Next Province - Quebec: September 4 - 8, 2014

We left the homely comforts of England-lite on September 4 and drove to Quebec where, immediately after the Bienvenue au Quebec sign the highway speed limit increases, the highway signs are French-first bilingual (elsewhere in Canada they are English-first), and the "litter-on-a-stick" ads are more often in French (Tim Hortons Tojours Frais!).  We also noticed one hella car chase by the QPP / Surete du Quebec -- ten police vehicles following someone making a break for the Ontario border -- which prompted us to muse about whether a provincial border crossing would have any benefit to one fleeing the long arm of the QPP. . ..      

Our first night's stay was at a Hampton Inn in Laval, a large suburb of Montreal. It was a Hampton Inn.

From there we traveled along the northern shore of the St. Lawrence River on Highway 40, the big, easy highway that crosses Quebec. Midday, in search of a place for lunch with more charm than a highway rest stop, we ducked off the highway and drove the road along the river - Highway 138. This road winds past lots of summer homes and hotels. We stopped on a whim at L'Auberge du Lac Saint-Pierre. The sun was shining, the river was beautiful and we sat upwind from all the smokers. A great stop. And yes, you've seen this picture before but - it was a great stop.

So . . . FRENCH!

Ville de Quebec

The next day we reached our primary Quebec destination -- Ville de Quebec (Quebec City). Molly awarded herself a gold star for driving through the narrowing streets of the city and arriving at our hotel in Haute-Ville (the upper part of the town) without hitting anyone or thing. We checked in to the Hotel Marie Rollet across from L'Hotel de Ville (City Hall). The Marie Rollet is a 13-room hotel in a wonderful location. Our room was technically on the first of three floors but even we had two flights of stairs between the front door and our room! [Travel tip: If you choose one of the small, charming hotels in Vieux-Quebec: pack light. There are no elevators in these little places!]   

Vieux-Quebec, the old walled city, is truly France-lite -- beautiful stone buildings and cobbled streets of great charm and pulse-raising traffic. We enjoyed wandering on our own.

City Walls

Bryce in Vieux-Quebec 

Summer Hanging On

We also took a walking tour, which spoon-fed us some information about Quebec's time as the capital of New France. [Walking tours start from the tourist information office on Saint Anne.] We found it very interesting that a francophone guide would take the position that Quebec became British because France effectively gave up on New France and failed to adequately support its troops during the Seven Years' War / French And Indian War / War of Conquest (it goes by different names depending on which part of the globe you're talking about, apparently). She attributed the following to Louis XV: "One does not worry about a burning barn when one's house is on fire."  

She told an amusing story about why this building is still French territory -- and if you are told the same story, please write it down and send it to us to jog our memory . . . :

France in Canada

An added bonus for us is that our tour guide had done some sailing. We stopped along the Dufferin Terrace, which looks down on Basse-Ville (Lower Town) and the Saint Lawrence River, to watch the heavy tidal current of the river. She pointed out how difficult it was to cross the river or travel upstream except at slack.   

Heeling In the St. Lawrence Current

Another day we visited the Saint-Louis Forts and Chateaux National Historic Site - a fascinating museum under the Dufferin Terrace. The museum is the archaeological site of what was once the basement of the official residence and seat of power of both the French and British rulers of Quebec. Really old high-class trash. Fascinating! 

17th Century Furniture Caster

Modern Quebec City.  When surrounded by so much charm, history and tourist activity, it's sometimes easy to forget that Quebec is also a functioning, modern city.  And then - Prime Minister Stephen Harper comes to town, the flags come out and the chanting begins: "Hey, hey! Ho, ho! Stephen Harper's got to go!"

Free Speech, Alive And Well In Both Languages

Or one passes the provincial parliament building and notices that the grounds are covered with vegetable gardens.

Farm To Table Provincial Government

On our final day in town we hiked to the Plains of Abraham, the site of the 1759 battle between the French - led by General Montcalm aka Marquis de Montcalm - and British - led by General Wolfe, and a great place to have an ice cream and look at the river. From there we tried to visit the Citadel, but ran out of time. The Citadel isn't just a stop on the Quebec history trail - it's home to the Royal 22nd Regiment (the Van Doos of WWI and WWII fame), and can only be entered with an official guide. We were faced with the choice of eating before we began our drive -- or visiting another historical sight. Those that know us will know which we chose . . . 

And speaking of food . . . we enjoyed the breakfast deal that came with our little hotel, offered through a very nice little place on Rue St. Anne, Le Pain Beni.  We had a great night out (our big splurge) at L'Echaude. And even our "drop in" experiences were primarily good.  

One night we ventured out of the old town to the big shopping area along Rue St. Paul and found a Celtic music festival as well as a decent meal at a street-side bistro located just far enough from the music to prevent it from being overwhelming. There we had a Real Canadian Moment: A family of four, mother's headscarf identifying them as Muslim, one child holding mother's hand, the other perching on father's shoulders - all happily swaying to the music of a Celtic band from Nova Scotia on Rue St. Paul in Quebec.   

And during our last lunch in Quebec, Molly watched in fascination as two very stylish women ordered french fries and wine for lunch. How could they be so thin if they eat so many fries, she wondered. When they left, they left the answer -- two plates full of left-over french fries. French women don't get fat because they only drink their lunch, apparently. 

Because Quebec was initially planned as a route rather than a destination, after only two nights (too soon) it was time to move on. There's so much more to see in Ville de Quebec -- w will visit again.

Riviere du Loup 

We crossed to the southern shore of the St. Lawrence, and traveled along the Trans-Canada HIghway.  Our night's stop was at Riviere du Loup -- a town with several motels boasting views of the St. Lawrence River and a name that is really fun to say ("Riveeair dew Loooop!"). 

The accommodations at the L'Auberge De La Pointe aren't more charming than the average road-side motel, but they are very clean and offer spectacular views of the St. Lawrence River. 

One Wide River

The restaurant at the Auberge is not quite as nice as the hotel's pictures would suggest, but the meal and wine were passable and it didn't require us to drive anywhere for dinner -- a bonus for weary car-trippers.  




The really long drive began the next day . . . on to and through New Brunswick.  

Ontario, Canada: August 23 - September 4, 2014

This installment is about our time in Ontario. Bryce was born and raised in the village of Lakefield and his sister and her family still live there, so we visit at least yearly. Because Lakefield (which is now in the Township of Selwyn if you're searching for it on the Internet) is one of the places we are "at home" we don't give it as much press as it deserves. We really should have included a Lakefield reference in the "England-lite" portion of our last blog post - it's that charming and Englandy. [We often comment that Ms. Marple and a dead body should be showing up in the vicar's study any time now . . . which is why we don't go to the Anglican Church when we visit.] 

This visit was like many others in that much of our time was spent enjoying and catching up with friends and family.  But we also included a couple of tourist excursions.

Friends and Family

We stopped in the Toronto area on the way to Lakefield to see friends.  

Bryce With University Era Friends 
David and Karin Milne in Oakville

We stayed in Toronto for a few days with friend and fellow sailor Jim Thompson (he's been featured as a guest star crew member several times in this blog). Sadly we didn't get any pictures during our visit with him. We blame him because all he did was make us eat! Shame on him.  

In Lakefield we stayed at Sister Brenda's new home on the main street of the village (Queen Street - how Englishy is that?). The new-to-her old house is within walking distance to groceries, great coffee, a wonderful new restaurant (Riverhouse Company), the Otonabee River and churches representing almost every mainline Protestant denomination. We felt very protected.  

We got to see the most recent family addition and cutest kid on the planet our (Great Great - no kidding) Nephew Myles Kidd.

Myles With Grandma (Our Niece Susan)

We also had the pleasure of spending a day at the Neill-Estabrooks cottage at Jack Lake.

Bryce's Favorite Nephew: The One Manning The Grill
(This Time It's Scott)

Brenda and Molly - Hangin Out

(Great) Nephew Thomas, Ski Boat Captain 

Tourist Endeavors 

          The Niagara River Parkway

The drive along the Canadian side of the Ontario/New York border is beautiful. This is where tourists can stop and learn about the brave demise of Major-General Brock at the hands of the invading United States Army (see prior post). Those not so historically interested can visit beautiful gardens, picnic grounds and tourist rides over the Niagara River. The best food along the drive is had at various "farm stands" that sell produce and sandwiches.

From Our Stop We Could See New York, Sarah! 

 

          Niagara-On-The-Lake

Our first two nights were spent in Niagara-On-The-Lake, which likes to tell everyone it is Canada's prettiest town.  And it may well be.  It's also expensive and crowded -- but we stop there most times we travel to Canada because:

• it is a quick-ish drive from Buffalo (not the U.S.'s prettiest town) our airport of choice (cheaper airfares and car rental prices than Toronto);
• the region's wineries are fun to visit and they make some very good white wines (for the best Canadian reds, go west);
• the Niagara River Parkway is spectacularly beautiful and even we can bicycle along it; and
• the Shaw Festival turns out consistently good theater productions (U.S. Left Coasters - think: Ashland, Oregon's Shakespeare Festival).  

This trip we saw Shaw's Arms and the Man which we enjoyed a lot, and found a very comfortable bed and breakfast. If you're as allergic to Victoriana as we are becoming, try the Historic Lyons House. The breakfasts are delicious.

Lyons House

We visited a new-to-us winery, Caroline Cellars. Check, done that.  We also re-visited Inniskillin which is famous for ice wines which we don't particularly like. We were pleasantly surprised to like several of their "regular" whites.  


          The Peterborough Lift Lock

Our Lakefield-based tourist experience was a boat ride through the Peterborough Lift Lock - the highest hydraulic boat lift in the world (it must be - both our tour guide and Wikipedia say so). This particular lock is one of the 45 on the Trent-Severn Waterway, a canal system that winds its way through Southern Ontario from Lake Ontario to Georgian Bay on Lake Huron. Hmmm - perhaps we should have had a Netherlands-lite reference in our prior "Europe Lite" post?

The lift lock is very cool to go over -- but Molly found it best not to dwell on the fact that the lift was built in 1904 while she was in a tour boat 65 feet above the river bank.

Heading Into the Lock

The Lock Operators

The Trent-Severn Maintenance Boat

A View From The River

Canadian Geese - Of Course!

And so passed our first two weeks in Canada. On the 4th of September we drove to Quebec - the subject of our next post!

Oh (Eastern) Canada -- August 22 - October 2, 2014

We're currently in Sacramento, California.  Bryce and his new right hip are bonding well and we're slowly making forays into the world outside of our little rental house - Bryce using his ever-so-dapper cane.  And that's really all we want to say or you want to hear about that. It's just not fun to read or write about physical therapy, medication schedules, or even the grumpy hospital roommate who watched The Jerry Springer Show (who knew that show was still on the air . . . ?).    

This post is about something much more fun: our most recent land-based travel adventure -- a five-plus week road trip through Eastern Canada. 

This trip was more organic than well planned.  It came about because we got itchy feet in August while sitting around waiting for Bryce's surgery date and decided to play our favorite game of chance: The Travel Points Game.  Tada!  We "won" a partially-paid trip to Canada and off we went.  

The Reader's Digest Version

For those who want to get right to the point, here's the summary version of our travels. 

We: 

• flew to Buffalo (low-points airfares and cheaper rental cars) on August 22;
• drove 3,263 miles (5251.3 kilometers) through five Canadian provinces (Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia);
• took a car ferry from Nova Scotia to Portland, Maine (very cool, great beer);
• flew through everyone's least favorite airport in Atlanta, Georgia where, due to air traffic control SNAFUs along the East Coast of the U.S. (painful and boring) we spent a bonus evening at an airport hotel; and
• arrived in Sacramento only one day later than planned, on October 2.  

And we did our road trip it the Old School way -- using a Paper Map!

Along the way we:

• visited with friends and family;
• toured forts, fortresses and citadels - and learned the difference between them;
• learned a lot about the War of 1812;
• drank some mighty fine beers and some okay wines;
• ate a lot of seafood (fabulous, good, deliciously fried and overly fried);
• learned to appreciate real french fries (Molly experienced a whole new potato world);
• attended ceilidhs ("kitchen parties");
• visited many, many museums; 
• learned about different kinds of whales and lobsters;
• did as much hiking as an immediately pre-hip-replacement-surgery guy can do;
• saw the Bay of Fundy and its legendary tides;
• visited marinas on the Bras D'Or Lake and the Atlantic Ocean;
• learned that we really prefer modern hotels with big rooms to charming bed and breakfasts; and
• got too close for comfort to some courting moose.  

If that's enough for you, feel free to skip the rest of this post and the next few posts. 

However, for those who want to stick with us, we'll start with the three themes that kept coming up for us:

Canada -- it's "Europe Lite"

Our Fellow Americans.  Do you think about visiting Europe but are too shy to try out your high-school French (or Spanish) - or maybe you took Latin and all those folks are dead?  Or maybe you would like to visit the British Isles but don't feel confident about driving on the "wrong" side of the road?  Or perhaps you're afraid that the French really are as rude as rumor would have it?  

We have a suggestion for you: Visit Eastern Canada.    

Large parts of Eastern Canada are very "Europe-y".  But it's easy Europe.  English is one of the two official languages of Canada and even in Quebec most people speak English. Canadians are famously polite. And they drive on the right side of the road - politely.      

You can have French-lite experiences in Quebec:

White Wine and Salad at an Auberge in Rural Quebec

Chateau Frontenac (a Fairmont Hotel) in Quebec City 

The Walls of the Quebec City Citadel

Watching American Tourists Pass An Outdoor Cafe in Quebec City

It is so French-lite we even had one very un-Canadian rude waiter.  We left him a dollar tip.    

Or if it's Scotland you would like to visit -- you can have Scotland-lite experiences in Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia:

Charming Catholic Church in PEI

Rough Terrain in Nova Scotia - Just Like In The Olde Country

 

A Ceilidh (Celtic Music "Kitchen Party")
in Baddeck, Nova Scotia

Youthful Celtic Music Buskers in Halifax

And Even Men In Kilts!

And there are England-lite experiences to be had everywhere in Eastern Canada.  QEII is on the money, things called "Royal" this and that are everywhere, and every little town has at least one monument to the brave who fell defending The Empire.  

Anglican Churches Abound - in Lunenberg

and in Halifax

Halifax Church

Royal References

Pubs

And Remembrances of Men 100-Years Gone

Go visit our Neighbors to the North.  It's a delightful mix of Europe and North America. 


Geography Matters

At some point during every trip one of us asks (rhetorically) why Geography was such a boring subject in school. Perhaps you had a different experience, but what we remember are lists: of capital cities, longest rivers, highest mountains, and our favorites: the five major imports and exports. Lists without context.

It is only through travel that we have figured out why those things matter.  And when we travel, we wonder why something so interesting -- wasn't.   

Take trees, for example. On this trip we learned that a major reason England fought to retain its control over Canada was that The Empire needed trees to build ships. Britain couldn't rule the waves without Canadian lumber. And as one drives across New Brunswick one sees thousands of acres of trees that in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries would have become English wooden ships rather than French wooden ships.  

Or, take cod. The Catholic church prohibited consumption of the flesh of warm-blooded animals on various days (Friday, during Lent, etc.) and pre-refrigeration Europe needed dried cod. Canada had a lot of cod. And now it doesn't (there's been a moratorium on cod since 1992). Areas once rich aren't because the cod are gone. They fish for other fish and seafood - but the big business of cod fishing is over. Many young people travel west to Alberta for work, leaving behind crumbling mansions that once housed shipping barons and fishing fleet captains. And over many of the houses and churches metal cod still point the way.

A Cod Wind Vane in Lunenberg

In Prince Edward Island they are proudly touting the 150th anniversary of the first gathering of the Fathers of Confederation in 1864. But the story takes a bit of a tortured path when they try to explain why when several British colonies joined together to form the Dominion of Canada in 1867, Prince Edward Island was a no show. Blame the cod. In 1867 Prince Edward Island was a "have" colony because of cod fishing and ship building, and the leaders of the colony didn't think it was advantageous to join the Confederation. 
   
  

Big 150th Anniversary Sign in Charlottetown

So really, those five major imports and exports are important.  They make history.  

Geography also impacts other aspects of a culture. For example, Summer isn't just a time for recreation in Canada.  It's Road Repair Season.  

Drive Patiently - Roadwork Ahead . . . and Behind . . . and Around

Road Warning Pylons Everywhere

 And when Road Repair Season ends . . . Falling Ice Season is not far behind.

So - What Do You Do, Duck?

History May Be Written By The Winners -- But the Other Guys Sometimes Have An Audience . . .  

For example - the War of 1812.  

Molly's recollection from a history class at Woodrow Wilson Junior High in Tulsa, Oklahoma is that (a) the mighty British Navy press-ganged U.S. sailors; (b) the tiny, weak, fledgling U.S. defended its citizens against the might of the British empire; (c) the evil British burned Washington, D.C.; (d) Dolly Madison rode out of town with the portrait of George Washington in a wagon with flames rising behind her (though this seems to be somewhat mixed in Molly's memory with Scarlett O'Hara leaving Atlanta); (e) the U.S. won the war (though it was not made clear how we get from (c) to (e) . . . ); and (f) the U.S. defended New Orleans after the peace accord because communication was really slow in the early 1800's but that was later fixed by the telegraph. 

Well, apparently this is only partially true.  

Shocking.

Yes the British Navy press-ganged U.S. sailors - their bad.  But one might point out (if one was a Canadian, for example) that: the U.S. declared war in an attempt to expand its control over British territory in North America; the British were allied with various Native American tribes and the U.S. was busily attempting to expand into Native American territories; the U.S. tried to invade Canada three different times; Washington D.C. was burned in retaliation for the U.S. having burned Fort York (now Toronto); and the real losers in this conflict were various Native American tribes.  

And if you want to know more, visit various sites in central and southern Ontario and in particular the Queenston Heights historic site. Queenston Heights is where Major-General Sir Isaac Brock died in defense of Upper Canada (now Ontario) against the army of the evil expansionist invading United States.  

In short - the Americans invaded, the British fought back, oops the American reinforcements didn't show, Brock died in the battle, and eventually the British won.  

Brock's Monument

A Monument to Laura Secord - Canada's Molly Pitcher
Laura Was A Spy Who Got A Chocolate Company Named After Her

Enemy Territory (New York As Seen From Ontario)

Thus ends our Thematic Consideration of Our Adventure In Eastern Canada.  Our next posts will be more about what we experienced in each province.  Just in case you decide to take us up on our suggestion to visit Canada.