Montreal Jazz Festival

Me in front of our hotel


Matt being cheesy at the entrance to the Jazz Festival







After the Canada Day party we continued our celebration of Canada by going to Montreal. I LOVE Montreal...if only it weren't for the long, bone-chillingly cold winter I would probably want to move there. It is a gorgeous city, with lots of old, quaint buildings interspersed with sleek, modern buildings. Everyone speaks French, so you really feel like you have gone somewhere foreign even though it is only a five hour drive from Boston. And the people are wonderful...they have all the natural chic-ness and style of French people and all of the friendliness and lack of "attitude" of Canadian people. I love Montreal so much...if only I could live there six months per year and live somewhere else in the winter...

We went to Montreal for the Jazz Festival, but also so that Matt could have some meetings with his boss, who lives and works from Montreal. Actually, I think the meetings were planned out of convenience to coincide with the Festival.

The Jazz Festival was really fun. There were 4 or 5 out door stages that had free concerts everyday from 12pm to 12am. They blocked off the roads around the stages, so people filled the streets to watch the concerts. There were also indoor concerts that you had to pay for, but we didn't go to any of those because we weren't that organized and because the weather was so nice it would have been a shame to go inside. It stayed light for a really long time every night, so it was great to be outside, listen to music, and people watch.

I love travelling with Matt when he is working...I have the days free to do what I want and then I see him at night. I had Thursday to myself, and I had the perfect day...yoga at a nearby studio, a yummy lunch, and shopping. They were having lots of sales and two stores that I love and miss from Hong Kong (Mango and Zara) were only a few blocks from our house.

Also, I really cannot say enough how WONDERFUL hotwire is. We have gotten such great deals on hotels using hotwire. We stayed at the Intercontinental in Montreal, which was a very nice hotel in an excellent location (two block from the festival, and right near the old town and financial district), for 100$ per night. For a big city like Montreal, that is an amazing price. I am now devoted to hotwire.

Now I will do my obligatory mention of good food...I can't help it...I love good food. We found this place in the old city called Olive et Gourmando. I had a fruit and yogurt bowl...but it was no ordinary fruit and yogurt bowl...it had the most delicious, plump, juicy berries and rich plain yogurt, topped with two slices of fresh coconut. The coconut was a nice touch...the whole thing was just phenomenal. The cappucinos looked good and they had my favorite loose leaf green tea from China, Longjing, served in a kettle. The pastries looked like they were good but we didn't try those. Next time I am in Montreal I am definitely going back there for breakfast every single day.

We also have a restaurant that we love in the Outremont area called La Moulerie...I have been a total sucker for Moules Frites (mussels and french fries)ever since Matt and I went to Brittany in 2003. My addiction began there and has never ceased...Montreal is full of places with moules but I think La Moulerie must be the best. Moules is all they serve! Matt loves it too, so it was fun to go back there and relive our first trip to Montreal.

Sometimes I have these moments where I just think, "Life is so great." I am so lucky that Matt and I found eachother...we have done so many fun things over the years. Anyway, this trip was one of those times when I just feel so lucky.