I spent my 31st birthday in 2 countries: Canada in the morning and the U.S. in the evening. We arrived in Montreal the day before, greeted by one of the best looking men we had ever seen, the border guard. Liz and I never agree on men but we both like Justin Trudeau and the border guard. Maybe Canada is where all the good looking men are? 

Montreal is a huge (but still walkable), multi-cultural city where most people prefer French over English. At every restaurant, we were first greeted with “Bonjour” before they realized we spoke no French. We were stopped by a news team to interview us in French.

Needless to say, I loved Montreal more than large American cities.

Where I Stayed

Gay Village We stayed in a photography studio AirBnb located in the Gay Village. It was a huge space with a living area, dining area, kitchen, and bedroom space. The bathroom window led to the shared terrace. Our host was warm and showed us around.

There are terraces everywhere in Montreal! I sat out here in the evening talking on the phone and we drank coffee out here in the morning.

Where I Ate

Local Montreal Food Tours We were so impressed by the amount of food we got and our fun guide, Martine. We loved Martine’s accent as she took us around the creatives’ neighborhood of the Mile End, telling us the history of the area and giving us huge portions of food.

From our tour, we ate Montreal-style bagels at St-Viateur Bagel and I LOVED them more than NY bagels.

We also loved the falafel sandwiches at La Panthere Verte so much that we had them the next day.

Our guide also led us to try some beers at Brasserrie Dieu du Ciel.

Where I Visited

We walked around Old Montreal in the morning…

Then we people watched in the business district, where everyone was outside having lunch in the parks. There are so many parks and everyone takes advantage of the 3 months of sunshine and beauty… until winter comes.

Mont Royal is a legit park in the middle of the city. We didn’t expect to walk on trails, but we made it up to the top and were treated to a view of the city. FYI: You can drink alcohol in the parks as long as you bring food too.

Where I Stayed Active

Walking We walked a lot. On our first day, we walked around the Mile End a little for the food tour, but we explored the city by foot the next day and clocked in 10 miles.

Ride a Bixi We also rented Bixis and rode along the river to Lachine Canal on a nicely paved path.