Journey to the Center of... Nature!

Family on the run
Christine, Mathieu and their three children 

Once again, we'd like to introduce you to a family from Sherbrooke - two adults and three children - who spent a week in the Laval region during their summer vacation. Here's the fascinating story of La Famille en Cavale's stay! 

Today, we opted for a great classic, the Centre de la nature, which is sort of like Laval's Central Park. There's enough there to keep kids busy for a whole day, and that's exactly what we did! I have a confession to make: I'd already been to the Centre de la Nature in 2004, for a provincial cross-country competition, and had fond memories of a pleasant park with a small lake. So it wasn't a new discovery for me, but I'd forgotten just how big it was! (I guess it's because I'd been running too fast.) Until we started planning our vacation, I didn't know what we could do there either! As we arrived via Boulevard Concorde, after stocking up on picnics for the day at the grocery store, our first discovery was the Village des Artistes, made up of charming, colorful little houses.

The doors were locked, which caused the kids a similar disappointment to mine when I went to Disney World at age 4 and we couldn't get into the houses either. Then, as the rain intensified, we took the opportunity to visit the greenhouse, where we had great fun looking at the parrots and the IMMENSE goldfish!

We also enjoyed the small farm, where we observed the animals, including chickens, pigs, rabbits, horses, alpacas and goats in the pasture.

But the Nature Center is first and foremost a park, brimming with lush gardens. We didn't know where to look, and wanted to take every path!

We left the park mid-afternoon for an ice cream at Crémerie Pineault, reputed to offer the best ice cream on the island. Well, it's not overrated! We had to make such gut-wrenching choices about flavors that we promised ourselves we'd be back, and more than once!

But if the weather was fine when we enjoyed our cornet, I had a premonition just before we set off again, on foot, for the park. We hid in a bus shelter, and we didn't regret it, because a few moments later, a deluge hit the city.

We were able to leave our temporary shelter after about 30 minutes to return to the Nature Center, where the kids found a beautiful snail.

In short, despite more showers than expected, we had a great time! If you're planning to spend the day at the Centre de la nature, be sure to pack a picnic! And be sure to pick up dessert at Crémerie Pineault!

#Lavalcmaintenant