Meandering through streets museums and markets

Another day in beautiful Quebec city yesterday. We spent the day wandering the streets of the upper and lower town, admiring the streetscapes and the 300 year old buildings.

We were heading for the farmer's market down by the quay. This funny old building just across the street from the market looks like it has a lot of history. It reminds me of something you might find in 16th Century London.

The market was wonderful, full of colourful foods of course. Here are few images. 

We resisted the macarons but succumbed to making a purchase from this guy was making hot fresh churros rolled in cinnamon and sugar. Yummers!

We spent the afternoon in the Museum of Civilization seeing exhibits on the history and sociology of Quebec, a display of carriages and sleighs, Inuit and Native culture, and a travelling display on the Magic of Egypt. We saw only some of the exhibits but it's overwhelming to absorb them all in one day.

I'll finish this entry with a few more images of the old city. This first one could be Paris, non? With the darling garçon at the table at the outdoor cafe. Yesterday there were more cruise ships in town (including the Queen Mary 2) so the historic area was very crowded.

I'm not sure if this is a public art installation (there are many of them around)... or seasonal decor. It seems that most businesses get into decorating for Halloween in a big way.

And finally the ornate entry doors of the Hotel Clarendon.

Today is our last day in Quebec City. We pick up a car tomorrow for our three-day drive to Montreal. This part of our trip is completely unplanned except that we know we'll be heading west. I've found there's a very historic road called the "Chemin du Roy" that is the oldest road along the Saint Lawrence. That will be our starting ppoint.

Musée des Beaux-Artes du Québec

Going back to our Eastern Canada trip, the highlight yesterday was a visit to the beautiful Quebec art museum. One of the buildings is a renovated 1867 prison.

Here's Harry in the central part of the building looking down a couple of floors.


Below you can see the watch tower, now a permanent art display and on the right one of the cells. A row of them have been kept to show the sadder history of the building.

Now it's a light filled place of art.

We really enjoyed seeing an exhibit about four 20th century Quebec artists, each featured in their own large gallery.

Jean Paul Riopelle

Alfred Pellan

Fernand Leduc

and Jean Paul Lemieux.

We enjoyed seeing these artists, most of whom aren't well known outside of Quebec.

Here's a view out of one of the museum's upper windows. Across the river is another city; on this side you can see some of the coloured leaves, although most seem to have been blown off by a recent storm.

We enjoyed a wonderful lunch in the museum's restaurant where they serve a set price lunch made with local ingredients. I loved this elegant luncheon.

I also loved this tiny Inuit carving of a dancing bear. It was only about thee inches tall. The museum has a gallery dedicated to Inuit carvings of all sizes.

Finally, just a glimpse of our lovely hotel room. It's in an old building in vieux Quebec, the upper town. This is the view out the bathroom window, and below a look at the room.

A short political message

I'm interrupting my Eastern Canada travelogue for this IMPORTANT POLITICAL NOTICE:

If the Red and Orange and Green parties (everyone in Canada knows which ones I mean) can’t get it together, then we the voters must take things into our own hands to defeat Harper.

The way the polls look now Harper will win a minority. But if everyone opposed to him voted strategically it could be either a liberal or an NDP minority with the conservatives greatly reduced at about 20 seats. We need to get the word out to empower people to make a change to the government.

There's a website that gives an up to date rundown with voting suggestions in just about every riding. Click on the link below to see which candidate in your riding has the best chance of defeating the conservatives.

http://www.strategicvoting.ca/swingdistricts.php

AND then please forward this information far and wide. 

This must go viral to get the message out to everyone in Canada who wants a real change in government.

We can do this!

PS:  This is my last ditch effort. As of now I am shutting the door on worrying about the election as it is causing me to lose too much sleep. I've now done everything I can to get the word out about strategic voting. I'm counting on you to pass this message on.

The streets of old Quebec

Walking the streets of old Quebec City is almost like being in Paris. The walled city is so walkable and lovely. Our hotel is on Rue Sainte Ursule, near the 400 year old Ursuline Convent, where we visited an exhibit showing the lives of the nuns and the girls who attended the boarding school there.
We are relaxing for a couple of days in this elegant and comfortable hotel, the Hotel Acadia. It has an cozy electric fireplace, a comfy couch, and a jetted tub for two. Nice!

We're here for three more days and plan to see some of the sights starting tomorrow. Meanwhile here are a few images from our walk around the both the upper and the lower town yesterday and today.

Experiencing history in Fredericton

Our last two days in the Maritimes were in Fredericton, capital of New Brunswick, and we continued to dip into history here.  Our first stop was the historic Kings Landing village, a living museum created by bringing homes and churches and buildings from around the area. The village is inhabited by villagers dressed in clothing of the period speaking in character and of their time period. I could have spent all day here going into different houses and talking the the people living there and finding out their story.

This woman was cleaning up from lunch and told us how she does the cooking for her brother and his family.

We got a ride down the hill with this farmer and his team of horses.

This man demonstrated how he makes utensils out of apple wood.

This home is a classic design. I wish we could have spent the whole day there. It's an amazing experience.

Fredericton itself has history. Here's its beautiful city hall.

Yesterday we took the bus north into Quebec at a town called Riviere du Loup, and this morning we take the bus into Quebec City.

Back-roading in New Brunswick

For the past couple of days we've been driving the back roads of rural New Brunswick. It's really beautiful. The leaves are just beginning to turn and the roads are essentially empty. It seems that after Labour Day there's not much happening.  Here are a few photos to give you an idea of this lovely area. No commentary needed.

This last photo was taken inside a gas station convenience store. They were selling produce from local farms.