Quebec: Day 2/3

Theatre: Les Miserables was showing.

This angel is a real person.

Part of the wall

Grain elevators

Chateau Frontenac in background

Murals

We loved the white hydrangeas we saw everywhere in Quebec.

Alice at harbor, first stop

Alice and our friendly bus driver

City Hall

Sunday breakfast at Saint-Bernard

Sunday, August 2nd: After our lengthy travels the day before, both Alice and I were ready for a rest. We had no food in our fridge so we went out for breakfast at Saint Bernard Resto-Pub, Mont Ste. Anne. This particular restaurant serves breakfast only on weekends. We enjoyed our meal and were happy we had taken the advice of Johanne the very lovely resort tour guide. Later in the day we bought a few groceries (eggs, bread, muesli, yogurt, milk, coffee, fruit) so that we could start each day with a good breakfast and have some food for snacking on hand. Was this the day we went to a presentation by Joanne on what to do in the area?

Monday, August 3rd: We boarded a small bus at our resort and went to Quebec for a tour of the old part of the city. We had a delightful bus driver who not only was knowledgeable about the area but also had a good sense of humour. Our first stop was below the wall where we had a great view of the Chateau Frontenac as well as the grain elevators on the St. Lawrence. Next we made another stop below the wall in an area of restaurants and shops. We were given a short period of time to check out the area. We went inside Quebec City's oldest church, admired murals painted on outside building walls, and enjoyed getting the feel of Old Quebec. After this we went back to the bus and were taken inside the wall. We stopped at a vantage point where we had a good view of the St. Lawrence and could also see the Citadel. We later drove inside the walls of the Citadel. It was interesting to hear that although Montcalm and the French built the fort to defend themselves from the British they went outside the walls to battle the Brits. It seems they took the battle away from the city in order to protect the people living there. Both Wolfe and Montcalm were killed in battle and both lost about the same number of men. In negotiation, the British were declared winners. Later the Citadel was effective in protecting the British when they were attacked by American forces. Today the famous Quebec Vingt-deuxs reside within the walls of the Citadel. We were dropped off in front of City Hall and had two to three hours to explore on foot and have lunch. During this time we ate lunch at a crepery, had a ride on the Funiculaire (chair lift) from above the wall to below the wall and back, and took in some live street entertainment. Old Quebec City was enchanting and we certainly could have spent all of our holiday in that city. Another interesting note: Laval University was originally in Old Quebec City, not far from the Chateau Frontenac. It was later moved except for the Faculty of Architecture which remains in Old Quebec as there are so many examples of French and English architecture.

Note to Crystal K.: Your comments are appreciated. Thank you! I tried emailing you with your address from your blog but got the reply 'invalid address.'