The anticipation is over....Montreal/Mont Tremblant was an amazing vacation, filled with sightseeing, the heart of the winter, and a romance that felt like a fairytale. We began our journey when Shawn picked me up @ Newark Penn Station & then briskly headed toward Quebec. After shuffling through our ipods (listening to practically every genre of music) & endless conversation (laughing, singing, etc) we arrived at the Delta Hotel in Montreal a little before 1am and headed to dreamland around 3am (Use your imagination). :-)
Montreal is located at 45°30 N / -73°36 W. It is the largest city in
Quebec and the second largest in
Canada, with a metropolitan population of 3,359,000. Montreal is one of two large islands in this part of the St. Lawrence River. On Saturday, we wandered around shopped a bit, explored
McGill University, took the metro (which was VERY clean unlike NYC), walked around most of downtown area and enjoyed restaurants such as
CAFE VASCO DA GAMA,
CREPERIE CHEZ SUZETTE &
SALOON CAFE BISTRO. Nothing could be finer than finishing the night in a smokey dive bar with horrendous drag queens and beer served in pitchers. It was craptacular! We have pictures!! The following day we ended up sleeping in, taking in a view of the city from
Mount Royal (Hiking a little) and then heading on to Mont Tremblant which was an 1.5 hours away.
Mont Tremblant, North of Montreal, this wonderful resort offers some of the best skiing in eastern North America. This is one of the cutest villages I've ever seen. It felt very European to me and it was amazing to hear everyone speaking French. I have picutres...coming soon! And our hotel (Le Lodge de la Montagne) it felt like being in a rustic cottage with a fire place, kitchen and a lounge. That's my kind of getaway. Wow!!! We took in the scenery after the sun went down & then enjoyed an evening dining at Coco Pazzo wining and dining with an amazing assortment of cuisine (elk was amongst the list). We then went back to the resort, enjoyed a bottle of Shiraz, danced the night away, and well...this was this night where he asked me to be his boyfriend. I was a little taken back because I wasn't expecting it, but so excited to be make an impact on someone you really like. The emotions.....unexplainable.
Monday, Shawn was excited about hitting the slopes as I spent time getting to to know the area. There was a cute little lift (The Cabriolet Lift: Sponsered by Volkswagen) that overlooked the village where we took pictures and I pulled out the video camera. Wow again. It was especially comforting to see the look in Shawn's eyes as I verbally expressed my excitement for in Mont Tremblant and being with him. I'm sold!! :-) After the skiing and shopping weent back to the resort & played pool and took a dip in the hot tub. I have pictures!! Don't worry, they're PG! :-)Our final meal was celebrated at LES ARTISTES and it was amazing....loved the Escargot. Our final even was just as wonderful as the rest, we shared a bottle of Francis Coppola merlot, over music, we danced again, as well as gave massages to one another. :-) Very romantic. We headed back on Tuesday holding hands practically the entire way back, sad to return to our daily routine
I realize as I tried to break down my experiences that it was difficult to elaborate and express everything that took place. PERFECT would be the word that best describes my emotional journey of both Quebec and Shawn. I wasn't sure how this would all pan out but honest and truly, it was an unforgettablele adventure. PARFAIT!!!!!!
I felt inspired to write a few words about my Grandmother.......
I quickly learned I had to have an engineer open my office. It was the longest procedure and a VERY long emotional roller coaster, however I finally had my keys when all was said and done. Once everything felt Kosher Shawn, the ultimate gentleman, gracefully said "'If you're going have a couple glasses of wine well maybe we can toast together" Soooooo, he drove from Westfield NJ (from work) to Forest Hills to comfort me, support me, and just to be with me. I didn't even ask, he offered. HOW AMAZING!! I feel very lucky. I couldn't have asked for a better conclusion.....going to bed, feeling at peace and waking up next to this handsome, generous, caring guy.
OKAY, the picture of me as a sailor was just to get your attention and has no relevance to this entry. :-) As I nurse my cup of java I sit here completely exhausted. I have to be at work early for a meeting so I can't perform the usual blank stare in from of the computer until I force myself to take a shower. The last couple days have been chaos at work, fun musically, but also amazing because of Shawn.