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Published: March 30th 2008
I left Boston yesterday morning at 8 am. Finally took the bus, as the rideshare to Montreal would have made me arrive after midnight in Quebec City. I was looking forward to a pretty ride up through New Hampshire and Vermont, since last time I did it, it was nighttime and snowing. It wasn't nighttime yesterday, but it DID snow the whole way to the Canadian border, and you couldn't see much of the countryside. Nevertheless, there were some pretty scenes in Vermont (see photos). Again, at the border, I couldn't help thinking how ridiculous it all was. Since the Americans are now much stricter with Canadians coming across, the Canadian customs agents (wearing bullet-proof vests) have decided to be real sticklers. Not only did we all have to get off the bus and answer questions like, "Do you have enough money with you to stay in Canada for three days?", but we also had to drag all our luggage inside with us. And they didn't even pass it through a machine or have a dog sniff it before we loaded it back into the luggage compartment!
I changed buses in Montreal and had an hour stop-over there. Arrived in
Quebec City at 6:30 PM. So the whole trip took about 10 and a half hours by bus. Just FYI, it cost me $130 one way--much, much cheaper than if I'd flown. Just too bad I didn't find a rideshare directly to Quebec City, though.
In Montreal, but particularly in Quebec City, there's still a lot of snow on the ground, but it wasn't snowing when I arrived. However, it snowed all night and morning. It cleared up in the afternoon and the snow was really quite pretty, but you can understand how depressing it must be to still have so much snow and cold weather on March 29. Apparently, Quebec City has set a new record for snow this year --with an average of 5 meters per snowstorm. Anyway, you'll see all this in the photos I'm posting.
Marc and Marlo are fine. Marlo got an extension of her scholarship to finish her courses at the University of Laval, so they'll be here until next December. They do plan to sublet their apartment, though, and spend July and August in France.
Today, we had brunch in a restaurant and then took a long walk on the
street scene in Quebec
This afternoon, March 29, 2008Plaines d'Abraham, where people were cross-country skiing and sledding. This evening we went to see an Argentinian film which is part of a Film Festival here called "Les Trois Ameriques." Then we went to join some of their friends in a bar that had live music. It was nice of them to take along Maman/Belle Mere! Tomorrow before I leave we're going to see a Mexican film.
As I bring this particular blog to a close, for memory's sake, I'd just like to say a few words about my last morning in Guatemala City, since I forgot to do it the other day. The Archaeological and Ethnographic Museum was interesting. There was a model of Tikal and lots of artefacts extracted from there, as well as from other places. And at the Airport Guest House, I met some interesting people. One was an American pilot living in the Quiche province of Guatemala near the Mexican border whose plane was being repaired at the Guatemala City airport. He flies indigenous people who need urgent medical assistance to hospitals and works with Doctors without Borders, missionary groups and various NGO's. He lives with his American wife (also a pilot) and two
children in an indigenous village where there's no electricity or running water. He spoke to us a lot about the situation of people in that region. It was all very interesting.
Well, my trip is coming to an end, and in 36 hours I'll be back in Paris. I hope you've enjoyed reading about my travels and I look forward to hearing from you and seeing many of you very soon.
Hilary
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Shirley
non-member comment
Super trip and super travelogue!
We'll be glad to have you back! What an amazing trip. I loved hearing about the places, your adventures, and your photos are terrific. I'll have to come and have a lesson in technology, because you seemed to have time to log on pretty often. When I was in Japan and Korea last year, it always seemed as if people were waiting in line for the computer. We don't have snow here, although a few flakes fell last week. Still cold, but there are a few signs of spring--like the flowers. Welcome home. Shirley