Sunday, September 28, 2008

Il est tout au sujet du voyage

I'm in Montreal! We needed tires. Don't ask why I drove 900 kilometres for tires. Long story. But I won't be home until late on Monday. While we're here we'll be visiting family and friends and I'm sure we'll have loads of fun. First we'll do some of the "family part" and eat too much food before heading to NDG to do the "friend part" and get our tires. We'll be going out for dinner in Old Montreal and I hope that the weather is nice so that we can hang out on a restaurant patio with a good bottle of wine and catch up. It's been too long since we've seen our friends. Then we'll go on to the next place and spend some time with my grandmother, who I love with all my heart. She's smart and strong and an inspiration to me. She shows me the kind of woman I want to become.

Coming back home is bittersweet because we love Montreal, and that car ride...whew. Anyone else go on long car rides like this on a regular basis? Since we head up there at least four or five times a year, I've learned a few tricks to make the drive easier.

1. Lots of batteries for the video game.
2. Extra DVD's for the television.
3. A set of headphones.
4. A cigarette plug adapter.
*Note that all of these things involves electronics designed to keep my five year-old busy?

We also play lots of eye-spy games and tell stories. And making time for breaks is a must with a child on board. Even if he doesn't have to pee...he will...and giving him a chance to stretch his legs keeps him from getting too cranky. We also try to travel at non-peak traffic times, even if it means getting up at 4:00 in the morning.

So I'll see you when I get back, or maybe...
Voyez-toi à Montréal

7 comments:

Tiffany Clare said...

That last is a pic of montreal-vieux! such a beautiful city. If I could pick up French (which I cannot) I would move there in a heartbeat.

Wylie Kinson said...

16 hours to Thunder Bay, my friend.
SIXTEEN. With two kids, 4 & 8.

Longest. Drive. Ever.

Hope you're having a blast :D

J.K. Coi said...

I'm able to check in, and we're having a great time, but I gotta go! Talk soon.

Shelley Munro said...

We had a few long days driving while we were in the US. We don't have really long drives in NZ. It's not big enough!

Have fun picking out your tires.

J.K. Coi said...

I know! You'd love Montreal, Tiff.

And Wylie, I can totally relate...kind of. Not 16 hours worth of relating, I know, and I didn't have two kids in the car, just the one who didn't sleep a wink and had to pee every 20 minutes.

J.K. Coi said...

I loved all your blogs about your travels, Shelley, but I bet it also feels nice to be home!

I've just gotten back and I'm going to chill on the couch all night. It's back to work in the morning.

Unknown said...

We went to Montreal last summer and I fell on the street, LOL. Not from wine, but crowds and cobblestones. Soo pretty, though. I could eat in every restaurant.