AntiNEC

OK, I haven't written here in a few weeks. But I have an excuse.


This month is our 1st year wedding anniversary, and I wanted to do something really cool. I happened to get a $2000 tax refund this year, so I had some money to play with.


So...we went to Montreal for the Formula One Canadian Grand Prix! Nadu has always wanted to go to one, even when she lived in Okinawa. And since we've been together she has taught me about the rules and the drivers, and it has grown on me.


We took a flight out of Edmonton at 1:00 AM since it was the cheapest flight I could find, and it got us in Montreal at 7:30, time enough to catch the first practice session at the race track. Unfortunately, somebody on the plane had a medical emergency and we had to stop in Winnipeg. We got into Montreal at around 9:00.


We first went to the Bed & Breakfast to drop off our luggage. Nadu had written down directions before we went, so it was easy to find :)

Le Gite B&B


Then we went directly to the race track. Getting our tickets was quite the ordeal. I ordered them online, but the company did not receive them on time, so we were supposed to pick them up at the track. Made me a little nervous!


We did end up getting the tickets, to my huge relief. Our seats were pretty good, right at the top of the grandstand so we could see lots of the track..





It was pretty amazing to see how fast the cars go! But this was nothing compared to the actual race 2 days later!


That evening we met up with Nadu's cousin. We went for dinner at 'The Pistol'. The poutine there was pretty good :D


The next day (Saturday) we booked it to our next Bed and Breakfast, since 'Le Gite' was full for the other nights. This place was also an excellent place to stay.

Repos & Manna


Then we hopped on the Metro to the race track for day 2. Our favorite team, McLaren Mercedes-Benz finished 1-2 that day





That evening we met up with our friend from college and her boyfriend. We went downtown to Crecent Street (I think that's it's name). There were hundreds of thousands of people there, like nothing I've ever seen! There were Ferraris and imported Hondas lining the roads, and a live band playing on a stage in the middle of a street.


We stopped in at a little pub where we had a few pitchers of beer, and made our way back to the bed & breakfast at around 3:00 AM.


So onto day 3 (Sunday). We got to the track as early as we could which was like 10:00


At 11:00 they had the parade, where all the drivers go around the track on a classic car waving at the fans.




Then the race began. Oh my God, they're so FAST! I know it sounds dumb, but you really cannot imagine how fast they are unless you are up close. And of course, so LOUD! That might have been a good part of being so high up in the crowd, it was not quite as loud.


In the end, our favorite driver from our favorite team won (Lewis Hamilton).




After that, we had about a full day left to go around Montreal. That evening we went to Mount Royal, where you get a view from high up above the city. Very cool.


On Monday we hung out with our friend from college, and went to the Old Port part of the city. Our last stop was at the Notre Dame Cathedral.





All in all, an amazing trip. It was worth every penny we spent (that's a LOT of pennies!)