Continuing with Part 2 of my trip, where I head to Canada for PWHL matches in Ottawa and Montreal.
Day 8
Full day in Ottawa! Unfortunately, the weather was gloomy and rainy the whole morning till afternoon and then it
finally cleared up in the evening.
Started the day with brunch at Wilf & Ada's which is a 15min walk from my hotel. Had the duck
eggs ben and it was soooo good. Muffin was perfectly toasted. They offer salad, potatoes or abit of both for sides which is perfect. I got the mix to get my greens but still try the potatoes. Also tried the maple latte from Arlington Five which is just right beside Wilf & Ada's.
Walked back the same street to takeaway a croissant from Bread & Son's.
Then went to the other side of the Rideau canal to start the touristy stuff. Walked past the Ottawa Sign on the way to the cathedral but sadly the weather was so gray and non-aesthetic haha.
First stop is the Notredame Cathedral. Why is every cathedral called Notredame haha.
Just across is the National Gallery of Canada where I spent around 2.5h. Really liked the exhibitions of art by indigenous people. There's also a section on European art which was less exciting as it's like every other museum in Europe.
Braved the rain to head to Byward Market to try Beavertails which is a humongous piece of fried dough dusted with sugar and cinnamon. Hard to go wrong with that combination! They also conveniently put the calorie count on the menu so I could make an informed choice haha.
Then headed over to the Senate nearby for my tour which I'd booked for 2.40pm. The real Parliament building is closed for renovation for 15 years as its too old, so the Senate moved to an old train station and the House of Commons moved to the west block. The guide was really good and we were allowed to take plenty of pictures. I find it interesting that Canada is still a constitutional monarchy!
Had some time to stop by
Elina Patisserie to get some dessert and return to my hotel to keep it in
the fridge before going for my next tour at the House of Commons.
This was pretty interesting as they converted an old courtyard into the House of Commons. The tour guide was for this tour was less knowledgeable haha she kept saying she's not sure and would have to check for questions.
Took some pictures of the renovating Parliament Hill and the War Memorial.
Then headed back the other way to CF Rideau Center to get souvenirs from Purdy's chocolatier. They're known for their georgia browns, but I also bought some of the chocolate sticks for my colleagues.
And now the public transportation ordeal begins. I returned to my hotel to drop off the souvenirs before dinner, and wanted to take bus 11 which stops right outside my hotel and goes direct to the restaurant. But I waited past the departure time stated on Google maps and there was no bus in sight and Google maps said it had departed. So I panicked because the next bus was more than 20 min after. I decided to take bus 16 instead which stopped a couple of minutes away. This was also arriving in 20min but the journey was shorter.
Since there were finally blue skies, I decided to take the time to take more pics of Parliament Hill.
Made it to the bus stop before the stated departure time, then the same thing happened! Past departure time, no bus in sight and Googlemaps said it departed. Turns out the bus was just late argh. Finally made it to Gezellig! I was about 5min late for my reservation, but they said the table wasn't ready so I had to wait at the bar. I think it's the first time I've reserved and not had my table ready, so I was a little grumpy, because I didn't want my food to be served then have to shift which would be a hassle, and the bar isn't the most comfortable. Anyway, I had the main of cod with some veg and mushrooms. It was nice but there were a bit too many sauces going on. Followed by the butterfinger dessert which was the main thing I wanted to try and it was so good (can't go wrong with chocolate and peanut butter) but so heaty lol.
This
time, I managed to take bus 11 back to my hotel, although it was late again! At least now I knew Gmaps wasn't to be trusted.
Day 9
The crazy day I watched 2 matches in 2 cities. Woke up super early to walk to the bus stop near U of Ottawa to board the Orleans express bus to Montreal. Was afraid it would be difficult to find but thankfully the bus was parked right there.
Arrived at the Gare d'autocars of Montreal around 1015 and spent wayy too long trying to find the ticket machine for the metro before realising I had to queue at the counter. And then spent awhile finding Le Cathcart which is a food hall in some basement. Managed to get a bar seat at Arthur's which has a branch at this place. Really wanted to try both the latke smorgasbord and the pancakes but decided to not be overly ambitious and just got smorgasbord. And then...the kitchen didn't receive my order or something but I waited 40min for my food. I was so annoyed because so many waiters were walking around and not one thought to check why this person was waiting so long with no food?! And since I was sitting at the bar, the bartender was right in front of me and he didn't bother to check until I asked. Twice. And I still had to tip 15%.
Hurried on to Bell Centre which was luckily just a 10min walk away. I just had to follow the crowd as there were 21k people headed there. Took lots of pics, bought a puck as a souvenir, and settled in my second row seat! Amazing atmosphere.
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| Pou tossing a puck! |
The crowd was loud for all the introductions but of course, MPP had the loudest cheers and a standing ovation T_T And of course, world attendance record with 21,105 attendees.
Montreal grinded but Toronto is a tough team and it was 2-2 at end of regulation. The roof was really on fire for Montreal's goals. The game went to OT and honestly I was a little worried as it was 345pm and I had a train to catch at 430pm. Luckily or not, OT ended within 15s with a Sarah Nurse goal haha.
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| Pou in the box haha |
Short walk to the train station to take the train back to Ottawa, which thankfully arrived on time at 640pm and I hopped on an Uber to TD Arena, just in time for puck drop at 7pm for the game between Ottawa and Minnesota. Amazing game with a 4-0 win by Ottawa, with a hat trick by Brianne Jenner and shutout by Maschmeyer! Couldn't have asked for a better Ottawa game to watch. I was sitting beside this nice couple and the lady started talking to me as they're season ticket holders for those seats so they know every time a new face appears. Out of all the 6 matches I watched, this was probably the most fun because I had less emotional investment and the atmosphere was just chill and people were so friendly.
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| Post-game interview with Emerance Maschmeyer, first star of the game with a shutout! |
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| Brianne Jenner, second star of the game! |
The match ended around 930pm and there is a bus which conveniently stops right outside the arena and goes straight back to my hotel.
Day 10
Last full day in Canada! Started the morning with breakfast at Mazarine and had crispy cigars filled with feta cheese, ashta
pancakes and a cinnamon latte.
Decided to take the bus to the Canadian Museum of History and my Presto card ran out of money. The ride was $4.50 but the driver didn't have change so I ended up paying 5 bucks for like a 10min ride T_T Public transportation is so expensive!
I spendt around 3h at the museum, taking way too long at the First Nations exhibit and had to rush through the last part of Canada's history. But its ok as I'm more interested in the early times than the 2000s-2010s.
Walked back to my hotel which took around 40min but it was pretty scenic, crossing Rideau canal and passing by the National Gallery, cathedral and Ottawa sign again.
Took an Uber to the Ottawa station to head to Montreal again, and spent too long walking around in circles trying to find an accessible exit from the station without stairs, then hobbled and dragged my luggage to Hotel Omni Royal which was a 10min walk from the station.
Headed for my last fancy dinner at Bouillon Bilk, which was a 20min walk from my hotel. Walked past Place des Arts and all the pretty art installations around.
For dinner, I ordered a trout and kimchi appetiser which was so good. The main of eggplant was probably the best eggplant dish I've ever had. Dessert was clementine with chocolate and olive oil cake and the server poured some white sauce over the dark choc layer to melt it. Very fancy. But I didn't realise that clementine is orange and was wondering why there was something sour in the dessert haha.
Finally, headed to IGA at Complexe Desjardins to buy maple syrup and biscuits home.
And on the way back, it started raining and HAILING wow. First time I've experienced that I think. Luckily I was just 2 streets from my hotel at that point so I just hurried back.
Day 11
Final morning! Struggled to wake up, but still made my way out to Melk Cafe Stanley for oat latte and a yummy blueberry scone.
Returned
to my hotel to check out and take an uber to the airport. There was a jam so I barely arrived 90min before departure. Luckily, I could still drop my bags off. Had to finish the salad and fruit that I got at IGA the previous day before clearing security. Security was pretty speedy, but I went shopping and took my time going to the boarding gate, and had my name announced over the PA to present myself to the gate for boarding lol.
Both legs of my flight were really empty so I managed to have the entire row to myself which was so shiok. Chose the pasta & chicken for my dinner, and french toast for my breakfast for the first leg, and the chicken with polenta on the second leg which I really liked. Also visited the ahlan lounge @A1 during my stopover at Dubai. I found the selection quite limited though. No salad, very little cooked food, but a good variety of bread and pastries. They did have an ala carte menu but it was just eggs and pancakes for breakfast. I had the omelette with veg, which also came with mushrooms and a slice of avocado which was not bad!
And that's the end of my whirlwind trip to watch 6 hockey matches in 3 cities!