This is day 10 of our Canadian adventure and we in Old Quebec. That is the last major city we will see in Canada. While Old Quebec was much more enjoyable than Montreal it was still a hectic time. But we did find the major stopping point we were looking for and that was Place Royale. It was part of the very old Quebec that has been completely restored back to its 1600s roots. That is except for the 21st century add-ons. Above is a picture of the main square in that area. We didn’t even attempt to get into the “new” Quebec, But I will grudgingly admit that I enjoyed the old town for the four hours we spent there.
It was a very festive place as shown in the picture gallery below. The painted murals on the walls were of the magnitude and beauty I have never encountered. I ended up spending quite some time just trying to take in the details. Even though I could not hear them the various musicians around the square were a pleasure to watch. I am certainly glad we didn’t write off this portion of the trip.
Of course this area is adjacent to the St. Lawrence River as it was the river was a major highway in its time. There were lots of nice restaurants and shops in the area, so I had trouble keeping my wife out of some of them. But, it ends up I was the one to spend for a major item which was a unique jacket. We found a parking space relatively close to the area and after plugging in about $10 worth of coins we got an hour and a half on the meter.
I made sure that I got a few pictures of the young french ladies in the area. I watched the one in the picture here put up her hair on top her head and as a result found that they follow the French in more ways than I thought. When she raised her arms to set her hair she revealed a full crop of hair under her arms. I knew Europeans don’t shave their armpits, but I was surprised to see the French Canadians don’t either. 😉
The next few weeks are bound to be less hectic than the previous one as we will not likely see another city exceeding 10,000 people during all that time. We plan on taking the local highway that runs right next to the St. Lawrence and the Atlantic for about 400 miles or so. When we find a really nice place with the scenic views that my wife relishes we will likely stay for a few days to recharge our batteries.
I want to close out this report with more pictures of Old Quebec. It was a very picturesque place that I’m glad we visited. Click on any picture below to see a larger slideshow version.
