Sad day today. Our traveling companions are leaving us – finally going back home to Switzerland after one and a half months of traveling the US and Canada on the Sigis retirement tour! They have had a fabulous time – the first month plus exploring the parks out west (thank heavens the government shut down happened now – and not during their park tour!) but now they head back east. Boo hoo!
We meet in the morning and walk together to the bag storage in the port (great service! $4 per bag – nice!), then wander off to explore Quebec City for a few hours before Sigis and Gaby will head back to the port to grab a taxi to the airport.
It is a stunningly gorgeous day and the city is quite lovely. Very European, with an old city center
and then a newer, more modern area. Plus, some amazing 3-D murals painted on buildings.
We wander up the hill to the upper town and find a park with beautiful fall colors – as well as a great look out over the St. Lawrence river and our ship.
We continue wandering around, soaking up the sun and enjoying the company. Finally we reach the top of the promenade, by the Citadel and it was time to say goodbye.
Hugs and kisses all around and the promise to see each other soon – and our tearful farewells were complete. We waved and watched Gaby and Sigis walk back down toward the port, as we turned and wandered up to the Citadel.
It was a long walk, but a pretty day, so we didn’t mind. We circled back on the Governor’s Promenade, a raised boardwalk that hugs the cliffs on the side of the Citadel and deposits you back on the promenade in front of the Chateau Frontenac, the huge majestic castle that is now a Fairmont hotel.
Still too early for lunch, we wander the streets of the upper city, following a strange little walking tour that takes us by the narrowest house in Quebec City (not so narrow, and not even worth the picture), a few memorials, some beautiful old stone buildings but otherwise uninteresting sites.
So we bag that and head back down toward the ship, stumbling upon an international ethnic celebration in one of the squares by the Parliament, then on down further to the shopping district, where we found a pub with outdoor seating in the sun. We grabbed some chowder and fish and chips and pretty good prices (everything is SO expensive here!) and satisfied our hunger while enjoying the sunshine.
Not ready to go back to the ship, we wandered some more. Found some neat plant sculptures – well actually like a garden growing on a fence column outside a museum – and the ever present skyline with old, attractive architecture.
We walked some more, now in the old center of the city, the lower city, and found a bar with seating area outside near a small park where a busker was playing music. It turns out it is a theater, with a bar inside, so take our drinks on the patio and soak up the atmosphere. Soak being the appropriate term, because this round is expensive! 17 Canadian for one wine and one beer. Phew, at least it is a lovely setting!
It’s finally time for us to head back, so we walk downhill to the port and board the Dawn once again. We spend the rest of the afternoon in the gym and hanging out on the balcony. We don’t sail until late, which affords us fabulous views of a night time Quebec City.
We finally set sail for our journey back down the coast.
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