Road Trip to Montreal

Ever since my mother’s brain injury last year, I’ve been visiting Boston more often to check in on her. Things are different and will never be the same. A fact of life I have to accept. Life is short and I want to take advantage of the time I have with my mother. I thought it would be nice to take her and my stepdad on a road trip, to change up their environment and do something new, especially since the last year has been challenging for them. For all of us really. A couple years prior, I took them on a road trip up the coast of Maine to Acadia National Park. This time, I contemplated where we should go next—Cape Cod, Rhode Island, Vermont? But my mother is not a nature or beach person. Then my stepdad mentioned Montreal and immediately, I thought YES YES YES.

My stepdad is from France and he speaks French. He had been talking about Montreal for awhile now and it totally slipped my mind. I had been a couple times in my early twenties, decades ago, but had only been in the winter. I had never been during warm, summer weather. Only a 5 hour drive from Boston, Montreal was a great choice. So of course after he suggested it, my Type A side went straight into planning mode.

We spent 3 nights at the Hotel Place D’Arms in old town, located diagonally across from the Notre Dame Basilica. This hotel was in a great location within walking distance of some great restaurants and historic sights. We arrived late afternoon and started our trip with cocktails on their Terrasse Rooftop. Then we walked to dinner in the downtown area at the most special spot, a restaurant named Toque. Twenty years ago, I first dined at Toque. This restaurant has survived over two decades, which includes a pandemic. I remember it being quite fancy and impressive even when I was young. It was nostalgic to get the opportunity to revisit so many years later with my parents. Even my younger sister dined there once before upon my suggestion years ago. I have a more refined palate now and also higher expectations. Did my 20 year old self know good food back then? Apparently, YES. Lol. Toque is French fine dining with excellent service, excellent cocktails, and excellent dishes that were delicate, indulgent, and beautifully plated. As an adult with my parents, I got the chance to order a variety of cocktails, appetizers, entrees, and dessert to share. When I was in my early twenties, I went with friends and I think we only ordered one main dish each. We were simple. Even though we didn’t get to sample very much back then, I still remember being impressed. I’m still impressed. My parents were impressed. It was the best way to celebrate our first night in Montreal.

On our second day, we walked through Rue St. Paul in old town near the port, which is basically a cute cobblestone street with souvenir shops and restaurants, and across Place Jacques Cartier where there are street performers and more shops. We had lunch in Chinatown, visited Atwater Marche, saw the canal, stopped at Rue Wellington. So many blog posts were suggesting Rue Wellington, including TimeOut Mag, which stated that Rue Wellington was one of the best streets in the world. I have to STRONGLY disagree. Rue Wellington is lame. Not worth your time. It’s a promenade of outdated stores, vintage shops (but not the cool kind), what looked like old furniture stores or shops from the 50s. There may be some cool resto bars but I was not impressed at all. I also was disappointed by the canals. When I talked to a local, he said that there are parts of the canals that look dingey but other areas that are nicer. However you really have to walk awhile to find the nicer spots. But it was too hot and we didn’t have the energy to do that. Atwater market was lovely though. Lots of fresh flowers, as well as produce, and little shops selling artisanal food products. I regret that I didn’t use this day to visit Mile End and Marche Jean Talon instead. Maybe that area would have been cooler than Rue Wellington, the canals, and Atwater Marche.

At night, we dined at Iberico Taverne e Tapas Espagnole in Mont Royal. Mont Royal was really cute. Another promenade but much better than Rue Wellington. Mont Royal was lively. Lots of people. Ice cream shops, restaurants, boutiques. Plus Ibericos was so delightful. Charming little Spanish tapas bar. All of the tapas were delish. I was disappointed with the seafood paella though. I didn’t think it was that good, but I enjoyed all the other dishes.

On our 3rd day, we visited the Botanical Gardens. It was about $15 USD for a ticket to get in. It was such a beautiful and peaceful way to spend a couple hours strolling. I loved the rose garden, the Chinese garden, and the Lily pad pond. They also have an herb and vegetable garden. Great area for photos too.

For lunch, we returned to Mont Royal and ate at L’Avenue. This came highly recommended on Tripadvisor though I’m not sure why. It played loud club music. We had to wait in line for almost 30 minutes. The dishes were gigantic and just a lot of food with not much flavor. I would not recommend this place either.

On our last night in Montreal, we dined at Monarque, within walking distance from our hotel. I believe it’s a newish French restaurant that has been open for less than a couple years. It has a fun, trendy vibe in the brasserie and a more formal dining room in the back. We enjoyed our appetizers and dessert. Our main dishes were good too but not the amazing-I-want-to-lick-my-plate type good. But in general, we enjoyed the food and the experience.

All in all, we had a great time in Montreal. Prior to going, I did so much research. But it still can be hard to decide what to do and where to dine when you visit a new city because articles and blogs all come from the experience of people who may not have your same preferences. I also read so much conflicting opinions in group forums and on TripAdvisor. For myself, I think I chose a couple bad options for lunch and day activities (Rue Wellington + L’Avenue). But you just never really know sometimes no matter how much research and planning you do. But I must say, all of our dinners were excellent, especially Toque.

So glad I got a chance to take my parents on a road-trip to Montreal. They would not have done it on their own otherwise. If you want to see all the yummy food I ate, you’ll have to check out my Instagram because there are too many to post here.

Los Olivos Birthday Trip

For my last three birthdays, I’ve traveled abroad and went on yoga retreats and it has always brought me so much joy. Last year, I spent my entire birthday month in Cambodia and it was incredible. I’m very forunate to have been able to travel abroad as much as I have and explore the world, learn about different cultures, and connect with new people.

This year, my birthday is a little [a lot] different because of all the unexpected challenges of 2020. With all the challenges come new lessons and opportunity for growth. And there were definitely a lot this year! But it didn’t stop me from celebrating or going on my annual birthday adventure. While my adventure was a lot smaller this year, I’m so happy I was able to get away to Los Olivos in wine country for one day and one night with a friend. My birthday was a couple weeks ago in November but I hadn’t had a chance to sit down and share it with you until now.

Los Olivos is only a 2.5 hour drive from Los Angeles. We stayed at the Fess Parker Inn right in the middle of the cute town. Unfortunately because of Covid, the town was quiet and a lot of businesses were closed but I still enjoyed the short getaway. One night at The Fess Parker Inn includes a free bottle of wine in your suite and two free tastings at the Fess Parker Vineyard and Ephiphany Winery. Service at the Fess Parker Vineyard was amazing. They treated me to probably almost 10 wine tastings outdoors on their patio because of my birthday. Afterwards, we took a quick dip in the pool at the inn and enjoyed pre-dinner cocktails and a delicious shrimp appetizer by the fire.

That night, we dined at the new restaurant at the inn called Nella and it was absolutely fabulous. We started dinner with a truffle flatbread, an entire plate of mortadella (it’s my favorite charcuterie meat as well as my friend’s), and mussels. Then we shared a duck entree and ended my birthday dinner with profiteroles and an espresso martini. My belly was very happy and my experience at the Fess Parker Inn and Vineyard was so wonderful.

The next day, we drove through the rolling hills, had our last tasting at Ephiphany, and enjoyed an outdoor lunch at Los Olivos Wine Merchant Cafe before returning to Los Angeles. It was a more low-key birthday than my previous years, but I’m grateful that I was able to do something to bring me a little bit of joy, given the circumstances of the pandemic this year.

Lost in Death Valley

I have been working a lot recently and feeling a little stressed and overwhelmed. I have been craving a little adventure. I love the desert and Death Valley had been on my list for awhile so I thought it would be the perfect little roadtrip that I needed to reset. And I am so grateful that I finally got the opportunity to visit!

Death Valley is a far drive (5 hrs from LA) and there’s even more driving once you get there, but it’s totally worth it. I advise staying within the park (we stayed at The Ranch at Death Valley) to limit the amount of driving you would need to do and packing lots of snacks and food (and wine or whiskey) for your day trips, hikes, and picnics. Death Valley is so unique in that it has many contrasting sites and terrain. We walked along the rim of Ubehebe crater, hiked through Mosaic slot canyons, walked over salt flats under the blazing sun, climbed up a giant rock along Golden Canyon to enjoy a little picnic with a view, trekked down a mountainside at Zabriskie Point to find the perfect isolated spot to enjoy whiskey and charcuterie while watching the sunset, stargazed in the middle of nowhere, drove through a long windy road to see the colorful mountains of Artist’s Palette, hiked to Darwin’s waterfall, attempted to sand surf (it didn’t work lol), and ran up and down the massive Mesquite sand dunes. There were so many more places in Death Valley that I would have loved to have seen or spent more time at but we couldn’t fit it all in with all the driving involved. But in the 2 nights and 3 days we spent there, we did manage to see a lot! I was definitely a little achy and exhausted by the end of the trip, but it was worth it. I had the best time!

Joshua Tree Escape

One of my favorite quick little getaway spots is Joshua Tree.  As much as I love LA, it's always nice to have a little break from the stress of city life, lights, and action.  It's only a 2.5 half hour drive (w/o traffic) and it definitely feels as though you are in a different world.  I've been a total of 4 times now and I have loved it every single time.  Each time has been a different experience.  New trails are discovered.  Weather changes create different breathtaking views.  Sunrises and sunsets are never the same.  This time, I had the opportunity to bring 3 of my friends on a lovely girls' weekend trip.  Out of our group, I was the only one who had ever been so I was a little nervous that I set high expectations for them. 

We rented an Airbnb outside the national park, which I have done for all my visits here.  Although a lot of people like to camp in the park.  All of the houses I have rented in Joshua Tree have been really cute with very distinct decor and great outdoor space.  On our first night, we had dinner at the saloon down the street from the house.  That next morning, we cooked breakfast and enjoyed it outside on the patio underneath the sun, breathing in the fresh morning air.  We took some amazing pictures in the park, went on several scenic hikes, enjoyed bubbles and a charcuterie board while watching the sunset, and stargazed at night.  We had pizza and wine for dinner and watched movies before bed.  On our last day, we woke up at 4:30am to watch the sunrise in the park.  Can you remember when you last scheduled time to watch the sunrise or sunset?

I had the best time on this girls' trip this weekend!  Joshua Tree is one of my favorite places and I was so happy to have been able to share the experience with my closest friends.  There is a very unusual type of beauty and feeling of isolation that is formed from the desert landscape, giant rock formations, and the shape of the iconic Joshua Trees.  The peacefulness here provides space for rejuvenation, relaxation, and self-reflection.  If you haven't visited Joshua Tree yet, I highly recommend it for your next micro-adventure.  Not too far, inexpensive, and probably very different from your usual weekend trip ideas.  If you need any help planning your visit, let me know!  

Sunrise

Sunset