Day 6 - Last day with Misty

Today Misty had to fly out, so we just went up to Montreal a little early and did some last minute
sight-seeing. We went to Old Town Montreal and saw Notre Dame Cathedral:

Then we stopped by the Maison Saint-Gabriel. (St.Gabriel's house). The plaque outside explains that it was originally used as the welcoming place and first school for the "daughters of the king."

These were girls that were wards of the state in France. Since there were mostly only men settling in France's new frontier of Quebec, the king devised a plan to send these women to Quebec and teach them to be wives and mothers. They learned to read and write and make suitable mates for all the single men in Quebec and thus continue to insure the growth of the French empire abroad.

It was really like stepping back into time.  They showed us how life really was back in the early 1800's. How they cooked, washed, built fires, cleaned, wove material for clothing, etc.

It was a pretty stark life, but it was apparently much better than the life they would have had as an orphan growing up in France, so many young women took the opportunity to come. We finished up with lunch at a little hole in the wall pizza place, but which has VERY good pizza, and then headed for the airport.  It was so much fun to have Misty here. She headed off to Paris from here to join Shelly, her roommate, for a vacation in Paris. (nice work if you can get it...)
Thank you Misty for letting us enjoy being tour guides and enjoying your company for your brief visit! We love you!