Ps: this is a 4-month throwback, no thanks to the hectic schedule that extended beyond the winter 2018 school term.
As usual, the notion of getaway seemed to luxurious during our Fall 2017 school term. The term “school” and “school-related responsibilities” often hit us so hard as if time and thought of getting a vacation got suppressed. In particular, the chat topic I had with my partner-in-crime (Jay) were all about academics, internships, life, and nothing else.
That night, during a home-dinner session, Jay suddenly suggested, “how about going to Montreal?” After a short discussion on that, he vowed “let’s make this happen.”
December 26 was the day on which we departed, and we settled down ourselves when the outside temperature was -14C. The majority of the time was spent roaming through the Old Port and Downtown, repeatedly being awestruck by the magnificent architecture of the design of cathedral and the art masterpieces in the museums. An extreme part of the trip was to hike the Mont Royal when the temperature went to its lowest at -23C, getting all of us to curse hard on the brutal weather but rewarded us with a bird-eye city view of Montreal, nevertheless. These few days was also the period when I attempted skating for the first time, being so paranoid on all the mishap that could happen on me but things turned out just…fine (besides the very fact that pathetically clumsy movements and gesture made it obvious to everyone that this was my first skating).
We then travelled to Ottawa, hoping to enjoy the fireworks for the countdown purposes. The selling out of tickets into Parliament hill tour and the Mint (coin museum), as well as eatery closures, were a little underwhelming. Nevertheless, we still enjoyed ourselves by the random walking through the Byward Market, and the firework exhibition at the countdown moment.
Looking back, the insurmountable cold weather was definitely the biggest hurdle of the vacation. The formidable numbers and the “low temperature” flag on temperature forecast made me reconsidered a few times on the viability of this getaway. Betting on the fact that indoor attractions abound, I chose to go with it, nevertheless. Eventually, the winter scenery we took on the streets and the bird-eye view taken from St. Joseph Oratory and Mont Royal made our persistence worthwhile. Although it’s publicly accepted that the best time for visit is summer, a getaway at this time at the absence of workload just made the winter experience meaningful.
It’s also the vacation that allowed us to put everything (work, ambitions, projects) on halt and have a look on things that we have not thought of doing all the while (chatting, food hunting). In the short three-day period in Montreal itself, my travel partners and I have exchanged perspectives over a few meals, with topics like “describe the things you like”, “what’s your ambition”, “how to define well-being”, etc. Mesmerizing ourselves in the thoughts of our passion and the relevance to our lives under the ambience of a steakhouse was an experience that I’ve been looking for all the while, and I simply appreciate the presence of people who can speak about this with me.
Finally, here comes the main purpose of this post: to show the token of appreciation to my two travel partners: Sofia and Jay. As cliched as the phrase “couldn’t have done it without you” goes, it’s nevertheless the exact feeling I have for them because traveling is arduous without having companions around. Special thanks to the tour guide Sofia for her enthusiasm when bringing us around the different attractions around her hometown, and helping us to overcome the language barrier in Montreal. Also thanks to the partner-in-crime Jay for convincing me to make things happen all the while. Great friendship with you two, and hoping for more trips to come. 🙂
anzoteh96 