Bonjour from North America’s most European city: Québec! For years, I have been wanting to explore and photograph Old Québec, and this is the week!
First, though, I had to make the 6.5 hour drive north. I used to love driving and road trips; not so much anymore. I left home at 6 o’clock this morning and arrived in Québec around 2:30PM after making a few stops along the way. I was smitten as soon as I arrived. There are two routes from the Boston area to Québec: one through rural northern Maine and one through New Hampshire and Vermont. I opted for the NH/VT route since it is highway driving the whole way. The sky was incredibly hazy with Canadian wildfire smoke, to the point that the White Mountains in New Hampshire were barely visible through the haze.
My first stop was at Polly’s Pancake Parlor in Sugar Hill, New Hampshire. A local institution, Polly’s is famous for its pancake samplers where you can mix and match batters and toppings. I went with plain (which I slathered liberally with their maple spread and later bought a jar to bring home), plain with chocolate chips, and gingerbread. I know it’s not really the right season for gingerbread, but their gingerbread pancakes are insanely good and I always include those in my sampler.
I stopped for a bathroom break and gas before crossing the border and was pleasantly surprised to be the only car at the border crossing. After answering the obligatory questions about where I was going and any weapons in my car, I was across the border and driving through rural Quebec. The further north I traveled, the less wildfire smoke was in the air. By the time I arrived in Québec City, the skies were almost entirely blue and the temperature was in the low 80s. I managed to find parking in the hotel garage and was able to get right into my room for a few minutes before heading out. I have a view of the St. Lawrence River and the iconic Fairmont Le Château Frontenac from my window, as well as the old city walls below.
Soon I was wandering the streets of Old Québec. The city is set on a hill with the historic walls surrounding the old city. There is an upper town and lower town, with steep staircases (and a funicular) separating them. The architecture and layout of the city are very European and one can easily envision this city being thousands of miles across the Atlantic. Since it was already late afternoon, my only goal was to wander the streets a bit and then have dinner. I walked down some of the streets, took pictures, visited the Château Frontenac, and then made my way to tonight’s dinner destination: Le Billig.
Le Billig is a small crêperie just outside the city walls and it reminded me of the crêperies in Paris. I had a ham, egg, and cheese crêpe for my main meal and then a lemon curd crêpe for dessert. The ham, egg, and cheese was good, but my goodness! The lemon curd crêpe was the stuff dreams are made of. The lemon curd was mixed with mascarpone, tucked inside the crêpe, and then the crêpe was rolled up and cut like a sushi roll before being drizzled with salted caramel. Delicious! (And if you’re keeping track, I had nothing but pancakes to eat today, save for some potato chips and Pop Corners in the car. I’m not counting calories today.) There was a whole list of ciders on the wall of the restaurant, all in French. I asked the waiter which one was good and he told me once I ordered my crêpe he would tell me which one would complement it the best. I have no idea what kind it was, but I had a delicious cider that was reminiscent of champagne but with a slightly sweeter apple taste. It was good enough that I ended up having two glasses!
After dinner, I stopped at an ATM to get some Canadian cash and then a supermarket for a soda and some Aero minis to snack on back in my room. I saw that the market had a large selection of ciders so I made a mental note to stop back there before I head home. Given the crowds on the streets today, it is safe to say Québec is not off the beaten path by any means. I am very much an “early to bed, early to rise” person, so I’m hoping over the next couple of days that I can get up early and get out to take some pictures before the streets get too crowded. Early morning is always my favorite time to be out and about.
Traveling with Laura 