Loving Quebec!

It is hard to find time to write on this blog - too much to see and do or we are not near wifi.  We are leaving Quebec City this morning so I vowed last night to use the wifi here at the campsite before we hit the road.  We plan to travel on the north shore of the St. Lawrence as far as Tadoussac then think about crossing to the south shore to tour around the Gaspe Peninsula. 

Shon has commented that we are doing this trip backwards as we started in BC with the most recent history of the country and are working our way backwards.  Settlement started over 400 years ago here in Quebec - much older than BC's oldest white settlement!  The second reason he made that comment is that more than once we have viewed museum exhibits or information plaques back to front, starting at the most recent history(-:

In Trois Rivieres, we followed a walking tour of their historic buildings, a fairly concentrated section of town as most of the town burned down in 1908.  From there, we drove east to Quebec along the Chemin du Roy, the first road in the country.  It is now a scenic minor highway along the St. Lawrence and probably my favourite drive so far on our trip.  There were so many quaint older villages interspersed among farmland and many fruit and veggie stands - we are enjoying the fresh berries, corn, beans, tomatoes, potatoes, etc.  The houses and yards along the route (and everywhere so far in Quebec) are carefully tended with colourful trim on the houses.  Many are old, steep roofed houses made of stone - just lovely with gorgeous flowers in the yard.  One delightful find was an art show in the church yard in the little town of Champlain - many tents with artists painting or sculpting or wood carving as well as displaying their creative works.  Across the street was a tent of artisans with food and crafts for sale - we sampled wine, beer, maple products and bought some wine and maple syrup.  All of this was enjoyed with the backdrop of the historic buildings and the river.

Due to our meanderings along the Chemin du Roy and frequent stops, it took us two days to reach Quebec City.  We have now been here 2 1/2 days - one full day in Vieux Quebec, the walled, historic part of the city where we explored historic churches and buildings, climbed stairs and steep streets, had a drink at the Chateau Frontenac, ate poutine and crepes, and 'people watched' when our feet needed a rest.  The first day we went to the Chutes Montmorency (a large waterfall) where we walked across the top of the falls on a walkway then climbed down 472 steps to feel the spray at the bottom of the falls - what goes down must come up so we then hiked back up in the midday, humid sun!!  Worth it though (I think?).

What goes down must come up became a theme of our time yesterday on Ile d'Orleans, a beautiful, pastoral island near Quebec City with many artisans, wineries, roadside fruit stands, etc.  We cycled around part of the island, supposedly a 20 km route with a few short climbs and some lovely downhill stretches but, ooops, we missed the turn to cross the island back to our starting point and coasted down a fairly long hill with an 8% grade - we were not amused when we realized we had to bike back up the hill to find our proper route - also on a hot, humid day!!!  We enjoyed the rest of the island from the air conditioned comfort of our truck and the pool here at the campground felt heavenly upon our return!  After a swim and showers, we drove into town last night for a lovely dinner (mostly we eat at 'home') then watched The Image Mill, an after-dark light and sound show projected onto the side of about 65 grain elevators in the old port area - very cleverly done.

We are still enjoying our exploration of Canada and trailer life is working out well.  Maybe I shouldn't ask Shon that right now as he is hooking up the trailer and doing all the work while I update this blog (-:
I am having trouble adding photos with the weak connection here so will publish this now and add some when we are in a more favourable location.