The weather this morning does not look too favourable for the cruise. It started to rain pretty hard but cleared off a bit before we headed up to get the shuttle to the boat. We are back at the KOA that we were at for our Old Quebec City tour in June. This is a great camp site, although pricey, they are very friendly and offer tours as well. It is about 30 minutes into the city from here so having someone else at the helm is a holiday for Dan too.
So off to the dock for our tour at noon. We get into the city with time to spare so we went over into the harbour area. They are celebrating the creation of Quebec and there are 17th century costumed people everywhere. The streets are alive with people hustling, bustling and conversing. We thought we should get a bite so we went into this little bistro.
The waitress was so cute - she said I know you would like the outside patio - really I thought it's raining. Oh well she found us a cute little table with an umbrella and heater overhead and we were right on the street - it was awesome. We went in at the street level and two floors down and on the other side was the covered patio. I had to take my jacket off I was so warm. We had some cream of celery soup and a Shrimp Caesar salad - Chef Special of the day. Very good!
Looking out onto the street and here is the menu - I thought it was kind of unique being on a sandwich board!
They have such neat little places in Quebec - I love it! Finished our lunch we head over to the dock.
The Louis Jolliet is docked and ready for us to load.
The Greeter!
Just as we are getting ready to sail the tour gods were looking after us, the sky is breaking up and it's getting warm! Should be a nice afternoon on the water.
The view from the boat of the harbour where there are many shops and bistros and where the French Celebration is being held.
The view as we pull out and head up the River.
Shipbuilding is a big industry in Quebec and large ports contain thousands of pounds of grain for shipping.
The Island of Orleans is now accessed by a bridge and is a large agricultural area. They grow fruits, such as apples, raspberries, strawberries and make maple syrup there as well. This island sells their products at the Farmer's Market throughout the season.
As we get closer to the bridge we slowly turn to view the Montmorency Falls.
The red Canadian boat above is used in the winter as an ice breaker to keep the St. Larwence navigable. It is hard to imagine this much water freezing solid durinfpg the winter. The Chateau Frontenac looms over the harbour and looks down on Old Quebec City.
There is a ferry that services the south side of Quebec and as we were cruising the two were passing.
When we turned around the wind came up - but it was still beautiful - the end of an enjoyable afternoon.
As soon as we got off the boat and boarded our shuttle bus the sky opened up and down came the rain. Then a huge bolt of lightning and a large roar of thunder and the heavens really opened up and did it rain. Huge rain drops bouncing off the streets - people running for cover, but we are safe in our shuttle bus! Off to the Chateau Frontenac where the tour buses meet. We had to change busses to get back to camp. The Place D'Armes the last time we were here was very majestic, but now with the gardens in bloom it is even more beautiful. There is a solid circle of tall deep purple flowers on bright green stems surrounded by small vibrant pink border plants. In June the flower beds were just planted and now as we travel around we see the same areas blossoming with colour! Back to camp through rush hour traffic but our bus driver was great and got us back in an hour. Awesome!
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