(Backup) DAY 8 - Continued

DAY 8 - Montmorency Falls

After an uplifting visit to the Basilica, we went to the Montmorency Falls.   

Open year-round, the spectacular falls at 272 feet high are 99 feet higher than Niagara Falls.  After arriving at the lower level cable car area,  we immediately heard the roar of the rushing water which I found so energizing.  The cable car ride to the top cliff provided us with breathtaking views of the falls.  

From the top, I took the panoramic path to the first suspension bridge overlooking the Falls.   It was quite a hike for me, but I was determined to make it especially when one of the other group members, a lady who was 82, passed me on the path.    

We enjoyed a delicious late lunch at the Manoir Restaurant located a short walk from the Cable Car.

I loved Quebec and our hotel as it was located right in the heart town, within walking distance of many fine hotels and lower Quebec.   If you didn’t feel like walking, you could take the Old Quebec Funiclar railway, located less than a block from our hotel, down to the Petit Champlain shopping district. 

That evening we strolled the Governor’s Promenade behind our hotel, the Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac, shown below.    The Promenade runs along the St. Lawrence River from behind the  Frontenac Hotel past the Citadel ending at the Plains of Abraham, a famous battlefield.   

The Promenade had many interesting attractions including the luge and canons.

Views from the Promenade 

DAY 8-Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupre Basilica

After breakfast at L’Omelette, we traveled to The Basilica of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré set along the Saint Lawrence River in Quebec, Canada.  

Legend has it that the church was originally founded by fishermen who were lost for days in a storm and prayed to St.Anne to save them.  They promised to build a church in her honor wherever they landed.  I was raised Catholic and did not know the. history of Sainte Anne who was the mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary.  The present-day basilica was built in 1926 on the site of the prior church.

                The details in the ornate copper front doors were extraordinary. 

The intricate tile work prominently displayed in many areas of the church takes years to complete. Once I met a tile master in the Palermo Cathedral who explained that her entire life’s work would be to retile the foyer floor.  I found it incredible that this young girl was so devoted to the Church.

          

                           

The foyer below  was bookended with a baptismal font on one side representing the beginning of life and the other end with a crucifixion scene representing the end of life.    The altar on the crucifixion side was designed to look like a coffin.

The Catholic Church credited many miracles of curing the sick and disabled have occurred within the Basilica.  Two pillars near the entrance are filled with racks of crutches, canes, braces, and other signs of disabilities. Each item has been left by a pilgrim who reports being healed at the Basilica.

        

Below are several picturing depicting the overwhelmingly beautiful Basilica.

In all Catholic Churches there are devotional candle areas where you can make a donation and offer up prayers for your loved ones or special desires. 

Beautifully decorated ceiling work below.

This is a small altar devotional area dedicated to Sainte Anne as many parishioners and visitors expressed a desire to pray directly to her.

DAY 7

DAY 7  - Bus tour of Quebec and walking tour of Quartier Petit Quebec 

Quebec, the oldest city in Canada, was founded in July, 1608 by the explorer Samuel de Champlain when he was searching for a place suitable for settlement and found Quebec to be the most convenient and best situated due to its location on the St. Lawrence River.   When Champlain stepped ashore, he marked the beginning of Quebec and Canada.

Until Champlain successfully arrived, explorations to the New World brought disappointment and death for France.   Champlain was the visionary that would change history.  He dreamed not only of adding a great domain to France but of bringing wealth through the fur trade and of spreading the faith.

After several crises and rebellion, the work of building houses and creating a village resumed, but when spring broke in April 1609, only 8 of the 24 men who wintered at Quebec were still alive.   However, Champlain persevered through famines and battles with the natives and is highly admired by Canadians as one of the most influential and forward thinking colonizers in their country’s history.  

The Champlain Monument on Dufferin Terrace honors the man who founded Quebec.  

It’s one of the city’s most recognized statues due to its imposing size and the central location where street performers gather to entertain locals and tourists.    

Our tour included a drive by of several prominent sights including the Battlefields Park, the Citadel and Notre-Dame-de Quebec Basilica. Quebec is a booming city with construction at every turn.  It’s very difficult to get around the city and once again our bus driver, Dave, did an excellent job navigating through the narrow streets of a city that could easily pass for a French village.

Bernard was an exceptional tour guide.   Sunrise Tours always hires the best local guides to provide its guests with a thorough background and entertaining narrative of the area.

 In some pictures you will see constructuon cranes partially blocking the monument or statue.

    

     

                   Notre-Dame-de Quebec Basilica

         

The building above with all the lumber randomly placed was an interesting decorative choice for this posh area.

I loved these gigantic lamp shades put up just for an art exhibit in one of the ritziest shopping districts, but they became so popular that they left them up and just change the shades for special events, like in the second photo it depicts the film festival.   

            

A lovely church for sale for a mere $2 million Canadian Dollars.





The walled area around the Citadel under repair.

An impressive statue of Joan of Arc.

The merchants in Petit Champlain collectively decide on seasonal decorations for the area and they were putting up these colorful umbrellas while we were touring the area.   They were so vibrant and just gave such a festive feel to the area.

A typical outdoor cafe scene very reminiscent of cafes in France.  A lovely was to spend the morning....coffee, croissants and  people watching.

This is the town where the final scenes of the Tom Hanks & Leonardo DiCaprio move “Catch Me if You Can” were filmed.  In the movie, it was depicted as a small town in France where Hanks captures DiCaprio.

DAY 6

Monday was a leisurely travel day from Ottawa to Quebec.  

We arrived in Quebec early afternoon for our 3-night stay at the stunning Fairmont Le Château Frontenac.  Château Frontenac, one of Canada's grand railway hotels, is situated at an elevation of 54 m (177 ft).  It was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1980.   An interesting fact is that the Château Frontenac is the most photographed hotel in the world.  

    

The marketing shot above and below, one I took from the street in

Quartier Petit Champlain.

This luxurious lobby invitingly welcomes you to be their guest. 

The fresh flowers were so beautifully arranged in a table layout of one large and several smaller vases, a set-up not commonly seen in hotels in the States.

     

This evening we dined at Aux Anciens Canadiens Restaurant, the oldest restaurant in Quebec.  It was a very short walk from the hotel.

We were offered several choices of local dishes including salmon and shrimp in pastry,  Meatball ragout Grand-mere and  Lac St Jean meat pie made with wild meats of the area.  We had fun sharing our dinners and trying all the meals.  Our dinner was topped off with a local speciality dessert - Maple Syrup Pie which had the consistency and sweetness of Pecan Pie.