What a wonderful day!
The Gray Line bus picked me up at my hotel at 7:20 in the morning, and my fellow travelers and I took a 3 hour bus trip (plus a coffee stop) to Quebec City.
The highlight of this 400 year old city is the grand hotel, Le Chateau Frontenac. It's owned by the Fairmont Corporation these days. Absolutely stunning. They call it the "most photographed hotel in the world". You can get to it from a Finicular (incline elevator) or by bus.
The old city is surrounded by a fortified wall. Every building is a post card. And the tourists eat it up. The place is crowded with tours, tour guides, etc. But I'm so glad I got to be here. It really felt like I was in an old European town.
A very cool attraction is the painted wall below. An artist created this in 1999, and it tells the story of Quebec, from its' founding to its' political decisions to technology in modern times. It's kind of funny to see how outdated the computer screens in the painting look so big and clunky compared to what we use today.At any rate, I urge you to click on this photo to blow it up and really see the workmanship of this painting. The perspective would make Da Vinci envious.
The building with the red roof is another old hotel. The entire city is loaded with sidewalk cafes, art galleries with works by Quebecois artists, and more gift shops. I had lunch at the oldest house in Quebec (more than 350 years old!). The food was traditional Quebec fare. It's worthy of its' own posting. More on that later.
In addition to the incredibly preserved buildings, there is a great deal of archeological work going on. The photo below is a dig at the top of the mountain, near the hotel. It's the site of the original fort. You're looking at a hearth that has been unearthed.
There is so much more to share about Quebec City, but I'm only allowed to download 5 photos of medium size. So I'll have to decide what to post next!
The building with the red roof is another old hotel. The entire city is loaded with sidewalk cafes, art galleries with works by Quebecois artists, and more gift shops. I had lunch at the oldest house in Quebec (more than 350 years old!). The food was traditional Quebec fare. It's worthy of its' own posting. More on that later.
In addition to the incredibly preserved buildings, there is a great deal of archeological work going on. The photo below is a dig at the top of the mountain, near the hotel. It's the site of the original fort. You're looking at a hearth that has been unearthed. 
There is so much more to share about Quebec City, but I'm only allowed to download 5 photos of medium size. So I'll have to decide what to post next! 
