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Vieux Ville Quebec

Writer's picture: Pamela LawtonPamela Lawton

We spent our last weekend (June 24-26) in Canada in the old quarter of Quebec City (Vieux-Quebec). It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This section of the city is surrounded by an old stone wall and is divided between the lower-town and the Upper Town--where the city's military administrative center resides. The Upper Town sits atop the promontory of Cap Diamant with excellent views of the St. Lawrence River. We'd hoped to observe the Royal 22nd Regiment --housed there---march and change the guard, which happens daily in summer at 10am. Daily at 12 noon and 9:30pm they fire a ceremonial canon (much like at Edinburgh Castle in Scotland). Unfortunately, they had not yet started the summer maneuvers while we were there. However street performers (like the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh) took center stage at the Plaza area in front of Chateau Frontenac. The whole weekend was sunny, blue skies and 78-84 degrees. We thoroughly explored the Old City, from walking through the luxurious lobby of the impressive Chateau Fairmont de Frontenac Hotel--built by the Canadian Pacific Railway over the 100 year period 1893-1993 (see portrait of Samuel de Champlain), to the star shaped battlements of the Citadelle, the larges military fortification in North America, to Place Royal---the oldest section of the Old City, where Samuel de Champlain built the city's first structure in 1608, to the Rue du Tresor---a small alley where artists sell their works---I bought a lovely original etching there. The Upper Town can be accessed by a series of stairs or the Funiculaire----a small car on an elevated track. Of course we walked both up and down the stairs instead---that way we were certain not to miss any of the shops! Of course we brought sweatshirts at the Roots---Canada's unique sportswear designer. Restaurants of all kinds were plentiful--mostly French, Italian and Quebecois food (Poutaine---french fries with gravy and cheese curds---which we didn't try) and even a Japanese restaurant. Our room was a lovely suite in Hotel Acadia---comprised of 3 historic houses connected by twisting stairways. We were on the top (fourth) floor in the last house. It had a full kitchen, old fireplace, and even a lovely private balcony with a table and two chairs---we'd definitely stay there again. On Sunday, June 26th we drove back to Trois-Rivieres. We will spend Sunday and Monday here and then make the trip home. Next stop Montreal!











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