Quebec- Montreal

In Montreal, we had the opportunity to visit the mounted police in Quebec’s Mount Royal Park, which is like New York’s Central Park. There are twenty Canadian horses that the park police use when patrolling, not only the park, but the entire city.

The horses and their stables are well managed. They ride all year round in the park, except when it is very, very cold and sleeting. Marie France, one of the officers, has a true passion for her horses, especially Diablo, who is a Canadian horse. She talked about how great the strong and smart their horses have to be, as they have a great responsibility in patrolling the park and the city.

I really like Old Montreal. We stayed at Place d’Armes Hôtel, a hip, boutique hotel, which though modern, has managed to maintain it’s rustic brick interiors as well. The location was great, right in the center of Old Montreal, so we were able to go to a nearby pastry shop, Café Europea, and try these neon macaroons, which give a nice sugar boost in the afternoon. They were light and airy, but also tasty. They were filled with different fillings, like caramel apple whiskey flavoring, hazelnut, mint chocolate, and more. Yum! We also headed to a high spot in Mount Royal Park, a belvedere where you can see the entire city.

Darley Newman is the host of the Emmy Award-winning Public Television series Equitrekking®, which takes viewers on horseback riding vacations around the world. Purchase Equitrekking DVDs and join Club Equitrekking in our online store. Learn about equestrian vacations and book a horseback riding vacation at EquitrekkingTravel.com