Life Recently: Montreal Photo Diary, Part 2!

Hi, everyone! If you checked out my latest post, you'll know that I spent last weekend in Montreal- my first ever time in the city! The first two days took us to Mount Royal Park and Old Montreal, and today's post will share some shots from day three, when we visited tropical climates, did a bit of shopping(!), and ate a delicious vegan dinner. 

Here are my favourite photos from the day!

Adam and I were all smiles on Monday! Here we are posing among the foliage of the Biodome's tropical rainforest ecosystem, where we got to see some beautiful animals and where the humidity was really quite a force to be reckoned with (as my dewy glisten suggests). But before we went to the Biodome...



...some shopping! I had a light bulb moment on Sunday, which led to a Google-powered confirmation: there is an Inglot in Montreal!! I hadn't planned on making shopping a central part of the visit, but as there are no Inglot shops in Toronto, I made a bee-line for the Place Montreal Trust first thing Monday morning where I had a bit (a lot!) of fun creating a custom Freedom System custom palette. More about that in a future post! 



Now back to the Biodome! The Biodome is more than an indoor zoo, it's an attraction that presents 5 unique American ecosystems, complete with temperature, humidity, and wildlife. How incredibly neat! In the tropical rainforest section, some kissing parrots...



... some giant tropical fish... Oh, and a handsome boyfriend!



... and this resting guy (a yacare caiman), who was all teeth!

Me, amidst the tropical greenery!
 

And in the Laurentian Maple Forest ecosystem, a beaver! Doesn't get more Canadian than this :) Despite being a national animal, beavers aren't something us Canadians get to see every day (or ever). It was fun to watch this adorable little guy going about his business!

And my unexpected favourite of the day- Puffins! These inquisitive little birds were part of the Labrador Coast ecosystem and were such a treat to watch! I ended up bonding with one of them, who came right up to me and became instantly mesmerized by my shiny necklace. Such a cute little buddy!

Finally, the sub-Antarctic Islands ecosystem brought us some penguins! Such an amazing sight to witness in-person. Here is a group of them, just chillin' :)

And Adam made a new friend!
Overall, I'd recommend the Biodome to anyone! Such a rich, interesting, (adorable!) place to visit!

After the Biodome was a trip back to Rue St. Laurent where I stopped at a local café for lunch. Café Martin was an adorable little spot and the service was ultra friendly. I had an amazing brie, pear, walnut and honey sandwich (Le Evita) and the best iced latte ever! Would definitely stop in again next time I'm in town.

The walk up St. Laurent brought some lovely shops, including some fantastic vintage offerings, as well as this ultra fun and colourful wall art :)

For dinner, we stuffed our faces at Aux Vivres on St. Laurent, an amazing vegan spot! I had this vegan Caesar salad with capers, grilled tofu, and coconut "bacon" bits. So yummy!

We did a bit more wandering, and we stumbled across this castle. Strike that. It's a fire station! Leave it to a historic city like Montreal to create a fire house from such a mastic building :)

And finally, a beautiful Montreal sunset! 

So there you have it! I must say that my first experience in Montreal was nothing but wonderful. We saw a perfect smattering of sites and found the locals to be friendly and incredibly patient with my rustiness en francais. The history behind the city is evident and the spirit of openness was palpable. A truly lovely place to visit!

I hope you enjoyed taking a peek through my travel photos! Have you ever been to Montreal? Where have you visited lately?

Thanks for reading! xo