Montreal

Austin is the current president of a lawyer's organization that holds a conference in Montreal every year. The hotel contract is up, and the Omni Hotel REALLY wants to get the new bid. So they invited us up to Montreal to enjoy two complimentary nights in their hotel to check it out. A free weekend away in one of my favorite cities ever? Yes, please!

 

Eating croissants in Notre Dame square.

Austin helps a street performer into his straitjacket.

Kites for sale in Chinatown.

It is rare that I would say that the best part of a trip was the hotel. But the Omni really outdid itself trying to get Austin's attention. They led us into a very nice guestroom, but then opened the internal door onto the kids' room -- a massive space with two TVs, an enormous table and chandelier, and more square footage than our house! Stairs led from our room down to theirs, which was on the floor below us in the hotel.

Taken from the landing.
When was the last time you had a hotel room with a landing?!

Lucy was amazed by the height of the drapes.

 The bathroom was larger than the guestroom. The kids' favorite part was the bidet, which they found completely hilarious and made regular use of. My favorite part was the enormous bathtub with a view of Mount Royal. The hotel had already closed their outdoor pool, but the tub was nearly large enough to swim laps.

Suited up for their "swim"

The hotel suite was so big the kids entertained themselves by playing hide-and-seek. For hours. There were seemingly endless places to hide. 

Gavin's best hiding spot: between the tub and the wall.

Lucy's best spot: between the stairs and the window.



In quest of breakfast.

We ran to a patisserie before we checked out of the hotel so we could grab some croissants and chocolatines for breakfast, with a few more for the road. Sitting at my computer now eating a half-day-old chocolatine, I am amazed that I am only two hours south of a major world city that makes the most delicious pastries, and wondering why nobody in the U.S. can make a decent croissant. And wondering why I don't escape to Montreal more often. I would even settle for an ordinary hotel room!