Our October Trip Through Quebec: Day 5

October 5, 2011 ~ Day 5:  Finally! Not only has the rain stopped, but ~ miraculously ~ the sun has come out!  We had breakfast at Pacini, and saw this sight while leaving.  Mostly, I took these shots to show the beautiful blue,  blue sky,  with no clouds!

So we've seen bits and pieces of Montreal, but this morning we decided to do a city bus tour, to get a real overview.  Even though we've seen some of the sights already, taking these bus tours has usually been a good experience for us in the past, to give us an overall impression and sense of place and direction.


While waiting for the next tour bus, we walked around the downtown area a bit:

Google, Canada

Downtown Center

Fountain

Dome of Basilica Marie Reine du Monde

Some shots from the tour:

colorful flags

Olympic Stadium and Tower 

Our tour bus

St. Joseph's Oratorio near Mont Royal

view of Jacques Cartier Bridge
across the St. Lawrence

  

 Montreal view from Parc Mont Royal

Taking photos on Mont Royal

After our bus tour, which included an impromptu tour of some residential neighborhoods as well, we went back to Old Montreal for a fun late lunch at Olive + Gourmondo, a semi-self-serve organic sandwich place recommended by all the tour books!  

refreshments to go along with our sandwiches & salads

a still life in the corner near our table:

Afterwards, we walked around Old City for a while,

saw these pretty autumn mums

and the street where St. Nicholas lives ;)

We ended up back at our favorite sweet shoppe, Les Glaceurs, for cupcakes and ice cream (dessert!) We sat on the steps of Notre Dame Cathedral and ate our treats, looking at the Christmas store right across the street (and right next  door to Les Glaceurs!). It should have been on Rue Saint-Nicolas (sign above!)

After a long, but great day of touring and lots of walking, we retired to the hotel early to pack and rest up for our final morning in Montreal the next day!
End of Day 5!

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