Blogs from Quebec, Canada, North America - page 7

Lévis, 11 août. Jolie petite boucle en bordure de la zone boréale québécoise pour terminer cet été particulier. Cap à l'Ouest vers la Mauricie, Lanaudière, les Laurentides et l'Outaouais. De l'eau, beaucoup d'eau sur ce territoire, plusieurs grands cours d'eau y prennent ici leurs sources. Pas mal de belles baignades tout au long du périple, avec quelques belles randonnées en prime. Réservoir Taureau (source de la Mattawin), Parc du Mont-Tremblant (le camping de la chute aux rats et la grimpette à la Corniche au dessus du lac Monroe, mémorables!), Réservoir Baskatong (source de la Gatineau, même si officiellement c'est le réservoir Gouin), vallée de la Gatineau, Ottawa (une petite excursion hors-frontière) puis retour par les vallées de l'Outaouais et du Saint-Laurent, les découvertes furent nombreuses et je suis ravi! En vous souhaitant une année 2021 pleine ... read more

Lévis, 29 juillet 2020 Pour les bourlingueurs comme vous et moi, ce minuscule petit truc a pour le moins bousillé une part de nos rêves de découvertes estivales. Étanchéité frontalière oblige, les Québécois se ruent hors des centres urbains vers des contrées plus aérées, une sorte de retour à la nature après ce difficile printemps. C'est ainsi que nos yeux se tournèrent vers le Québec maritime, déjà parcouru, mais ô combien riche en lieux extraordinaires! Depuis le Bas-St-Laurent, ce périple bordé de mer nous mena de la Baie des Chaleurs à la pointe de la péninsule gaspésienne, où trônent Percé, l'île Bonaventure et le parc Forillon. Après l'ascension du Mont Jacques-Cartier en Haute-Gaspésie, la traversée du fleuve depuis Matane nous mena sur la Côte-Nord, vers Pointe-des-Monts, Sept-Îles et Havre Saint-Pierre. Notre journée dans l'archipel de Mingan ... read more

I'm writing this final entry after the fact, clearly. We had a whirlwind weekend. Friday evening we again were out exploring Quebec and it was getting colder and colder. We also realized our hotel has three restaurants which, in comparison to the skyrocket prices around the hotel, offer better food for less money (overall). So, we made reservations for dinner in one of the hotel restaurants but we still decided to walk around some of the side streets tonight. The hotel, by the way, has steadily increased in traffic daily. Thursday evening the check-in desk was backed-up with people everywhere. Tonight, the lobby is packed full of people coming and going and then we see later on.... there's a ball in the ballroom!! They had a red carpet setup and "security" in tuxes so only those ... read more

We had a full day of sightseeing yesterday and it was glorious! I was wearing my new boots which are super cute (that's mandatory, right?) and comfortable too but after nearly 9,000 steps and walking up and down hills all day, my poor feet were warm but tired by the time we finally came back to the hotel room around 10:30pm last night. First, we returned to see the Christmas Markets at night. We walked through every area of the markets we could find. The Christmas Markets are in association with the Bavarian region of Germany and they have 80 to 90 vendors from Germany selling various items - hats, gloves, soaps, ornaments, hot chocolate, nougats, jewelry, etc. I've purchased two ornaments so far but their really hasn't been anything stand out to us as something ... read more

“A youth, who bore, ‘mid snow and ice, a banner with the strange device, Excelsior!” Excelsior, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow October 29. Classy start, huh? We certainly began in snow and ice – so, sorry, Edmonton – even if no one is likely to mistake me for a youth. Except maybe in a raging blizzard. And as for boring . . . Hm. Strange devices was yesterday’s non-weather theme, enough strange devices yesterday to justify the rest of the quote (and, yes, I know that “device” in the poem refers to what is displayed on a banner, but where’s the pun, er, fun in that?). First, the airplane was delayed for almost a full hour for “maintenance issues.” Something they did not bother to to tell those poor eager sods who chose to stand in line for ... read more