Last week we went to Quebec for a short holiday that involved a lot of walking, sightseeing and eating. We decided to fly to Quebec City with Porter airlines and then make our way to Montreal and back to Toronto by the Via rail system. The small 75-seater Porter plane departed from Toronto Island, which was pretty cool as we see the flights take off and land over Lake Ontario all the time from our apartment.
After a short in-flight nap, we arrived at Quebec City. It was lovely to wander through the beautiful and historic streets of Vieux Quebec (old Quebec), stopping every so often for refreshments (crepes et cafe au lait, naturally). My favourite was Rue St Jean, a long and winding street full of many people, shops and restaurants. At night the road is reserved for pedestrian traffic so all the cafes and restaurants bring out patio chairs, tables and umbrellas onto the footpaths. We really enjoyed the 'terrasse' (outdoor dining) experience - good food and great people watching, what more could you want?
It was also my first opportunity to practice parlez-ing some Francais. While we seemed to get by okay with the basics, there reached a point (sometimes fairly early on) in each conversation where English was clearly easier for both us and the person we were speaking to. I have tentatively checked this one off my list, however I'm going to keep practising for next time!
Between espresso and patisserie pit-stops, we saw the Chateau Frontenac, a beautiful hotel dating back to the 19th century, Parliament House and the historic Citadelle and stone city walls. The 'lower town' area is home to a maze of quaint cobblestone streets called Du Petit Champlain. It was a bit rainy the first day we were there, but the seemingly endless stretch of charming gift shops, chocolate and sweet shops, cafes and restaurants provided more than enough motivation to keep exploring. We joined a food tour to visit some top-rating restaurants and sample tasty morsels such as salmon tartare, rabbit terrine, local cheese, delicious Breton-style buckwheat crepes and ice cider. The tour also included a visit to the maple syrup store and chocolate museum. Wow, I'm even making myself hungry with this description! On our last night in Quebec City, we saw an awesome (and free) Cirque du Soleil show that plays to a huge audience every night under a highway overpass - very cool.
Next stop was Montreal - our visit coincided with the Just for Laughs Festival, so we went to some comedy shows and wandered around the Festival grounds at la Place des Arts. There were lots of free outdoor performances too, such as an alien puppet marching band, dancing white balloon-people and a surreal hedge maze that contained some interesting characters. For dinner we had a duck confit and brie grilled cheese sandwich from a food van. Tres bien!
After wandering around old town ('Vieux Montreal'), the port and the trendy Plateau area during the day, we caught up with a local and his friends for dinner and drinks. The multicultural group's conversation was an interesting mix of Paris-French, Quebec-French and Tourist French (i.e. us), which revealed how out of depth I am in this language. Fortunately for us, the local Quebecois are able to slip between languages effortlessly (and often in the same sentence), so not too much was lost in translation. Naturally, we reciprocated the cultural exchange by educating our new friends about the infamous Australian drop bear. After dinner, we made our way to a japanese cocktail lounge that was so hip and underground that there was no sign anywhere near the entrance (an unassuming red door hidden between take-away shops). After more stories and drinks, we relinquished to peer group pressure by trying some greasy poutine. We've actually tried a couple of poutines since we've been in Canada, but we were assured that true Montreal poutine was simply an experience not to be missed! After experiencing it I would tend to disagree, but I can understand how the patriotic symbolism of a food can be strong enough to change one's perception of its taste (e.g. vegemite). For the uninitiated, poutine is a pile of french fries covered with gravy and cheese curds. Mm, sounds delish! I'm told that to truly appreciate poutine, it is best eaten after a long night out, similar to a kebab.
The next morning we visited the scenic Parc du Mont Royal. After ascending countless steps in high humidity to reach the 233m high lookout, were rewarded with a great view of the city and a well-deserved ice cream. The sporty types we saw running up and down the steps repeatedly didn't stop for caramel drumsticks, but then they didn't look like they were having much fun either. On the east side of the park, we came across the Tam Tam (drum) players, a hippie collective that meet up every Sunday afternoon to create catchy rhythms. Sadly it was BYOB (bring your own bongos), so we made our way back on the subway to see another comedy show.
I enjoyed our Quebec break, but alas the holiday time is over. We're well and truly back to reality now as Shane starts his job and I begin my job hunt in earnest - wish me luck!
We made our way to Niagara this week to see the famous waterfalls and to spend some time at Niagara on the Lake. Once we arrived at Niagara Falls, we went for a leisurely stroll in the sunshine to take in the spectacular views. In the first photo, you can see the USA and Bridal Veil falls on the left. On the right are the Canadian Horseshoe falls, which are far bigger and much more impressive - I wonder if this has caused waterfall envy in the States? Next we went up to the Skylon tower's 230 metre high observation deck, which was well worth it for the panoramic views of the area. Lastly, we decided to get up close and personal with the falls by taking the 'Maid of the Mist' boat tour - an absolute must for anyone visiting! All passengers are given a blue plastic poncho before boarding, which feels a bit silly at first, but as the boat makes its way into the centre of the Horseshoe falls you begin to appreciate its purpose. It was amazing to experience the powerful roar and spray of the water that's constantly surging over the edge of the falls. Great fun!
In the afternoon we headed to Niagara on the Lake which is a stunningly beautiful little town surrounded by wineries. The main street is decorated with colourful flowerbeds and hanging planters and has lots of little shops selling gifts, wine, chocolate, ice cream and so on. I'm sure Shane got sick of hearing me say "it's so nice!" over and over again, but it really was! We stayed at a lovely little bed & breakfast for two nights and the owners were so friendly and helpful.
To continue our theme of getting around by bicycle in Canada, we took a wine tasting tour by bike. Our knowledgeable local tour guide Ted took us to three wineries where we sampled some good drops, including our first taste of ice wine. We learned that ice wine can only be made from grapes that are naturally frozen on the vine in winter, when the temperature reaches between -8 and -14 degrees celsius. Once the conditions are just right the grapes are harvested and pressed immediately. Because the water molecules in the grapes are frozen into crystals, the juice that's extracted is much higher in sugar content and flavour which results in a sweet dessert wine. If that explanation is a bit too technical for your liking, you may prefer this shortened version: icewine = delicious.
We also visited Fort George where the British Army battled the US Army in the war of 1812. The guides that work there all dress in period military costumes and gave some interesting demonstrations of musket firing (below) and fife and drum playing.
At night we joined a ghost tour and heard all of the spoooooky tales of the town. It turns out that the locals at Niagara on the Lake love nothing more than a good ghost story and with several historical buildings still standing, it's not surprising that many of them are considered 'haunted'. While it was an entertaining tour, it didn't affect my fondness for the area in the slightest - in fact, I'm already planning my retirement there...
Ah coffee, how I miss you! While there is a Tim Horton's on every corner (about 50 in downtown Toronto alone), and a Starbucks on every other corner (about 25 in the area), it seems that real coffee is hard to find. As a fellow expat put it to us: "you have to think of coffee as a different concept here". The word 'coffee' means percolated drip coffee in North America, and sadly the words 'flat white' do not seem to exist. Let's review the two major players, Starbucks and Timmy's:
You're probably familiar with the standard Starbucks formula - cheery baristas decked out in green aprons that insist on knowing your name, offering an almost endless range of coffee products. I usually go for something simple like a grande decaf double ristretto non-fat organic cinnamon dolce latte, extra hot with whipped cream, double blended and served in two paper cups. I find Starbucks coffee reliably consistent, yet somehow unsatisfying - it feels like a coffee placebo.
The Canadian alternative to this US multinational giant is Tim Horton's, where the coffee is awful, but much cheaper (you can buy 2 coffees with $5 and still get change back). I'm told that the immense popularity of the chain stems from a strong sense of patriotism, as it's named after a hockey legend who co-founded the company. One redeeming feature of the menu at Timmy's is TimBits, which are the sugary blobs cut out from the centre of donuts. They come in a happy-meal shaped box which is designed to draw your attention away from the coffee.
We've been living the condo(minium) life for a week now and are feeling pretty settled in. Luckily, our friendly landlords have furnished the apartment beautifully, so we haven't needed to provide much more than our suitcases. There is a nice view from the balcony facing the harbourfront, and the nearby St James cathedral chimes a helpful hourly reminder of the time. We are situated in the St Lawrence Market area, so there's a great fresh food market and lots of nice restaurants within walking distance. Actually everything in Toronoto seems to be within walking distance, so we've covered a fair few ks exploring the city. Everyone who lives here seems to own a small dog and we often see them coming in and out for walkies too.
Yesterday we made use of the Bixi system (short term bicycle rentals) and rode down along Lake Shore Boulevard, which faces Lake Ontario. There were some nice parklands and small beaches, I bet it will be even prettier in the Fall/Autumn.
Happy Canada day everyone!
Actually it was Canada day yesterday, but just like home, Canadians still claim the Monday as a public holiday to celebrate/relax/enjoy the sunshine.
We first celebrated with consumerism at Canadian Tire (think Bunnings crossed with Kmart) and later checked out the festivities at the Harbourfront, pausing to take in the beautiful scenery and some live music and dancing.
That's right, it's Pride week in Toronto, a huge festival celebrating the diversity of the city's LGBTTIQQ2SA community (that's Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transsexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer, Questioning, 2 Spirited and Allies... here are some helpful definitions if you want to learn more). The Pride parade is one of the largest in the world with 30,000 people marching over the space of 3 hours and a crowd of over 1.2 million spectators! All in all it was a happy, fun and very colourful day out in the sunshine.
