Hi Canda, hello Montreal, how are you

4:40 AM the alarm rang, 5:00 AM meeting point at the car and off we went towards Frankfurt Höchst, great where we rented an underground parking space via ich-parke-billiger.de. Otherwise, we had always booked the parking garage Platzhirsch, which is also really great, but given the nearly 50,- cheaper price and equally top reviews (we are Schwabians after all), I thought I would give it a try. And everything worked out perfectly. The shuttle was already ready upon our arrival. Suitcases in, car parked, and off we went to the airport. Once there, we found the meeting point from SportFanReisen, reserved a spot, and headed to the bakery. At 6:45 AM we were greeted by our tour guides Dominik and Simon, and together we headed to check-in. The suitcases were gone and we could again do whatever we wanted. I was really positively surprised today. No hassle at check-in, all passports were still there afterward (insider), NO secondary inspection at security check (never happened before that my drug suitcase just went through 😳), what else does a woman want 🤷🏼‍♀️ We found comfortable seats at the gate and the time until boarding passed quite quickly. The flight, what can I say, nothing extraordinary. With Finding Nemo, angry birds, and a glass of wine, the time went by so-so.
After landing, which I believe was the gentlest ever, suddenly we stood there🤷🏼‍♀️, picked up the suitcases (and yes, they were all there 😅), to exit 7, and after about 10 minutes our transfer bus was already there.

Yesterday there was a nasty ice storm in Montreal, causing several flights to be canceled. Good that we flew so late or the problem was in Canada and not back in Frankfurt (remember last trip with Sportfanreisen) 💪🏼 The cars and roads looked pretty rough 🥶 Also our bus. One side completely frozen.

After a short ride, we checked into the Renaissance Montreal Downtown hotel. What can I say, room inspection, this place is quite comfortable. Of course, I was already convinced after seeing the swing in the entrance area 😂
Quickly dropped the suitcases in the room, took a little breathing space and off we went to the hotel bar. Again, this place is quite comfortable.
At 5:30 PM the entire group met to walk to the Centre Bell together. The stadium is less than a 15-minute walk from the hotel. Once there, we did some shopping at the fan shop (Sportfanreisen negotiated 15% off for us), but apart from a pin for Udo's collection, I didn't buy anything. Although the Montreal Canadiens unicorn immediately caught my eye. But☝🏼 I was reasonable. At least today 😅 I need to talk to our fan shop person about why we don’t have that in Schwenningen. I already know 2 potential buyers. Gä, Steffi 😉
After visiting the fan shop, we had a stadium tour.
The Centre Bell was opened on March 16, 1996, and is the largest indoor arena in Canada.
21105 people can fit in for a game here 😳 The Montreal Canadiens have won the Stanley Cup 24 times. The last 2 weeks before the construction of the new arena began. Hmm, I would tear the thing down again if there hadn’t been a victory in 30 years 🤭
During the tour, we got to see the press box, the alumni lounge, the Canadiens' locker room, the press conference room, and the Air Canada Signature Lounge Club. Moreover, we got to go up high to the roof.
The alumni lounge is the area where former players and their families are always welcome. Everything is free there. Now that’s what I call appreciation.
For the Air Canada Signature Club, you even get tickets. The waiting list is 'only' booked for 9!!! years and a ticket for 2 people costs 'only' 25000,- dollars. Peanuts 😅 A season ticket starts at 2900,- and better seats in the upper tier are already available for 8000,- dollars 🤷🏼‍♀️
For the fact that the team has a value of 3000000000, well, how shall I put it, behind the scenes quite a bit looks shabby. But well, what do I think? It’s just a 3 with 9 zeros 😂
During the tour, the guide casually mentioned proudly that the Montreal Canadiens were founded in 1909 and thus are the oldest hockey team in the world.
Phew, um, no. Our SERC was founded on July 20, 1904☝🏼
What he might be right about: the Canadiens are the team that has continuously participated in professional ice hockey since 1909 and they are the only existing NHL club that existed before the league.
Unfortunately, our game operations have been disrupted due to two wars.

After the stadium tour, we went straight to Burger Bar Cresent. A nice place where we occupied the entire upper floor with our travel group. The food was really good, but slowly we were all overpowered by fatigue. After dinner, it was straight back to the hotel. After being on our feet for over 22 hours, that was enough 😅

Memo to myself: WC code Starbucks 181125. Very important ☝🏼😂