From the Tower to the Velodrome, a tour of the Olympic Stadium.

Next to the Olympic Stadium and right in front of the Botanical Gardens lies one of Montreal's hidden gems & an underrated tourist attraction: The Olympic Tower.

Standing at 165 meters tall and with views spanning over 80 km of the St. Lawrence River and nearby zones, the Olympic Tower of Montreal is the world's highest inclined tower, with an angle of 45º (the Tower of Pisa stands at an angle of 5º) as well as the only one to have a funicular that works on a curved structure.

The best part? It offers the very best views of the city.

From the east side, it is possible to see the St. Lawrence River & Île-Ste. Hélène, which holds Montreal's most popular theme park: La Ronde. On the opposite side of the bridge is the town of Longueuil.

From here it is also possible to see the Olympic Stadium, where the Mexican team América defeated Montreal back when I was new to Canada!

The view on the opposite window is of the industrial district, and the weird structure seen on the left bottom side of the picture is Montreal's Biodôme, my next stop.

The Biodôme has a small zoo and a tiny aquarium which are home to wildlife of over four different ecosystems. The structure was originally a Velodrome built for the Olympic Games of 1976, and has since been repurposed. Among the things I saw inside:

And finally, as I was trying to get pictures of fish in the aquarium, I was photobombed by a stingray!

Even though I had a good time overall, I expected the Biodôme to have a bigger variety of animals and was really disappointed on how small it actually is. I don't think I would go back given the chance, but as a first time visitor it was definitely cool. Especially the warnings on ibis poo. Those were my absolute fave.

Thanks for reading!

Time off (Impressions on Ottawa).

Two weeks.

It has been two weeks since I left Montreal, and although I have been dancing around the Midwest for some days and then finally reaching my beloved country, there doesn't come a day (still) in which Guy-Concordia Station doesn't come to my mind...with its people, its movement and the gorgeous urban landscape that I got used to seeing every morning for the last three months.

So even though I have made it safe & sound back to Mexico, and it has been more than a month since I have been around the blog (because as usual, life is too crazy & I am quite disorganized myself), for the next few weeks I will be posting about my adventures in Canada. Yes, still. Mostly because there are a lot of things that I have left unsaid about the permanently weed-smelling city that adopted me during my unplanned gap term, but also because soon enough I will moving into yet another place, which will hopefully be my home for some time.

But anyway, back to Canada.

After living in Montreal and being driven insane by the never-ending craziness of its people, I decided to take a weekend off and travel to Ottawa. As some of you know, Ottawa is located in the province of Ontario, whereas Montreal is in Quebec. However, the trip is not long, and with a little planning I was able to catch a two-hour bus into the capital city.

The thing about Ottawa is that even though it is the capital of Canada, it is actually way less busy than Montreal. It is cleaner, more organized, friendlier & picturesque...a true beauty. On the other hand, it is also calmer and the impending sense of night-life that reigns in Montreal is not quite present in Ottawa, to the best of my knowledge.

However, I had the greatest time. Mostly, because I desperately needed a break from the French-speaking population, but also because I was super eager to see the Museums, the Parliament Buildings & more importantly, the Rideau Canal, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. (I am such a cliché). 

The first spot I hit was the Canadian Museum of History, located in Île-de-Hull, QC (Not Ottawa, mind you, but close enough). Apart from hosting Temporary Exhibitions, it is home to the First Peoples' Hall, the Canadian Stamp Collection, the Canadian Children's Museum and an IMAX Theatre, making it one of the biggest, coolest and most inclusive museums I've been in for a while.

Not to mention that it has kick-ass views of the Parliament Buildings.

Next stop was Rideau Hall, home to the Governor General and the Canadian Monarch, Queen Elizabeth. The gardens which surround the property are nothing short of an Arboretum, built on the course of many, many years by none other than the dignitaries who visit Ottawa, who are asked to plant a small tree on the property. By taking a small stroll around, I was able to find the trees of a couple of Mexican Presidents, as well as the Mandela Tree and various Queen Elizabeths', among others.

Back in the day, Rideau Hall acted as home-in-exile for various European monarchs during the course of World War II. Among them was Queen Juliana of The Netherlands, who gave birth to her second daughter, Princess Margriet, while in Ottawa. In order for the baby to be solely Dutch, the maternity ward in which she gave birth was declared extraterritorial by the Canadian Government and that is the reason why Netherlands sends 10, 000 tulip bulbs to Canada every year, giving birth to the Ottawa Tulip Festival.

Next up was none other than the Rideau Canal --gorgeous, immense and lively.

And right afterwards, the Parliament Buildings, which had me snapping so many photos because they are absolutely lovely.

Finally, after running to the ByWard Market for an Obama Tail (a variation of the Beaver Tail), I went to the National Gallery of Canada to take a quick look at Maman, the gigantic spider sculpture made by Louise Bourgeois in the late 90's as an ode to her mother. The Ottawa Spider as it is also known, represents strength, nurture and protection.

Even though my time in Ottawa was incredibly short, I can truly say I loved the place. I had been told to avoid it since there's not much to do (concerning social life, I believe), but if you're all about Museums and pretty sights then I think it's a place that shouldn't be missed.

Ottawa, you're gorgeous. Thanks for being so good to me. 

To China and back.

A few days ago, I wrote about my visit to the Butterfly Pavilion in the Botanical Garden, one of the coolest places I've visited while I've been in Montreal. 

Today, I want to share a bit more of the things I did that day, including a walk around the Chinese Gardens and this magnificent place called Beaver Lake.

After visiting the Pavilion, I decided to walk around the actual Botanical Garden, which extends for about 75 acres and includes everything from a Greenhouse to an Insectarium & Planetarium, among other things. As one of Montreal's most popular tourist attractions, and judging by how peaceful Beaver Lake is, the Botanical Gardens did not disappoint.

Even though the winter in Montreal was still going strong at that time, there were a few people sitting around the lake, presumably enjoying the cold, cold air of the north. 

After freezing my nose for a while there, I headed to the Chinese Gardens, celebrated because of the Chinese Lights Festival that takes place there sometime during the fall. Even though there were no lights at this time of year, or even any of the huge sculptures that were installed in the summer of 2012, I loved the gardens.

Possibly because it was so cold, there were very few people around and taking photos was super easy. The light was not optimal and the cold was definitely taking its toll on me, but the garden is so aesthetically pleasing, it is impossible to not want to spend more time there.

This was the first thing I saw once I entered the Garden:

From there, it's a super short walk to the main building of the Garden, which (depending on the angle from which you see it), looks like this:

Or like this:

Standing there it is possible to get an impressive view of the Sunset Pavilion. 

It is said that during the fall, the sun sets just behind this small structure, giving the Garden the most impressive view of the sunset, hence the name.

Since the days were still pretty cold and the plants were quite dead when I first visited, I had been dying to go back to the Gardens and eventually persuaded some friends to go back (actually, scratch that. It was their idea to go to the Botanical Gardens, I just dragged them to the Chinese Garden and made them eat there). 

The place was looking much more alive. There were flowers and the landscape was greener, but...just as I started taking photos, the rain started to fall in biblical quantities...so, this is what we ended up with.

Once we were kicked out of there (and the rain had almost stopped!), we decided to carry on with our picnic at the Emilie-Gamelin Park. Funny story: this park is conveniently located between Montreal's Gay Village and the University of Quebec in Montreal, which would ideally make it a cool spot to hang out in. However, not many people go there because (among other things) it is an excellent place in which to pick a fight, get robbed and buy drugs...just like we discovered that day. 

In the time that we were there, we got to see two actual fist fights (one of which started right next to us) and some guy came up to our group and talked to us for about half an hour only to eventually walk away with our bottles of soda (¿?).

Apart from that though, we had a good time. There are several cafes in the park, and there's always music playing after sunset (really good music, like The Kooks ;) ). Also, the Warner Bro's building is located right in front, and they project images & short clips into it! Which is to say, even though some people are quite crazy, we had a good time. And we learned which places to avoid from now on.

This weekend I'm going to be visiting Ottawa, and I will be sharing that trip on the blog some time next week! 

Thanks for reading!

*No butterflies were harmed in the making of this post.

It's funny how time goes by so fast. 

Two weeks ago I was promising to update the blog often and look at me, breaking promises so soon. I have an excuse, as always, and it's just that I've been having the greatest time possible. I've been here three months (1 more to go!) and I keep on discovering places and things...it's insane.

Anyway. 

I had planned a completely different post for this week involving a video of the places where you are most likely to find me should you come to Montreal any time soon. However, given the fact that I am the Queen of Clumsiness and I can barely walk without getting run over (let alone with the camera on hand!), that will have to wait.

Meanwhile, I will share with you one of the best things I've done while in Montreal: visit the Botanical Gardens.

When I first heard about them, I wasn't really sold. Plants sound cool, but I could think of about a thousand cooler things to do with my time. That is, until I heard about the Free Butterflies Exhibit, which is when I finally dragged myself to the metro and then walked uphill for about a half hour until I reached the Gardens. 

My first stop was the Butterfly Pavilion, obviously. 

Once you cross the blue curtain that separates this area from the rest of the Greenhouse, it's like you've walked into a parallel universe.

Flowers with vivid colours cover every space. You can instantly feel the sweet smell of every flower imaginable in your nose and it doesn't even bother you. The most impressive thing, however, is the silence. There are people everywhere and yet the only thing you hear is the sound of water...and nothing else. 

It takes you a while to notice the coloured wings fluttering about...hidden in the trees, standing on a flower, silently making their way around your head. That is when you start seeing butterflies everywhere. Literally, everywhere. 

You start feeling like a huge intruder. That is, until a huge, bright-blue butterfly uses your shoulder as her resting place. From then on, mesmerised is about the only word that can describe you.

I was in the Pavilion for about an hour. At first just walking around, and then snapping photos of absolutely everything and anything that happened to be in front of my face. I really, really enjoyed being there, and saying that I was happy of how things turned out would be an understatement. Butterflies are awesome, you guys!

Afterwards I made my made through the Greenhouse (which is immense, you have no idea!). 

My favourite part had to be the Mexican Hacienda & Gardens because even though the Hacienda did not look like anything we have in Mexico, everything else is pretty accurate. I felt right at home.

Although I didn't think I would enjoy looking at plants much, the truth is the Greenhouse is too stunning not to like. Plants are very interesting creatures. 

Here are some of my favourite snaps:

If you follow me on Instagram, you might have already seen some of these photos a while ago. I took about a million of them, and there are actually many more snaps that I want to share, but since I'm afraid this post is already stuffed with photos of wings, I will be posting the rest of them on my IG during the course of the week. (You will also be able to see them here on the blog, on the left side of this page). 

I will be back soon to put you up to date with my adventures. As always, thanks for reading!

Color my life with the chaos of trouble.

It has been more than a month since I was last around here.

Even though my fingers where itching for me to get writing again, my life has been nothing short of chaotic (in a good way). So, even though I have had to rewrite this blog post three times and I am afraid I might be losing my powers (Ha!), I apologize for being gone and promise that from now on, the Diaries of a Traveler will be back to their original schedule: I expect to be publishing new content once or twice a week.

But first:

I'm in Canada!

As most of you already know, I moved to Montreal in the beginning of April in order to improve my French. The plan: to live in a student-shared apartment for three months, during which I would be attending school and exploring. Ever since I got here (a month and a half ago) and up until today, my trip has been an adventure. Life never disappoints.

I had been here for a week when I noticed that I had really lucked out with my roomies back in India (shout out to Ritwika and Dips!). Unfortunately, that was not going to happen here, so my second weekend in Montreal was spent walking from place to place, looking for an apartment, until I found the (super amazing) place in which I live today. In the blink of an eye I went from being a simple exchange student to a young adult who lives on her own, cooks on her own and does not know the meaning of a schedule, a map or an itinerary.

During the last month and a half that I have been living alone, I have gotten lost in the middle of a snowstorm (yes, it was still snowing big time in the beginning of April), I had to undergo minor toe surgery, I got the flu just when I started to feel normal again; the first time that it was sunny enough for me to go explore Montreal, I got hit on by a man about 40 years my senior, who invited me "out for drinks" and almost made me cry with rage (He was being persistent and his comments were completely out of place).

It has taken me a long, long time to adapt and it is until now that I'm starting to get used to the way things work over here, even though the weather is something I'll never come to terms with. Since I've been here, we have had three weeks of winter, a week of spring (the trees turned green and beautiful!) and four days of  rain mixed with sunny mornings and really windy evenings.  

Actually, during the first of our rainy days, I was wearing a knee-length dress (yup, I got caught off-guard) and as I was walking to the bus stop, this random person drove exactly over a puddle and left me half soaked. I could still hear laughter as I stood by the bus stop, squeezing water out of one of my socks. (Okay. Now that I read it...it does sound funnier than it was at the time). 

Honestly, this trip has been a travesty. In the best and worst ways possible.

I have been through things that I did not expect, did not want and didn't even imagine could happen to me at this point in my life. Even though I still know very little of Montreal, I am pretty sure it isn't a place in which I'd like to live, but even then, I can't help being happy that I'm here right now.

Even though I panic every time someone speaks to me in French out of the blue (big apologies to the guy who asked if he could help me with anything last week in Provigo; that "No" was supposed to be followed by a thank you...and I assure you my voice is actually not that high-pitched), I feel like I'm getting better. Although it is pretty much a ritual to see me running to the bus stop every morning and I am sure that the bus drivers can recognise me by now (Kudos, drivers of the 103 Monkland!), I feel slightly more responsible, slightly more independent and slightly older too.

Living alone is crazy, but I really appreciate having the freedom to choose every second of my day. I love coming up with new routines, cooking whatever it is my heart desires...I treasure the afternoons spent sprawled on the floor reading a book and drinking endless amounts of coffee, running to the Baskin Robbins to get a sundae before closing time, the improvised karaoke sessions, the "I just need a new pair of pants" shopping-trip that turns into bankruptcy; the random trips to Chinatown just to get Pho, coming up with my new version of the Crusades in which I kill the spiders and the ants that come trooping into the house out of nowhere; the infinite pleasure of my morning rituals, the tranquility of my trip to school (once I've caught the bus, that is), the times in which I remember some conversation that went undoubtedly wrong and all I can do is laugh alone in the metro even if people think I'm a little nuts...the moments to myself, those I wouldn't change for anything.

That is how my life works now. 

As always, thank you so much for reading. Special thanks to those who constantly reminded me that I had to get writing again (Adolfo!) and the ones who have been sending me messages asking about my wellbeing. I promise not to disappear again (not soon, anyway).