July 3, Day 7...4th Anniversary Day!!!

We have driven from Toronto, Canada and are now in (French-speaking) Montreal. It's lunchtime, so Robert and I stop at a local A&W...but everything is in French...ie. above-noted rondelles d'oignon = "onion rings"! OF COURSE!!!
Heather had to break out her rusty old French, and the employees were so nice, they didn't mind it was not parfait! Bob is learning some French, and knows that "deux" means "2" because at the donut place, "Tim Horton's," he loves the creme chocolat and wants DEUX!

Too bad you can't see close up, but it is a RIOT seeing fast food written en francais! VERRRRRRY CLASSY!

Montreal is a MAGNIFICENT city...very vibrant, cultural, and actually friendly!!! We enjoyed the buildings, European flavor of the town, many ornate, European-style Cathedrals, and hearing everyone speak a language other than English!

Everyone we have interacted with here has been extremely helpful and polite. It is also a very rich city, and evidently QUITE the fashion,and imported car, capital of this country!

Beautiful St. Catherine Cathedral! The inside is extremely ornate, with many stained glass "Stations" of Christ's journey to Calvary, and a huge pipe organ!

Bob made surprise dinner reservations at a most AMAZING restaurant in downtown Montreal. It's called "Queue de Cheval" (or "Tail of the Horse"). I have to say, Morton's or Ruth's Chris pale in comparison, as this is the BEST MEAL both Bob and I have EVER HAD!

We were seated upstairs at a window table. Here you may be able to appreciate the wine stacks, much like a library,complete with roving ladders! The place is full of rich woods, antiques, and very attentive waiters - including a "head waiter" who makes sure the others are attending to every aspect of service. We had 3 waiters tending to us...but MOST IMPORTANTLY...they were not snooty and the food was spectacular!

This friendly fellow introduced all the fresh seafood and cuts of beef. Here he presents GIANT TIGER PRAWNS - fresh from Thailand! (Only $12/apiece... that's a STEAL at $72/half-dozen!) We opted for a crab cake which was DELICIOUS! Wait, there's MORE...cuz you know how I love FOOD!

Fresh oysters and Australian lobster tails...

and 3 excellent cuts of steaks...we had the filet mignon (and yes...Bob got the MANLY, 14 oz. filet...and couldn't finish it).

This gentleman puts pepper on our Caesar salad...ALMOST as good as Dad's.

A toast to each other. We could LIVE like this everyday, but we'd each weigh 500 pounds! Note: it stays light outside until 9:15 p.m.

Much as I'd like to show each of the 6 desserts, I am limiting it to this...our Belgian chocolate-covered, fruit-adorned rich cheesecake. Between the 2 of us, we couldn't even finish it!!! (If I include the other 5 desserts, Bob will have a fit!)

This is how our finale was presented to us...complete with a popping SPARKLER!

After dinner, we walked back to our hotel (Hotel Vogue, located on Rue de la Montagne Street), changed, and walked 12 city blocks to the annual Montreal Jazz Festival. We met a very nice 25-year-old Lebanese man who was a joy to meet! He is fluent in 5 languages, arrived from London 3 months ago, and works at a fine nearby hotel. Together, the 3 of us enjoyed listening to live jazz entertainment in a packed, cordoned-off area of the city. FANTASTIC!!! This has been a great trip so far...and tomorrow we head back to the U.S.A. to Newport, Vermont.