Laura’s 20th high school reunion was held in Grand Island, NY this year, so we decided make a trip through Ontario and Quebec after the obligatory Remembrance of Things Past. The reunion had the usual cast of characters, mostly people who have done well in life (the others skip) getting together to catch up and compare notes. After reciting the same backstory for the umpteenth time, Laura was more than ready to visit our Friendly Neighbor to the North.
It is important when traveling with small children to recognize what they find interesting is likely to seem mundane to the more jaded of us. In Toronto, the highlights were transportation: subway to Lake Ontario followed by ferry to Centre Island, topped off with a pedal powered quadricycle and the miniature rides of the kiddie amusement park.
Hana caught up with us in Montreal, where we attended the Jazz Festival quite by accident. Don made the reservations well in advance for the Hyatt, neglecting to check the events calendar. (Generally it’s not an issue – easy enough to avoid the cardiac surgeons, car salesmen, or whoever the conventioneer of the moment is). The hotel adjoined Montreal’s Arts Plaza, where the festival’s two million annual visitors congregate. When we were there, the free outdoor concerts would begin at about noon (eight stories below our room) and finish 14 hours later. It was a great distraction for all the kids (ages 1 to 43) – a constant bustle of humanity, noise, food , and excitement.