Montreal to Ottawa

Our full day in Montreal was exciting and exhaustion. You can read all about it here.

Before leaving the city, we had one more thing planned.....but first, coffee. We stumbled upon Cafe Orr....a true coffee shop that was both eclectic and unique. We got our coffee and drank it in the car to-go style to give us enough time to find, park, and get ready for the real adventure of the day: Bagel Making Class. Priorities matter, and caffeine was absolutely step one.

Our class was very close to the coffee shop....and since it was a weekend, we had no trouble finding parking. The Bagel Class was in the Cadbury Factory Lofts, which is an old factory turned office space. Very cool setting, and honestly, it already felt promising. Bagels in an old factory? We were in. No questions asked.

We were the second group to arrive out of 24 participants. A lovely couple was getting their marching orders as we arrived: put your personal belongings away, wash hands, put on an apron. We quickly picked up on the directions and were then directed to our station. As others entered, they were given the same set of instructions....and once everyone arrived, the magic began.

Without a doubt, The Bagel Class is near the TOP of the list for this trip for all of us. Will was an extraordinary teacher. He was funny, he was educational, he was professional. Basically the bagel whisperer, which is now a title I fully respect. He called us all together and gave us the basics, then we went to our stations to measure our ingredients. Once again, we were called all together to learn the next step of the process. The pacing of the class was great. We first made two bagels.....got the toppings, everything seasoning, sesame seeds, or poppy seeds, added and then Will boiled them and placed them in the oven. At that point, we finished rolling and topping our third bagel.

Because of the boiling process, it really is impossible to be given your exact bagel to eat after they are all finished. Because of this, there was no real way to know exactly how your personal bagel looked and tasted afterwards.....but I can assure you, they all looked amazing. And the three I ate were so delicious. Like seriously....the best ever. I had no emotional attachment to whether they were technically “mine.” I bonded immediately with the bagel I grabbed from the giant bowl of fresh baked bagels. These bagels are different than what we usually eat locally and different from the large fluffy type we all know that are New York style...but still so, so good

After The Bagel Class, we proceeded to Ottawa, the capital city of Canada.

It was the first weekend of the Tulip Festival, so we thought that would be a great way to spend a gorgeous afternoon. Unfortunately, not being familiar with the city and our Google Map not being very kind, we parked about 1.5 miles away. Apparently, we accidentally signed up for the scenic walking tour. The walk to and from seemed long, but it allowed us to see the beauty of the city up close and personal.

The tulips were stunning....seriously, THE most tulips I've ever seen in my life's entirety. Rows and rows and rows of them. If there is such a thing as tulip overload, we came dangerously close. The smell....just like a perfume store. But the festival was SUPER crowded, which made it less appealing. Beautiful? Absolutely. Peaceful? Not so much.

On our way there was a Shoppers Drug Mart, which we had read sells postage stamps. Since we always send postcards back to my niece, we needed some Canadian stamps, so this was a nice surprise. Nothing says “tourist success” quite like finding stamps when you actually need them.

We arrived in time to walk around Parliament Hill. The buildings look like they were plucked straight out of London, with that grand, historic, “surely something important happens here” kind of feel. We strolled into the Supreme Court building and were able to look around and read the information boards before closing. Nothing like accidentally sneaking in a little government lesson while sightseeing.

From there, we walked to Centre Block to see the view of the river and beyond. Another beautiful viewpoint! Ottawa definitely knew how to show off from that angle.

At this point, our bagels had worn off.....so we checked into our hotel with DINNER on the brain. Another market on our travel agenda was the ByWard Market, which was easily within walking distance from our hotel. We settled on The Grand Pizzeria in the ByWard District.

As we were waiting on our table, we walked across the street to the actual market. While most shops were closing, we were able to go into a few to find and pick up a postcard for my niece. A travel win is still a travel win, even if it happens right before closing time.

At The Grand Pizzeria, we dined on pizza and meatballs....and I had my first Canadian beer. After all the walking, tulips, government buildings, and postcard hunting, pizza and beer felt like exactly the right ending to the day.

But the night wasn't over yet....at the market we noticed a really long line of folks at a food truck called BeaverTails. The line was moving quickly, so we thought whatever a beaver tail was, it must be something worth experiencing. And honestly, when that many people are standing in line for fried dough, you trust the people.

We learned that BeaverTails is an iconic Canadian “restaurant” known for its signature hand-stretched, deep-fried pastries shaped like a beaver’s tail. The company started in Ontario in 1978, and the pastries are served hot with a variety of sweet and savory toppings.

Y'all, this thing was so good and worth every single calorie. Every. Single. One. It was warm, sweet, messy in the best way, and the perfect way to end the day. Montreal gave us bagels, Ottawa gave us tulips, and the Upward Market gave us fried dough shaped like a beaver tail. No complaints.

Check out other posts from this Trip: Providence to Montreal Montreal