal’s climate. They are, in the order you walk through them:
- The Tropical Forest, a South American rainforest
- The Laurentian Forest, representing North America’s wilderness
- The Saint Lawrence Marine Eco-system, representing the estuaries of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence
- A Sub-Polar section, covering both the Arctic and Antarctic
No deserts! Everyone – that is, not just us – seemed to really enjoy the tropics, and not just because of the warmth! The animals there were the most exciting with a sloth climbing upside down (as sloths tend to do) along the roof, a little primate hopping amongst the trees, several colourful birds preening and feeding, a capybara feeding, some very scarily still alligators, and so on. The other habitats were interesting too – just not quite so dramatic overall. One of the most engaging creatures we saw was a little puffin having a wonderful time diving under the water, swimming around in circles, shaking its tail while others were on the “shore” or swimming more sedately. There were about four different types of penguins also. We all enjoyed watching them slide, hop, dive and swim in their habitat.
We were sorry we didn’t have time to see the other parts of the complex, which include an Insectarium, but time ran out as the complex closed at 5pm, so back to the hotel we went for a very brief rest before heading out to dinner.
EVOO Restaurant
Hannah had sussed out a few options for dinner, but the one we ended up booking was a fairly new one called EVOO. It has been running for about 18 months and is owned/managed by three young people. The food was stunning – as you will see from the few photos we’ve included in the slideshow. Their focus, as is the things these days, is local and seasonal – and they used their produce to wonderful effect. Squash for dessert, anyone?
The service was also excellent. At one stage our server, who happened to be Claudie, one of the young owners, discovered we were Australian (not that our accent had anything to do with that!). It turned out that the sous-chef, and another of the three owners, had been to Australia and had worked in fact at Vue de Monde in Melbourne. “I’ll get Sophie to come out and talk to you later”, she said. And so, later in the evening, Sophie helped deliver our dessert course and we had a little chat. She loved Australia she said – of course, she had to say that, but she did sound genuine. One of her best memories was seeing a wallaby at sunset in the Yarra Valley wine region. As Hannah said on our way home we all have special memories from our travels. Anyhow, as Masterchef watchers we wanted to know about Shannon Bennett but her lips were sealed. Chef confidentiality we suppose!
The restaurant was not packed, which was nice for us but, at $90 per head (which included the 20% tip), we reckon people should be there in droves.
And the slideshow …
And a video of life in the Biodome …
THought it was cold there!! – is Hannah so acclimatised to Canada that she doesn’t notice it? You all look really well
Oh she notices alright Celeste … She doesn’t like the cold at all. I think this will be her last winter there!
Well, I am acclimatised in the sense that I wore a shirt with no jacket the first day it reached 8C, because after -45C anything above 0 feels positively tropical. But I hate it. IT JUST WON’T END.
Oh my gosh, how is it that we’re back in Toronto already? Love your recap, and how you’ve captured some of the best moments of our first day. That cozy bistro! The adorable puffin! My consternation at being given an orange-flavoured palate cleanser!
Restaurant EVOO was incredible, but being there with my parents was the cherry on top. xoxo
Glad you like the recap of our day Hannah … Hope you like the next one just being finished now. It was indeed lovely enjoying those restaurants with you.
Hannah is adorable in her pics and in her post. No wonder you came such a long way to visit your daughter. I loved her look of consternation at the orange popsicle palate cleanser! I also adore the picture of Sue & Len. Must be framed!! Don’t you think so? You know I love how ya’ll delight in the food you have and what different and daring dishes you try. I smile whenever you talk about the food and the pictures have always been one of those things that make my face hurt. My own food choices are so mundane. I am supposed to learn to start savoring my meals. All of you set shinning examples of that practice. Even the cocktails are enchanting novelties. I tend to find something “safe”, that I like, and stick with it.
As usual the commentary is informative and charming. A very nice mix – just like your day. Except that there was nothing “wet” about it.
Of course you know I enjoyed all the critters in the video. I went through it twice in a row and the second time it played VERY smoothly. There is a similar set up in San Francisco at the California Science Center across from the De Young Museum. But they did not have a Sloth! Very cool. AND yes – the Puffin is adorable.
Sharing your trip makes gives a lovely moment in my day. As always, thank you for including me.
Any time you want a lesson in savouring meals Trudy come to us …LOL.
I thought you’d like the Biodome video. We did feel a bit silly going there cos we know these things are fairly common but we were interested in the venue, it had some local ecosystems, and critters are always fun anyhow, aren’t they? The puffin was hysterical – Len didn’t capture the half of it, unfortunately. It was like a little kid having great fun in the water.
Aw, thank you Trudy! I’m so glad Mum and Dad decided to come visit (after 21 months… ahem 😉 ), even if they’re struggling a little with the weather! And as for the food, I do love trying these new restaurants but I’m just as happy with vegemite toast. In fact, I tried to convince Mum to let me get an Oreo McFlurry for lunch one day, but she wouldn’t let me. 😛
Hannah, you are SO welcome. I adored my own mother and father and I have wonderful memories of their visits and showing them around “my world” where ever it was at the time. Sharing time with people you love is one of the best ways to spend our lives. Watching you enjoying your mom and dad and your delight in ya’lls’ adventures brings all of my own joy back to me. I think your Mum and Dad are having a fantastic visit…..now if they could just smuggle you back with them! But we do raise our little ones to fly on their own and you seem to be doing quite well. =) I am thinking they are pretty proud.
Trudy and Carter – you are people of superb taste. I can tell from the way you appreciate my wonderful family!
and Mum, I feel like I know you! Len and Sue are both so good at sharing all the wonderful times that your family enjoys together. I am sure you would love to be with them (except maybe for the cold weather) but isn’t it wonderful that they take the time to share their adventures with us. It is not the same as being there but it does put a warm glow on my day when I get to visit with all them as they enjoy their travel and visiting. AND if I am enjoying it I am sure you are loving it! Especially getting to see so much of your grand daughter out in the big world looking happy and lovely and doing well.
Congratulations to you for creating a lovely family!
Call me a Philistine but at $90 a head I’d want more on my plate!
Oh but yours wouldn’t be $90 because you wouldn’t have had any drinks … Hmm, that probably means that either way you are a Philistine, but I love you just the same!