Ke'bec or Quebec City?

We pulled into the KOA Quebec City on Ron’s birthday!  A fairly simple drive, but man, I have never seen so many RV’s on the road and the traffic!  Parts of the highway were very rough and parts were very smooth.  We played a little corn hole and put some ribs on the pit and had a very enjoyable afternoon.

The next day the rain started about 4 a.m.  By the way, the sun likes to rise way before 5 a.m. here.  Geez…… But we boarded the tour bus at 8 in the rain and struck out for Old Quebec City.  Even though the rain was not so fun, the town was so beautiful.  Our tour guide was so very knowledgeable (and he never quit talking if you get my drift) so here are a few things I remember.  The name Quebec comes from the Algonquin word for “narrow passage”.  The St. Lawrence River narrows near what is now the city of Quebec.

Can you see where the St. Lawrence River narrows by the city?

Quebec is also pronounced with more of a “K”.  The river as it flows through here is 300’ deep.  It is fresh water, but 35 miles away it becomes brackish.  The town is built on 2 levels – upper and lower.  Old Quebec is a walled city and the only remaining walled city.  It has a very distinct old world character and charm.  It has narrow cobblestone streets, stone buildings, fortifications, and rich French Canadian culture that is grounded in the French language.  It is a major tourist destination.  The population is about 700,000 but tourists number in the millions.  I found it interesting that most of the housing is apartment buildings or duplexes or structures for multi-families.  There were a lot of military advantages here because it was at the confluence of the St. Charles and the narrowing of the St. Lawrence River.  Do you remember the explorer Jacques Cartier?  He was seeking a route to Asia and he sailed up the St. Lawrence in 1535.  Skip forward in history to when the British attempted to capture this stronghold, and failed, until the famous Battle of Quebec on the Plains of Abraham in 1759 in which the French were defeated.  There was another Battle of Quebec in 1775. The US broke away from British North America had implications for Quebec.  Anyway, enough history.

 

Here's some pictures of Old Quebec City.

 

Beautiful cobblestone streets

The government paid for restoration here and you can see the dates of original construction. You can rent an apartment for 30% of your income.

Tourists

The NE side of buildings have no windows due to weather so it's a perfect place for beautiful murals.

Another mural

This is where we had lunch.

The Parliament Building was outstanding.

 

We drove through the Plains of Abraham, a historic area within the Battlefields Park in Quebec City, Quebec.  This battle took place on September 13, 1759.  It has now become a park.

 

Beautiful peonies everywhere!

Joan of Arc Statue, gift from the US

Their empire state building. Did you know these buildings were built to anchor the flying derigibels?

We visited the Centre Catherine-De-Saint-Augustin and as we understood it, this was the first hospital in North America.  The year is 1648.  Catherine of St. Augustine was 16 when she set sail from France to Quebec.  She began the task of nursing the sick in the hospital of the monastery, attending to both their spiritual and physical needs. 

 

We had the most awesome lunch at the historic Le Chateau Frontenac.  This is an excellent example of the grand hotels developed by railway companies in Canada in the late 1800’s. It’s the world’s most photographed hotel.

 

Day 2 was another long tour day, but it didn’t disappoint.  Our first stop was the Shrine of Sainte Anne de Beaupre’.  Being Catholic, I have never heard of St. Anne.  I soon found out she’s the mother of the Virgin Mary, the grandmother of Jesus.  Apparently this comes from apocryphal literature which is ancient writings that weren’t included in the Bible.  It doesn’t matter.  This place is beautiful and will inspire you to no end.  It has been a pilgrimage site for over 350 years.  The first chapel was erected in 1658.  The second was in 1661-1676.  The third church was 1676-1876.  The first Basilica was erected in 1876 and burned in 1922.  The present Basilica was erected in 1923 and completed in 1927 (but wasn’t really completed as apparently they keep adding to the beauty).  Oh my gosh!  You would need to see this place in person.  Also – the Pope will be visiting here later this summer!

These copper doors are beautiful

Look at the detail!  It's everywhere!

The United States representation is on the right side.

Canadian representation on the left.

The lone survivor of the fire of 1922.

Next stop was the Gilles Copper Museum.  Albert Gilles family has been playing with copper for 93 years.  They crafted the doors of Saine Anne de Beaupre church, and 40 other churches.  He was commissioned by a Pope to do a gold chalice.  Beautiful work and was so interesting to see how you work with the copper.

We had lunch at Montmorency Falls.  The Falls are 275’.  The Duke of Canada who is the father of Queen Victoria owned the Le Manoir Montmorency where we had lunch.  It now belongs to the government.

We had lunch here.

Last but not least, we took a ride to the Isle of Orleans, which is an island in the middle of the St. Lawrence River.  Lots of farming here.

Whew!  A really busy and full two days of touring!