Rather excitingly I can now fly to Canada directly from Cardiff. WestJet fly 4 times a week between May and September. So off I went on a Saturday morning to the easiest airport in the world to get through. The only downside is there is very little to do at Cardiff airport, and the flight was delayed by an hour.

But anyway, we eventually left on an 8 hour flight to Toronto on a narrowbody (1 aisle and only 2 toilets for the 150+ of us in economy), and no seat back entertainment screens. But, free WiFi which worked! Worked so well in fact that about 2 hours before landing, I discovered that my connecting flight to Montreal had been cancelled (WestJet cabin crew were having a labour dispute) so I spent the time looking at my options. I knew the train was an option as I would be making my way back from Montreal to Toronto on the train over the next week, but the last train that day had already departed. All other flights from Toronto to Montreal were over $1000 CAD (about £500). The last option was the bus. And there was a Megabus leaving Union Station at 6pm that would get to Montreal at 1.30am. Not absolutely ideal but my original flight was due into Montreal at 12.30am so if this worked, I’d be at the hotel at probably the same time I would have been had everything gone to the original plan.

I was prepped and ready when I got off the plane, my bag was there on the belt and I hot-footed it on the UP train from the airport to Union Station, buying my bus ticket online on the way. I arrived at the Union Station Bus Terminal at about 5.30pm and was very glad to see the bus turn up slightly after 6pm. My body clock was at 11pm at this point and I did my best to try and get some sleep on the bus. Not entirely sure it was successful, and I was so pleased to see us pulling into the bus terminal in Montreal shortly after 1am. After checking into the hotel, I collapsed into bed at 1.40am, slightly over 24 hours after I’d woken up at home in Cardiff.

After a pretty decent sleep, I was up and ready to explore Montreal. I was staying on the edge of Chinatown, close to the Vieux-Port (Old Port). I had a leisurely wander around including to the Notre Dame cathedral, along the waterfront of the old port, and to the clock tower before going in search of some lunch. This search coincided with a downpour so I jumped into the nearest bar and had the Québécois classic, poutine. Basically chips, gravy and cheese curds. All washed down in this instance with some Canada Dry ginger ale. Not sure I could get more Canadian!!

It was still raining when I’d finished so after quite a lot of walking in the morning, I headed back to the hotel for a rest before a second wander in the late afternoon after it had kinda stopped the worst of the rain. I headed through Chinatown and towards the financial district which was relatively quiet on this Sunday.

An early night with the jet lag catching up with me, so I was up and at it relatively early the next day though sadly the weather was even worse, so I was looking for indoor activities. I headed out on the metro to the Olympic Park, to the Biodome. Unfortunately a lot of other people had the same idea and it was very crowded, and in hindsight probably not worth visiting if I was here again, but it did keep me dry for an hour. I’d also hoped to go to the Jardin botanique but the weather was not playing ball at all.

I got back on the metro and stopped off at Plateau Mont Royal, and then to the Jean Talon market which wasn’t super-busy on a wet Monday. I do enjoy wandering around local markets wherever I go, I think it really helps to get a sense of the places you’re visiting.

Montreal has an Underground City, which makes sense when you consider how cold it gets in the winter. It was a glorified shopping mall though, I much preferred Sapporo’s version.

After that it was back to the hotel for dinner and a rest after clocking up a whole lot of steps over the last couple of days.

Up early again the following day (still jet lagged). The weather was so much nicer so after breakfast and before my train to Ottawa, I retraced some of my steps around the Old Port and Waterfront, for some blue sky pictures.

By mid morning I was off to the Gare Centrale for my train to Ottawa. I’ve written a few times about the trains I’ve taken on my travels this year, all of which put trains in the UK to shame. And Viarail in Canada is no different. I’ve booked a business class ticket for the slightly over 2 hour journey to Ottawa, for £78, which includes a nice seat, 3 course lunch and drinks including wine. And the WiFi works on the train! The equivalent train in the UK would be well over £200, you might get some snacks thrown at you and the WiFi certainly doesn’t work!

I arrived into a hot and sunny Ottawa by mid afternoon, though we were about 30 minutes late. This did mean that I was able to check in straight away when I arrived at the hotel in downtown Ottawa. I had a bit of a wander and then in the evening I met up with my roommate from my Thailand and Malaysia trip from earlier this year, who lives here in Ottawa. We went for a cold dip in the river at NCC River House, a free outdoor swimming area on the Ottawa River. We weren’t in the water too long (it was cold!!), but the air temperature was lovely so we sat out and chatted for ages before deciding we should go and find some food for dinner.

The next morning I started with a walk to the nearby Parliament buildings where at 10am every morning during the summer, the Changing of the Guard happens. As a Brit, this was all very familiar, as were the surroundings as the buildings certainly appear to be modelled on the UK Houses of Parliament (I’m sure someone will correct me here!). I didn’t stay for the whole ceremony as it was very warm, and so after a wander around the parliament buildings, I headed for some air conditioning in the form of the National Gallery of Canada. As I’ve got older, I’ve decided a quite enjoy wandering around an art gallery. This one had some interesting indigenous art, as well as other European and North American art. It also had an exhibition of Canadian artist Helen McNicoll, an impressionist, which I really enjoyed.

After that, I walked to the Byward Market for a little browsing and a late lunch followed by a Tim Hortons. In the evening I met up with my friend again, and some of her friends, as we enjoyed fireworks as part of a competition from a pub on the water. All very relaxing.

So, my first impressions of Canada. Montreal was unfortunately a bit damp and I’m not sure I saw the best of it. It is certainly a French-first city and I did manage to dredge up some of my schoolkid French to bumble through. When it was sunny on the final morning, it felt like a place I’d like to stay longer if it was dry. Ottawa had the benefit of being gloriously sunny (in fact a bit too hot at times) while I was there. It is officially bilingual, so my haltering French was less called for here. I really liked the vibe in Ottawa, a calmer city I think, very walkable. And the biggest plus of all to catch up with my friend.

Now, onwards back to Toronto…