NOV 02: Quebec City -Second Time: Day 1 of 2

 

statute honoring Samuel De Champlain

After a leisurely breakfast, we headed for the Museum of Civilization, starting at the overlook in front of the hotel and then winding our way down roads and staircases to get to Basse (Lower) Quebec from Haute (Upper) Quebec. 

We could not resist trying samples at Mary's Popcorn Shop.

Unfortunately, construction noise permeated the area, but other than when passing the work site, it was just an annoyance. The number of detours and construction projects seemed to be everywhere in Montreal and Quebec.

The exhibits were thought-provoking and, in many instances, imaginative. A case in point would be these futuristic guys juxtaposed against the remains of an old boat hull. They looked confused. I certainly was.

The museum was fascinating. We spent more time than we had allocated in our plan for the day looking at the exhibits.

We walked back to the lower old part of the city to the funicular, which we rode up to the plaza in front of our hotel.

the cliff separating the lower and upper parts of the city

This sign seems to offer pedestrians a choice of being hit with an avalanche of ice or being skewered by a falling icicle

Before visiting Quebec City, I had yet to fully appreciate the strategic advantage the city's location gave the French during the 1600s-1700s.  The river narrows here. By placing forts on both sides of it, the French controlled all the traffic going west.  With a similar choke point at New Orleans for the Mississippi, when almost all goods were moved by water, the French took control of the middle of North America, creating New France.

A caution not to fall over the end in the foreground and behind, and an admonishment not to fly drones over the fort (because it is still a military base).

We saw three Canadian Coast Guard ships tied up. They serve as buoy tenders in the summer and break ice in the winter.

As we descended the last steps to the boardwalk, we passed the construction site of a toboggan run. The sign indicated that this run has been in existence since 1884. Apparently, it is disassembled each spring and reassembled each fall. Based on the slide's height and pitch and the runway's length, toboggans must fly down it. There were three channels, so multiple toboggans could descend simultaneously.

This one warns passers-by of snow avalanches off the roof

Back in the hotel, we dropped our things in the room, then went up to the lounge, where we sat at a small nook with a view upriver past the fort.

We walked to dinner at Chez Boulay, where we had a good dinner of innovative cuisine. Not being foodies, we no doubt missed some of what was happening in our palates.

Entering the lobby, the trees that had been lit up yesterday were fully decorated this evening. It was just one more of many things we saw going on today in preparation for the big holiday season that is a signature of Quebec City.

We walked 18,137 steps today.