Encore Quebec

Hi again

We have had a busy few days. On Sunday we went to the Valcartier waterslides (the largest in Canada) and they really were amazing. We were there for 8 hours and certainly got our money's worth since Den and the girls went down the slides over and over again. There were also a couple of inner tube rivers that they loved. I sat, read a book (and finished it) and did my knitting. I really must have looked old though, since the book I borrowed happened to be large print (and it was a Maeve Binchy which isn't exactly intellectually highbrow) and I was knitting...However, the knitting came in handy, since I can reset the GPS (which sometimes gets confused) with the tip of my knitting needle. In addition, some of the waterslides prohibit wearing glasses unless you have a lanyard on them...so I gave Dennis a fetching yellow piece of yarn for his glasses, and Mhairi a cool green one for hers. Needs must!

The weather was perfect...a slight breeze and overcast so we didn't get fried. It was a good day! Came home with tired kids too!

The next day, Monday, Ceilidh's Grade 8 teacher, Danielle Brault, drove up from visiting her father in Cowansville. She took Ceilidh, Mhairi and I out to Montmorency Falls (beautiful, and taller than Niagara Falls, although not as wide). Dennis stayed home to work (which he FINISHED and now is free!!) and nurse an injured toe he stubbed at the waterslides. After the falls, we went over to the Ile d'Orleans, an island in the middle of the St Lawrence, which is one of the oldest inhabited areas in Quebec. It is a little like Saltspring, with artisans, craft stores, lots of produce and quaint houses. It is easy to see the remnants of the feudal system in the long, narrow plots of land that reach the water. Went into a couple of churches, too!

We then went into town for coffee, ice cream and a tour around. I really like Vieux Quebec; it is European, pedestrian friendly, and charm around each corner.

Danielle brought us home, and Dennis made the yummiest pizza, with thinly sliced potato and rosemary. She also left us with some of her sister, Suzanne's, home made maple fudge. YUUUUUM! Merci, Suzanne!

Today, we took our bikes, parked on the Blvd de Champlain, and biked the 5 km into Quebec City. There was a fierce wind, which made for tough peddling, but the way home was easy!!

The bike and pedestrian path was installed for the 400th anniversary of the founding of Quebec City (this year!) and is a wonderful path, easy to cycle, with beautiful benches, seating and "installations" along it. The benches all look very modern with horizontal lines, and remind me a bit of 60s architecture. The "installations" are sculptures, and other "things", that I am sure have some deep meaning which eludes me. Some seem to look like ships, others emit a mist periodically, which almost obscures everything. It is all very user friendly and appealing to the eye. The installations seem to run diagonal to the path.

In the city we did more sightseeing, and enjoyed tarte au sucre (sugar pie) which is like pecan pie without the pecans or raisins....so sort of a maple custard in a crust. Wow! I hope we cycled off a tenth of the calories! Thanks to Danielle for the suggestion!

On the way home, there were Cycling Security people who kept the cycling traffic moving, and directed cars so that the cyclists had the right of way! What a nice change. Since we headed home about 4:30, I assumed that cycling commuters were joining us.

It is raining (sigh), but we are sitting down to a tortellini arrabiata dinner, which we all are looking forward to!