bobanddenisewanderlust

Saturday- Not a great day for us! It started with Bob’s coffee cup leaking on him in the car on the way into town. Our destination was Cemeterie Notre Dame de Neiges. We arrived and quickly found the administration building. We went to the gal at the information desk. Wow, was she having a bad day. She was not very friendly. Her computer was not working right, they were short staffed and she was in a really bad mood. I asked about my relatives and she looked them up. They were not listed on her computer. Oh well!

So we left and went to the Central Library. We parked directly in front of the building. We gathered up our backpack and computers and walked over to the parking kiosk. Bob put his computer down next to the kiosk to put in the credit card to pay for parking. We walked a few feet away, forgetting Bob’s computer. We remembered within a few seconds, turned  around walked back and the computer was gone! There had been a couple on bikes who rode past us and we think they stole it. They were long gone! We were devastated.

We continued into the library and we signed up as a guests for the internet. We went upstairs to the Genealogy section and started working. I had brought my Ipad in the backpack, so Bob started working on changing his passwords. The thief had already accessed the computer and was trying to get in. Bob managed to get his passwords changed. Unfortunately, Bob lost his Genealogy scan disk, his mouse, mouse pad, cords, basically everything!

Once I got into the system, I found a lot of information, but had terribly frustrating time trying to print. They only gave me an hour and the time went quickly. I did not get all the info I could find.

The Librarians were very helpful. The tech guy gave me an extra 4 hours, and when I went back in to print, the system completely locked me out. Also, for some reason my computer ran out of juice. Not sure why, as the battery usually lasts 6 hours.

So the tech printed the paperwork for me and we gave up and left. We were pretty bummed out anyway.

We went looking for a place to eat lunch. By this time the city was getting very busy and we could not find a parking place. We decided to leave the city. There is a shopping center on the way to the RV park, so we thought we would stop there for lunch.

We started heading out of town. What a mess! Evidently, since it was Saturday, they made a change to the road. We ended up having to take a detour which took us 1.5 hours to get across the bridge. It was incredible. It took us all around the city, in bumper to bumper traffic, before getting us back to where we wanted to go. It was a awful. 

We finally found our way back to AR 20 east and went to the shopping center. We were very hungry by then, as it was now almost 2 pm. We found another Eggsations and went there for lunch. We ate and then returned to the MH at around 3.

We stopped at the office and purchased 24 hours of internet. Bob walked the dogs while I went into our credit union, checked the accounts, and changed the passwords.

Bob returned and started working on changing all the rest of his passwords. We sat outside reading in our lounge chairs, ate dinner on the picnic table and generally tried to relax.

We watched a movie we had on the DVR, The Castle, with Robert Redford and James Galdolfini. It was pretty good.

Sunday- Our original plan for today was to return to the Library, but after yesterday we decided to change plans. We stayed home most of the day. After lunch, we went north one exit to the little town to the Metro supermarket. We bought a few items and returned to the MH. We pulled out our medications and started filling our weekly medication trays when Bob discovered that he was almost out of his Xarelto, the blood thinner to prevent him from having a stroke if he has an attack of A-fib.

While he has not had another attack yet, it may occur. He thought he had more bottles, but evidently not. Obviously, our doctor cannot order medications in Canada. We pulled out the map and found that it would be easier to drive into Maine to pick up the medication at a Post Office there, about 90 miles from Quebec City, our next stop. Bob sent an email to the doctor and changed the address in Caremark for the medication.

We sat outside reading until dinner. We BBQ’d some chicken, but ate inside as it was windy. After dinner we sat out reading again until 9pm, as daylight is longer here since we are so far north.

Monday- Moving day. It started raining at about 8:30. Then it stopped for awhile. We packed up and connected the car. We drove out of the site and went to the entrance to retrieve our $20 deposit for the key that gets you into the park.

We turned south on the side road and went out to AR. 20 turning north towards Quebec City. It started to pour again. The traffic was heavy, but moving. We stopped for lunch at a rest area, then continued on our way. We exited at exit 311, and turned left to go about a mile south to the Quebec City KOA. We are staying here 6 nights, so that we stay through Canada Day on July 1.

We registered and went to our site. It is just okay. We cannot get satellite, there is no cable, and it is 30 amp FHU. For these prices, we should get satellite and 50 amp!

We settled in and Bob went to wash the towels and I washed the sheets. We ate dinner at home and watched some shows we had recorded and read our books. It is very humid and we are having intermittent thunderstorms.

Tuesday- When I did my walk I noticed some open sites which had less trees. So Bob looked at them and then went up to the office to request that we change sites. In addition to the fact that we cannot get satellite, the site was a bit too small for us. We were having problems getting the bikes, on the bike rack, and the car into the site. They moved us to another site, which it turned out was 50 amp. We were immediately able to get Direct TV in the site.

Bob called the MD office to make sure that they sent in his prescription. We left about 9:35 to go to Levis to take the Ferry to Quebec City. As we were leaving the park, we stopped at the office to let them know that the site was actually 50 amp. We are only paying for 30amp. The employee said that was okay, they knew it was 50amp. Wasn’t that nice!

We drove north on AR 20 to Levis, parked the car, $8 for the day. We just missed the 10 AM ferry so we had to wait for the 10:30. The ferry cost was $12.50 for the two of us, senior rate, round trip! Here is the city from the ferry.

We boarded the ferry for the 12 minute crossing. The ferry carries both passengers and cars. Bicycles are free, but it was all uphill!  Below is a picture of the Fairmont Chateaux Fondulac.

We landed in Old Town Quebec City. It was beautiful, with colorful little shops. Below is the part of the fort which is at the waterfront.

Above are the steps to go up to the next street.

 

We We rode the Funicular up to the fort.  The pictures above were from the port area.

Pictures from the funicular, back across the river and below.

We went to the information center and a tour of the archeological site was starting in 10 minutes. The site is under the boardwalk. We paid $7.80, senior rate, for the two of us.

We descended just in time for the start of the tour. The “castle”, which was the governors house, through the French and the English, had burned to the ground in 1870’s. When this occurred it was decided not to rebuild the Governors house at this site. The English, who were in control at this time, moved the Capitol to Ottawa.  Instead they built a boardwalk across the area.

We did the tour. the first stop was the icehouse. To the left was an oven, but there had been a thick wall in between. The ice was taken from the area and put into the ice house and kept frozen for use during the summer.

Above is a replica of the original Chateau. It was added on to numerous times. When the English arrived and fought with the French to take Quebec, they shot cannons from the other side of the river. They shot 22,000 cannon balls, aiming for the Chateau. Need less to say, some hit the building. Then when the English won the war and took over the Chateau, then complained about all the holes in the walls!

There were a lot of artifacts recovered when they did the archeological dig. Many were on display. One thing of note was that the forks that the French used were 4 prong and the English used 2 prong.

This is the original floor.

By the time the tour ended,  we were ready for lunch. We ascended to the boardwalk just in time to hear the beautiful church bells ringing at noon.

We went in search of lunch. The restaurants were $18.95 for a salad!!!!. Bob spotted a crepe cart in front of a little craft fair, so we went to the cart. Each crepe was $5.95 to 6.95. Much better. The cart was run by two brothers.

We got in line and watched the older brother cooking our crepes. The crepes were made with buckwheat. Mine was egg, cheese, lettuce and tomato. Bob had a ham and cheese.

 

 

The crepes came in a little cardboard container, in paper. They were good, but a devil to eat! Finally, we figured out that we could pull the paper forward and eat off the end.

On the schedule was a musket firing at 1:15, so we went to the information center to use the facilities. A man was cleaning the ladies room while we were in there. As a woman would leave a stall, he would go in and clean. He as working his way through the stalls. Different, but it did not close the entire restroom and we still had our privacy

We spoke with the information person, finding the Artillery Park, a 5 minute walk away. We walked over, which is easier said than done. We had to walk down a very steep hill. That was rough on the toes, as your toes bang into the front of your shoe!

We walked the length of the park to the entrance. The park was on both sides of the street and we had no idea where we needed to be. We saw no one in old fashioned uniforms.

Luckily, one of the employees was walking in to work. We stopped him and asked him. He said he was just getting used to the summer schedule,  So he walked with us talking to us. He called out to one of the other employees and found that the musket firing does not start until July 2.

So we wandered around looking at the area.

 

We walked back downtown and on our way, we stopped to tour the Notre Dame Cathedral.

We walked up to the Hotel, which is the most photographed hotel in the world. We wandered into the lobby and were not that impressed.

We walked out the other side, and rode the funicular down to the street which goes across the fort. We had just missed the 2 pm ferry to return, so we wandered down the shops, stopping for a soft serve ice cream cone. Bob had a maple and I have vanilla. Both came with a piece of maple candy stuck in them, which were pure sugar! The flavor kind of killed the flavor in Bob’s maple ice cream but it enhanced my vanilla.

We walked down the steep steps to the river level and back to the ferry. We rode the 2:30  ferry back, retrieved the car and stopped at Walmart for a few items.

We returned to the MH, and settled in for the evening. We watched some recorded shows, Genealogy Roadshow, read our books and a thunderstorm came up. It rained all night.

Wednesday– Rain was predicted for all day, so we went to the Canada National Archives, which are located in the Lievre University. We wandered around the University and finally found the security office. The whole university was under construction so it was difficult to get around. Bob went into security, paid $20 for parking for the day, and received a map. We still had trouble finding the building! We eventually did,  then we had problems finding the archives which were on the 3rd floor.

We followed the signs to the information center and it is being turned into dorms. Hmmm, so finally we found the area. The guard took a Tooney to secure the locker key, and we put our bags into the locker. Then we walked up a ramp to the Genealogy Center. They were very helpful and this time I had no problem with the computer system. We were good for all day!

Bob spent some time on the phone with Caremark, working on getting his medication sent to Maine.

Bob finally went in search of lunch while I ate a bar. We stayed until 2 pm and I retrieved a lot of information. I wish I had more time!

We left and went in search of some coolant for the Hydro Hot, as we might have a leak. Bob needed to refill the hydro hot. When we got there, Bob had trouble as the folks did not speak much English, but they managed and he purchased what he needed. We left and returned home to happy canines!  We ate dinner at home.

Thursday- We left and drove across the one bridge in the area that crosses all the way across the St. Lawrence river. Then next bridge is to Il’de Orleans and is the only way on or off the large island in the middle of the St Lawrence. This is the last bridge over the river. Everywhere else there are ferry’s.

We drove north to Montmorency Falls. The falls are beautiful, and higher than Niagara Falls. They are visible from AR 40, but are located in a park. We paid $12 to enter and walked out to take pictures. the first picture is from the car, right after we paid to enter. It is only a small falls.

We parked the car and walked over to the viewing area.

There is a tram that will take you to the top of the falls for an extra fee, or you can climb the steps. There is a restaurant at the top. We did not go up as we wanted to continue our day.

We drove north on Hwy. 138, as AR 40 ended at this point. We drove to Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupre. We were searching for the Basilica, which was not hard to find. We parked on Royal Street which went along the side of the Basilica.

We walked over to this small church which was built with the stones of the original church. I am looking for relatives, again! They would have attended the original church and the later generations, this church.

Here is the Basilica. On the ceiling, is the story of Saint Anne.

Sainte Anne statue. .

On both sides of the entrance to the church were these canes, crutches etc from their prayers and healing. Below, the front pews were ornate.

The end of each pew had an animal carved into it. Each pew had a different animal.

We left and walked up the hill, where they had the stations of the cross done in statues. We walked across the street and had lunch in a little diner. We visited the Visitor Center, but not the museum. 

Above is the area where I think that the old cemetery was located. The wooden crosses from the 1600’s would have deteriorated, and now the area is just a grass knoll.

We left and drove back south towards Quebec City. In Chateau Richter, we had seen a sign stating  that there was a Genealogy Center. We stopped in, as it was across from the Chateau Richter church and graveyard.

We went in. Only one person spoke some English. I did not have my information with me, but I could guess at a few names. They have a book with who is buried in the cemetery, but some of the graves are beneath the current church. I know that I have relatives who were married in the original church and may be buried in this cemetery.

 

AR 40 was backed up for miles, so we traveled on AR 440 which took us through the city. It was not as bad as it sounds! We lucked out and the roads were moving well. We crossed back over the bridge and returned to the MH. We fed the dogs, ate dinner and watched TV.

Friday- Happy Canada Day!  We left early to go to Quebec City, as the internet was confusing as to what was going on and where. We took the 8:30 ferry. We arrived and parked this time in the actual parking lot, which was supposed to be $6 for the day. When we went to pay, someone had left a fully paid ticket for the day attached to the kiosk. We used it and when we left we put it back for someone else to use.

Above is the Citadel, which is on our list for today. Note the long steps.

We arrived and wandered through the river fort.

 

We went up to the Funicular and rode it up again today. We went to the Visitor Center to find out the schedule. The gal told us about the parade, which is actually the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RMC) who march to the boardwalk to raise the Canadian Flag.

We walked along the boardwalk.

We walked over to the steps for the Citadel and found out that there were 310 of them. So instead, we went up a different set of steps, 77 of them.  We walked over and stood in the shade to rest a bit, then climbed another 44 steps. When we got to the top, there was a ravine between us and the Citadel. Oh well, at least we got to see this view.

We walked over a few streets and saw a nice little park. So we walked up to it. We rested for a bit, then I went to take a picture. There was a high set and I did not raise my foot high enough and fell right on my left knee. Not good!

I skinned my knee and it was pretty sore. We walked back down the hill and I went in to the ladies room at the Hotel and cleaned the knee with soap and water so that hopefully I do not get an infection.

We went out and sat in Parc de Governors. We found a shady bench and sat waiting for the show to start at 11:45. We watched a lot of people drive up the street, look at the no parking signs, and move on. Eventually, two motor cycle cops arrived and shut down the street. The a black car arrived and two coupled got out. The car stayed there and the couples walked down the stairs in front of us. Turned out that was the Governor of Quebec and his wife and the Mayor of Quebec City, with his wife.

At about 11:30, we started to hear the drums and the marching RMC arrived. First the band, then the troops.

They marched in in formation. Then turned to face the Governor.

They were in two lines. At a command, the back line stepped back, then at the next command, they started to slide apart. They did a lot of foot stomping while doing these moves.

Then the Governor  reviewed the troops. He was is the bald guy.

Note the goat above. I have no idea of the significance. He was very well behaved. I tried to Google the goat, but all I could find was the Mounties arrested a goat ( not this one) in 2015 for trespassing at a Tim Hortons. They took him home and found his owners. That goat was not happy. At least the Mounties have a sense of humor!

Eventually, two troops carried the flag up to the flag pole. Everyone was told to stand and the men took off their hats.

The band played Oh Canada, but no one sang. They also did not put their hands over their heart. They did a 21 gun salute. The Governor gave his speech in French, then English. Then the troops left, marching back up to where we were on the hill. 

We left and walked over to the street behind the Visitor Center. We thought maybe the crowd would not be as bad there. The restaurants were mobbed, but we found a little deli and bought sandwiches.

At 1 PM, they were giving away Canada Cake, but the line was very long, so we left.

We rode down on the funicular, and walked down the street to the Cider shop,, where we tasted some ciders, from Il’d Orleans. All were very good and we bought one bottle.

We caught the ferry back to the other side of the river and returned to the MH for a much needed nap.

When we woke up, Bob checked on the delivery of his medicine to Jefferson Maine. The idiots at Caremark, had sent the medication overnight via UPS, not overnight with USPS. So the Post Office in Jefferson refused delivery of the medication. Bob spent 96 minutes on the phone, from Canada, speaking with either UPS or Caremark.

The plan had been for him to drop me off at the Archives, again, and he would drive the 2 hours to Jefferson, and pick up the medication. Now we had to drive 5 hours to Waterville Maine, to get the medication at the UPS distribution center, which is listed as closed, but they would be there to give Bob the package.  Then of course, drive back 5 hours.

We went to dinner at Boston Pizza, and had a nice frustration pizza for dinner!

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