Canada Trip September 15-20th, 2024 and Saturday the 21st Back Home
SUNDAY: I slept pretty good, after taking 2 Tylenol PM. I drove to Barker to meet up with Marlene and the others. Our group leader was Betty Stover. This picture was taken somewhere on the trip: 
Got loaded onto the bus and we were given goody bags (mostly snacks) and we got name tags and itineraries. First stop Waterloo at the OUTLET MALL, where we used restrooms, Next stop Salmon Run Mall in Watertown, NY. Marlene and I got food at Mexican place called ELgran Patron. I had two chicken tacos and rice, and then we continued on. Getting through the border was quick and easy which gave us extra time. Our driver knew of a nice spot to take an extra break. A park in Rockport, Ontario 
A group picture was taken 
and Marlene and I went into the General Store/Gift Shop. I purchased a kids size cone raspberry sorbet which was very good.
Supper at BUSTER's in Kanata, Ontario was very good.
Got to know Laurie and Art and Shirley and Sharon a bit at BUSTER's. Then to our hotel in Gatineau, Quebec City, Quebec. The Parliament Building which we drove by is beautiful. I had a hard time getting onto wifi and had to get help and then I had to change all of my passwords.
MONDAY (Day Two of trip) We had to solve a maze in order to get to the breakfast room. It was on the third floor of the adjacent building. It was not the greatest breakfast, but it was sufficient. Strange since a girl in the main building told me last night a totally different story about the location of the breakfast room. Boarded bus and drive to a certain spot in Ottawa where a step on guide joined us. First stop: Notre Dame Cathedral
(stunningly beautiful). This was across the street from the church, in front of an art museum.
And then we were on a driving tour showing us various spots, none really exciting. Rest rooms at RIDEAU HALL, the residence of the GOVERNOR GENERAL (the second in command to the Prime Minister) several acres that is pretty much a public park. We were dropped off at the Byward Market
near the totem pole
and left to our own devices (or vices) for lunch, exploring and shopping until 3:45. The market was a very colorful place. We found a place and had Greek Salads for lunch:
It was pretty hot so after lunch and a bit of looking around, we went into a mall which was humungus and we bought cold drinks and did a free activity (camp box)
and for completing the free activity we were given a gift card for $5.00
off in any store in the CF Mall that we were in. We chose a kids store (I think) and I got a box of candy for $4.95. Then back towards the bus stop. We saw that several of our group had congregated at a certain spot with tables and benches so we joined them. Bus arrived and we got on and headed towards THE SUGAR SHACK, (The Sucrerie de la Montagne sugar shack is a typical 120-acre maple grove that is open year-round. Recognized as a "Quebec Heritage Site" and "signature product", this sugar shack, located in the heart of a forest of century-old maple trees, offers its customers a real foray into the past of Canadian and Quebec ancestors.). We were picked up by a wagon pulled by a tractor and taken UP to the restaurant and some other buildings. I am way in the back in the row along the left side, wearing sunglasses.
First we were shown the building where the maple syrup is made and then taken into the dining hall. There was live entertainment.
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The food was very good, there were several items presented to us: chicken, mashed potatoes, split pea soup, pickled beets, homemade bread, pancakes, and more. When we were done eating and being entertained, the tractor ride picked us up in front of the gift shop (very expensive, $2 for one postcard) to take us down to the bus. Maybe a half hour drive to our hotel HOLIDAY INN EXPRESS in Vaudreuil QC. We will be here for four nights NO MORE PACKING and UNPACKING until we head back to New York. Very nice room. I located the breakfast room, got info about using wifi and Marlene wanted ice so I went on a mission to get an ice bucket and ice. Very nice front desk girl delivered that to our room. I took a cool shower since I was roasting, we cannot adjust the air conditioning.
TUESDAY: good breakfast at hotel, lots of variety. I had oatmeal, a piece of toast, small portion of scrambled eggs, a bite or two of a sausage link, a bite of a cinnamon bun. Bus left hotel shortly after nine a.m. when our step in guide (Lily) arrived,
We headed to St. Joseph's Oratory. Along the way, Lily pointed out some landmarks. Lily told us some facts about the basilica. She told us about Saint André Bessette. When we got inside, we found that some of the escalators were not working, which complicated things a bit.
We went through the museum before heading to the sanctuary
which is not nearly as nice as the one we saw yesterday. The chapel was interesting, Brother Andre had living quarters upstairs.
we were dropped off downtown (De la Commune St W,) in front of the ARCHAEOLOGICAL Museum, and left to our own devices to find a place to have lunch. Marlene and I chose an interesting place (Boqueria) and chose two items to share. One was grilled vegetables and the other was a salad. We noticed Mary walking in front of the seating area (outside) and invited her to join us. She did and she ordered gazpacho. We finished eating at the same time. I charged both Marlene's and my meal. Then we walked to the location of the meeting place for the sightseeing cruise on the St, Lawrence River.
The cruise was nice, but not spectacular.
We didn't get the best seats since we were not at the beginning of the line. I went outside and found a nice spot with a great view and stayed there for a while, and took a few pictures.
After that our guided tour of Montreal continued. The most interesting location was the main building that Canada built for the 1972 Olympics, it has been made into apartments.
Then to the restaurant for supper. Restaurants le Toit Rouge in Plaza Universal. We had three choices: pasta, chicken or pork, I chose the pork and enjoyed it. We arrived back at our hotel a little after seven p.m. I was a bit disgruntled to find out that housekeeping only left us one washcloth and no small towels so I went to the front desk and asked for them.
Wednesday September 18th
Same breakfast as yesterday, I made a scrambled egg sandwich which I was enjoying until Mary said she thought they used powdered eggs to prepare the eggs. Boarded bus at nine a.m. More guided tour of Montreal, kind of interesting, one or two stops to take pictures before finally arriving at the location of the UNDERGROUND CITY, which was basically an underground mall, which was not especially unique. Here are the escalators going both down and up (to TIME OUT, which is a huge food court).
Marlene, Mary and I were totally confused as to finding a place to have lunch, but I guess we finally figured it out and ordered our lunches (credit card only) at the one of two places with menus in English
(in TIME OUT) I had a burger and fries, pretty good.
Then we had some free time to shop. We went into DOLLARAMA
and we each purchased a couple of items. I thought it might be like DOLLAR TREE, but it was more like DOLLAR GENERAL. We went into a very nice, and kind of expensive department store. After that, we left the Underground City and crossed the street and sat in a very nice small park: PHILLIPS SQUARE for the few minutes we had left.
Met up with others at the bus and experienced more guided tour before arriving close to NOTRE DAME BASICILA. This group photo was taken outside, before we went inside.
Our step on guide game us a guided tour. It was magnificent! Took pictures.
Marlene and I went to the museum in the bank (Bank of Montreal) across the street, not much there. Then walked back to the bus. Last stop was at BARBIE'S in Dorval where we had a great dinner, the best meal yet! Also we celebrated John Haight's 77th birthday.
Soup, salmon, rice, green salad and dessert. A half hour drive back to hotel got us there around 7:30 p.m. Lights out in our room about nine p.m
THURSDAY the 19th :We headed to Quebec City (Capital of Quebec). It took all morning to get there, we stopped once at a huge convenience store/gas station/McDonalds). The area of the city where we went is known as PLACE ROYALE. This famous town plaza is the heart of historic Lower Town. We were dropped off close to this church:
Notre-Dame-des-Victoires Catholic Church which is one of the oldest churches in North America. We had a short time about ninety minutes to have lunch, look around and shop in the area we were dropped of in before out new STEP ON GUIDE joined us. She led us around the area attempting to point out various spots, but it was next to impossible to hear her. While Mary and I were walking around, we saw this interesting display. There was not any information available or a sign saying what it depicted. We think it has to do with banned books.
Here are a few more pictures of the area, first the place we had lunch. 
There were a LOT of street musicians.
Then we all got back on the bus and drove around Quebec City while she pointed things out. This part worked well. We saw Parliament, a huge fort (I think called the Plains of Abraham). I only took one picture:
and more before heading back to Montreal and our supper stop: a huge buffet, which was very good. After leaving the restaurant, we still had a two hour drive. Betty put on the movie DAVE, watching it filled the two hours nicely. In the middle of the movie, I took my bra off since it was bothering me so much, it was dark in the bus and Marlene barely noticed. Back in our room, we started packing for tomorrow morning when we have to have our luggage outside our rooms by 7:15 a.m.
FRIDAY: we were up early getting our luggage ready to be picked up and into the "trunk" of the bus. I had a breakfast of a banana and oatmeal and a small bit of bacon. I would have had peanut butter toast but I couldn't get the peanut butter open. We loaded the bus a bit before eight thirty a.m. and left shortly after eight thirty a.m. We played BINGO on the bus.
Our first stop was at the DUTY FREE STORE (I think it was the Thousand Islands Duty Free Store) just outside the border between Canada and the USA. I had $25 dollars in Canadian bills that I wanted to use, so I bought myself a wallet/change purse and a large chocolate bar and then used my change to purchase a teabag holder. Next stop was customs, and after that a stop in Watertown at the Salmon Run Mall. This time Marlene and I purchased lunch at a Mediterranean place in the food court.
It was very good! Next and last stop was at the outlet malls in Waterloo where all we did was use the restrooms. We arrived in Barker around five thirty or maybe a bit before.
I gave Mary a ride to Lockport and her daughter Natalie met us behind the library. I was home, busy uploading pictures to flickr when Marlene called to tell me that Betty Stover (our trip leader) called to tell her that some people who we travelled with have tested positive for Covid. Ugh. I recall Linda the Laughing Lady telling someone that she had a sinus infection very early in the trip, and a few days later telling someone that it probably was not a sinus infection since several other people on the bus felt sick.
SATURDAY: I slept pretty good last night and got up a few minutes before nine a.m. I worked on unpacking and returned phone calls to those people who called my home phone while I was gone. I worked more on uploading pictures to my flickr account. I also called and cancelled my phone service for my smart phone which died while I was in Canada. I was able to verify the day and time of my upcoming SLEEP STUDY. I could not find the paper where I wrote down Mary 's last name but I did find her on facebook and sent the picture of her and Marlene to her in private message. However, it does not look like she posts on FB, but people post things on her page.
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