Montreal Canada

Montreal Canada
Originally uploaded by dwgdallas

Sunny day in Montreal Canada

Biodome

The Biodome is a great treat in Montreal. We went early on Saturday morning and it was already packed.

Old Montreal

Here are some good images from old Montreal.

Cirque d Soleil show OVO is great. The tents are located on the pier in Old Montreal.

Tourist

Okay we are the ultimate tourists. Yes - we took the open decker tour bus around Montreal. It was a lot of fun - except for the brief showers.

Montreal Botanical Gardens

It really is a must to visit the botanical gardens in Montreal. They are terrific.

Montreal Day Two

Waking up to cooler weather is real fun! Texas' temperatures are reaching 100 degrees - and Canada still hoovers around 70 or so. Yes. This is good weather even if a bit rainy.

Today - we have plans to enjoy the Montreal botanical gardens. But before we got started - we ran visited the Governor's house located close to our hotel in Old Montreal.

Montreal Day 1

Storms delayed our arrival to Montreal. Once we landed - we discovered the airport had been closed for over 1 hour due to thunderstorms. Luckily - Barbara was delayed too. So we text messaged each other from the runway while both our pilots waited on a gate. Funny, sad and a LONG day.

Hotel D Armes

Pictures from the lobby at the Hotel D Armes in old Montreal

Hotel Place D Armes

We enjoy this hotel located in the heart of Old Montreal. We are in room 1505 - building one. It is a nice room. Although I would prefer a different wing of the hotel. This one shares the elevator with the very popular rooftop club 701.

Aster

How about this Stoke's Aster? They really are nice when blooming.

OVO

Tickets are purchased. Yes. One itinerary item down - about Fifty to go.

Montreal Bound

It is time to make plans for our upcoming trip to Montreal Canada. This year - Barbara will join us. The Montreal Jazz Festival [http://www.montrealjazzfest.com/ ]will be on-going during our visit again this year. Also, good news - Cirque du Soleil newest show called OVO will be showing near our hotel! I am a huge fan. On my last trip to Las Vegas I saw 4 Cirque du Soleil shows in 3 nights. It was a blast.

Trains, Planes, and Automobiles ...and well, Trains

I know I should love the Frankfurt train system - but honestly we never could get the 'feel' for it. We tried the U and S a couple of times only to eventually return above ground and fend for ourselves walking the city. The train from the airport wasn't much easier to use for us and we missed our stop in the city. Who knew it had a different name than on the map? Not us. Oh well - we can master the system on our next trip to Germany (I promise to do better research before that trip!).

More Shopping

Frankfurt has tons of shops including two impressive Gallerias. Goetestr. is known for its shops including Gucci, Tiffany's, and other high-end retailers. We found a couple of local shops well worth visiting:

Erzgebirgische Volkskunst, Tongesgasse 27, sells German-made nutcrackers and other wooden goods. The small shop is wonderful. They carry original wooden music boxes with a base price of $150 Euros.

Affentor Frankfort, Fahrgasse 23, sells handmade cloth computer bags, purses, and totes. Their designs are original. Also all sales assist non-profit organizations. Computer Bags were about $89 Euros. This area is also home to some great contemporary art galleries.

We fell upon a progressive urban neighborhood South of the Main - at Bruckenstr. and Wallstr. - this area is full of pubs for drinking, custom designers for the trend setters, and plenty of off-the-wall tiny shops. Wertsachen, Bruckenstar. 58, is worth a visit.

Finally - the indoor market in Frankfurt is good fun. Here you can find almost anything you could desire to add to your pantry. On the weekends - this place is packed and spills outdoors to the nearby patios.

Food

NYC Bar & Restaurant - Hans Thoma-Stra. 1, right off of Schweizer Sta.; good service and food. This eatery is just South of the Main River and close to Museum mile (about the 1/2 way point).

Cafe Hauptwache - An der Hauptwache, Good for people watching especially on the weekend. Stop and have a drink or lunch. This eatery is located along the shopping area in Northern Frankfurt. $34 Euro for 2

Restaurant Zum Schwarzen Stern - located across from City Hall at Romer. This eatery is a good place for a break from touring the city. Outdoors is best if the weather permits. Food Portions are large and traditional. $41 Euro for 2.

7 Bello - Nidda Str. (next to Pure Hotel) located just North of the Frankfurt Main Train station. This is the real thing if you like Italian food - nothing special with the decor or service - just good food. It made for a real treat to stumble on this eatery.

Frankfurt Modern Museum

Stadel Museum

Art in Frankfurt

Most of the museums in Frankfurt are located on the Rhine River just South of downtown. Today - we went to the Stadel, Modern and Schirn museums. Frankfurt has some good works in their collections. We also stumbled across a series of sweet contemporary art galleries. Watch out - tomorrow we will visit them.

Frankness