Touring in summer weather during the first week of fall

My friend Monique timed it right for her Toronto visit.  During the last week of September, we were fortunate to have some of the finest weather of the last few months for the first week of fall – plenty of sunshine and mild temperatures.  The weather was perfect for our long list of activities as we explored Toronto, the Niagara Peninsula and Montreal. 

Niagara-on-the-Lake: a pretty town

Over the last year, I’ve been to Niagara Falls several times. However, I hadn’t ventured off the main highway to explore the wineries of the Niagara Escarpment and Twenty Valley. I think one can return multiple times to the area to meander along the country roads to discover the wineries.

For this trip, we focused on testing white wines. We sampled many fine Rieslings, said to be Niagara’s most important variety that withstands the summer heat and the severe cold of Ontario’s winter. A big thank you to my colleague Elissa (a native of Niagara), who provided us with maps and tips. 

Old Montreal

The early fall colours were especially brilliant in Montreal.  After arriving by train, relaxing strolls in Vieux Montreal, shopping along Rue Sainte Catherine and enjoying Blanche de Chambly beer on a patio on Rue Crescent were the order of the day.

My friends Ginette and Yvon took us on a drive around Mount Royal that included a stop at St. Joseph’s Oratory of Mount Royal. And Yvon brought us to, what he says. is a little-known viewpoint on the Mount on the west side to see some sweeping views of city.

St. Joseph's Oratory

Merci Ginette et Yvon!

 Time to say au revior Montreal and à la prochaine!

 

Montréal en hiver

Instead of heading back to the West Coast for the holidays, I decided to venture east to Montreal to experience that city in the winter.

The Montreal skyline - view from the Port of Montreal.

 

The trip on Via Rail made for some snowy train stop vistas along the Toronto-Montreal corridor.

The Queen Elizabeth on Boul. Rene Levesque on the right.

My home for three nights in Montreal was the Fairmont La Reine Elizabeth Hotel.  Located above the central train station and built in 1958, the hotel is billed as the largest hotel east of Toronto and is famous for hosting heads of state at Expo 67 and being the host hotel for the International Olympic Committee for the 1976 Olympic Games.  And it’s the place where John Lennon and Yoko Ono staged a "bed-in" in 1969.  OK, these are some trivial facts, but all contribute to the history of the hotel.

 



The owner of Beautys:  Hymie Sckolnick.

 

Of course, the focus of any trip is experiencing local food.  A lunch stop was at a luncheonette called Beautys. It has been serving meals since 1942 in the heart of Montreal’s Jewish garment district. There's plenty of atmosphere. I had the Special - a bagel sandwich made with lox, cream cheese, sliced tomatoes and onion.

 

A trip to Montreal is not complete without smoked meat sandwiches and poutine. Waiting in line (left) with the tourists for a sandwich à la viande fumée lunch (right) at Schwartz's Deli.

  A colleague recommended a “Montreal Special” at the Montreal Pool Room.  The street location isn’t great, but the meal inside, poutine and two “steamies” hot dogs, was tasty.

 

My search for decent mandarin oranges here in parts east continued with a stop at the Jean Talon Public Market. Again, as in Toronto, I found clementines. At least the oranges were sweet and easy-to-peel.

The most local food was a traditional holiday meal at the home of my Quebec friends Ginette and Yvon, They welcomed me to a family celebration – complete with jambon (ham) and Tourtière (French Canadian meat pie).

Bonne année!



The Montreal skyline from Mont Royal.