Yes, I am a geek…
I hardly know where to start, there is so much I want to convey! But really, it all started back in January, when my friend e-mailed me and asked if I was interested in going again this year. The convention was in Denver, CO, last year and I had a good time, but this year plane tickets were extremely prohibitive and there was no way I was going to pay $800 to fly.
But driving on the other hand, appeared to be doable from my corner of the world. Just pop across the top of Wisconsin and Michigan, and drive across southern Canada. Discussion ensued and lo! A Road Trip happened!
Tues and Wed of last week were driving days. Tuesday ended up being a verrryyy long day due to a couple miscalculations – a little thing such as a time change, and a some what larger conundrum of the endless road construction (the kind where you are sitting with your car turned off waiting for oncoming traffic to clear) and dropping down to Lake Michigan on the wrong road. All these factors managed to put us quite a bit off schedule and so we didn’t arrive at our evening destination of Sudbury Canada until nearly midnight...and then we got lost...and had to ask for directions...
Ahh, yes, the joys of roading it!
But by Wednesday afternoon (in rush hour traffic) we arrived in Montreal.
Our hotel was the Holiday Inn Express right next to the convention center - Palais de Conreis - and I thought it couldn’t have been a better spot! Chinatown anyone? Historical district? Oh, a veritable culinary and historical delight for me.
On Thursday, we made our way out to the botanical gardens before the convention really got going, which I will post more about in the next day or so. This garden deserves more than just a paragraph! Thursday evening we picked up our convention passes and attended a couple of panels and the opening ceremonies.
Friday was a whole convention day with forays out for meals. The hard part was narrowing down where we wanted to eat.
Saturday we went to Notre Dame Basillica. My friend opted not to stick around for the tour and went back to the convention. I stayed for the tour which gave a great overview of the history of Montreal and the Basillica. Later in the day I went back for the guided walking tour of the Historical District and later that evening we went back for dinner in the same area. Saturday evening concluded with an International Fireworks Show put on by the South African contingent. We were able to watch from the roof top of the convention center. Pretty neat.
Historic Montreal with the towers of the Basillica in the background.
Sunday morning had us back in the historic district enjoying breakfast outdoors before heading back to our final day at the Convention. Sunday evening concluded with a interesting meal in China town and the culmination of the week with the Hugo Ceremonies.
Monday and Tuesday were again travel days. During the course of this whole trip we crossed three states, two provinces, and saw three great lakes all while driving nearly half a continent. Cool, eh?
No wonder I’m pooped!
In coming posts:
The Hugo Award results
The Montreal Botanical Gardens
And photo’s from Montreal’s Historical District
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