Victoria Day / National Patriot’s Day
A moody, misty and cool day. It was very quiet today no matter where we went, as it’s National Patriot’s Day (in Québec; in English Canada, Victoria Day). Many shops and some attractions were closed for the long weekend.
We had breakfast at the hotel again this morning, then made our way down to the AML ship dock on the waterfront to purchase tickets for the 11:30AM harbour cruise around the area. We didn’t have long to wait, as we were able to board AML’s Louis Jolliet at 11:00.
Taking an inside seat where it was warm and cozy…
… the next hour-and-a-half was spent enjoying the sites and trip narration from our host David, dressed in period costume. The cruise went as far as Montmorency Falls, did a U-turn, then returned to the dock at Québec City.
At about 1:15 we disembarked and began to seek out some lunch. We ended up at the D’Orsay Restaurant-Pub (65 Rue De Buade) in the upper town >> delicious lunch.
We decided to go explore the Plains of Abraham for the afternoon. On our way we climbed the steps up to the St-Jean Gate in the old town and explored the wall of the city:
Reaching the Plains of Abraham we walked through the park but were kind of disappointed – we expected there to be a few more monuments, fountains, etc., but it was more or less just an open space. Next visit we will explore the Plains of Abraham Museum, which I think should enhance the experience:
Walking through the Plains of Abraham we ended up at the Musée National des Beaux-arts du Québec (Beaux Arts Museum):
Our timing was unfortunate as it was too late to enter the museum for a worthwhile visit (it was 3:40 when we arrived and doors closed at 5:00PM). I took some exterior shots of the museum and we rested for a while on the benches in the front of the building. There was also a big rainstorm on its way and we didn’t fancy getting caught in that, so we returned to the hotel for a couple of hours.
Later that night we headed out for yet another excellent Québec meal. On our way to the restaurant, Vince caught these cool images of the fog creeping in around some buildings in the city:
After dinner we returned to the hotel and called it a wrap for today. It was kind of a cold, misty day today but we made the best of it.
One more full day left remaining before we go home (already)!!
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