Ottawa Ontario is Museum central. It amazes me that 7 National Museums can be found in one city alone. We did our first museum visit at the Children's Museum, this time I'll take you with us to The Canadian Museum of Nature.

When to Visit for FREE

I love free stuff with no strings attached. Haha. I'm thrilled this museum offers FREE admissions every Thursdays from 5pm onwards. This is only applicable to the permanent galleries. It does not include the Special Exhibits.

With the free admission, you'll only have to pay for parking around $5 CAD. It is open-air parking right next to the castle-like-with-a-modern-twist building.

The Main Galleries

We weren't able to check them all because we came in an hour before the museum closes. [This is entirely our fault due to indecision.] Anyway, below are areas covered.

Fossil Gallery

Stone Wall Gallery

Mammal Gallery

Water Gallery

Sleepover?

This piques my interest: yes, you can actually do a sleepover at the museum. It's a fun family activity with children over 5 years old. To learn more you can visit their website here.

Hmm... I doubt I'll be able to sleep in such an open environment though. Well, you'll never know unless you try. Talk to you soon then. ;)

The Old Port of Montreal (French: Vieux-Port de Montréal) is the historic port of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Located in Old Montreal, it stretches for over 2 km (1.2 mi) along the Saint Lawrence River. It was used as early as 1611 when French fur traders used it as a trading post. [source]

From downtown (Old Montreal), we crossed the Rue de la Commune street to get to the Old Port. These areas are next to each other. We plan to burn down the calories from our lunch taking the Ferris wheel ride. Haha.

Ahh... we were thirsty after that long Ferris wheel ride. We had ice cream and drinks afterward to replenish ourselves for the 2-hour drive back to Ottawa.

It is a fun experience. Traveling in summer is the prime time to come to the Old Port. Fall is pretty too but the boutiques are closed. Their schedule can be found here.

Well, have an awesome week then! Talk to you soon. ;)

After doing a quick sightseeing tour inside the magnificent Notre-Dame Basilica Montreal, we headed off downtown to Old Montreal. It was a short walking distance from the Basilica.

We understand this place is a tourist spot. People flock here, largely on summers with that, we are leery with tourists traps. And rightly so because we have had an unhappy experience recently.

Make sure to use all your resources in choosing a restaurant to dine in. Check yelp. Google the restaurant and read reviews. Just because groups of people are dining there doesn't mean taste is guaranteed. Remember this is a touristy area. Food will be overpriced. 

We did just that and laned on Brasserie 321 at Place Jacques-Cartier, Montreal. We're happy with what's being served on our plates. It's good.

Old Montreal is a historic neighborhood within the municipality of Montreal in the province of Quebec, Canada. Founded by French settlers in 1642 as Fort Ville-Marie, Old Montreal is home to many structures dating back to the era of New France. [source]

Tourists are everywhere. The Place d'Armes square is packed. The queue is piling up at the church facade. The husband thought we'd skip viewing the church interior, but I insisted. Geez, what's up with him, why take a pass? It's not like we'd come here often. In the end, I won. Haha!

During summer, the grand organs of the Basilica come alive! Prestigious organists from all over the world are invited to perform great music. These organs dated way from way back 1891. Impressive! It would have been wonderful to bask in the impeccable acoustics of this magnificent masterpiece.

Why pay for the entrance fee? Churches should be free! Let me be honest, I think those kinds of thoughts too. But you see, millions visit this church every year. Think you are contributing to the regular upkeep of the facility to maintain its pristine condition. I would want my posterity to come and visit the Notre-Dame Basilica Montreal someday too. 

If you adhere to the Catholic faith, you can opt to attend a mass or for the full experience. The church also hosts events, if you'd like to know more check out their website here. 

And oh, did I mention Celine Dion got married at this church? I was surprised when I learned about it.

To me, it is worth it! I'm grateful for the opportunity to travel and experience a lot of things. This is the second Notre-Dame church my husband and I visited; the first is at Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City).

If you're planning to visit Montreal, do include the Notre-Dame Basilica Montreal in your 'places to see list'. I tell you the entrance fee is worth it.

Talk to you soon. ;)

It can be overwhelming finding a hotel for the first days/weeks/month at a new city you are moving into while looking for an apartment. There are so many things to consider: Is the place kid-friendly? are there supermarkets nearby? is it affordable for an extended stay? Blah. Blah. It's hard to be decisive about this. And, yes, we've checked out a lot!

In the end, we've booked a brand we've been comfortable with since our move to the US. We stayed at Homewood Suites by Hilton Ottawa Downtown. This is our 4th stay with the brand. 

We booked a studio and it is relatively small to the other rooms we've stayed at in other Homewood locations. No complaints there. It was decent enough for us and for our 2-year-old son. He is able to play and run around still. Kids are so flexible!

The view from our room is great. I appreciate that I can observe the buzzing city life downstairs. Our son loves it too. He would jovially name the objects outside.

He is sound asleep as of writing. I'm glad we choose to stay at the Homewood Suites by Hilton. I can finally relax. Talk to you soon. ;)