Deets on the Quebec trip

I could take a zillion pictures on the trips we take, and I would regret not taking more.

I think it is that I want the photos to capture the essence of the place we visit, and they simply cannot. Nothing can replace being there.

Still, I tried on our trip to Quebec to take photos of the little things I noticed. Sure, we took plenty of pictures of the big things---the basilicas, the huge statues and the big hotels--but sometimes what makes a place unique are those small things that you notice.

When we arrived in Montreal, it was around 7 pm so all we had time for was to grab a bite to eat and wander around briefly. The city is celebrating its 375th anniversary this year. 

There were images flashed onto the sides of buildings that told a story about the history. 

This was the view of the street from our hotel the first night in Montreal. 

Definitely old word feel (except for the car).

We grabbed some dinner at the bar at this restaurant.

The VIA Rail station in Montreal had these on the walls. It was a rather large station or large in comparison to the one in QC. 

Our hotel in Quebec City. 

Loved the unique window-boxes, not just here but at other places as well.

La Grande Dame aux bleuets by Rose-Aimee Belanger in Chateau Frontenac. 

A stop sign in QC.

An actual phone booth. 

What can I say? I thought the mailboxes were cool.

This winter, QC got 12 feet of snow. 

Signs abound about the danger of falling snow/ice. 

There are guard rails at the tops of many buildings to keep people from having snow dumped on them.

When we left via the back door of our auberge, we walked past this. 

It was weird.

I liked it.

 Our auberge in QC connected to Hotel 71. 

At the entrance were two sculptures. 

This is one.

 The license plates in Quebec read "Je me souviens," which means "I remember." 

I can't help but like this.

During our walking tour in QC, the guide pointed out a church that has been

converted to a library. As a book lover, I can't help but

adore a place called "House of the books."

When D and I wandered through QC on our way through the nouveau section (with breweries and more modern stuff), I saw this.

This is a small fountain outside Auberge Sainte-Antoine, 

right now the block from where we stayed.

There are three passable gates surrounding QC--Kent, Louis, and Jean. 

Architecturally beautiful, in my opinion.

A water sculpture in a small park right outside the VIA Rail station in QC.

The FAO (Food & Agriculture Organization of the UN) sculpture which is right now the block from our hotel. I artistically loved and vestibularly disliked the wavy pattern on the sidewalk and road.

Taking Flight sculpture in the City Hall gardens.

A smooth whiskey/maple syrup concoction that D and I tried 

while cruising on the St. Lawrence.

Back in Montreal, the place we ate lunch. Just lovely.

So lovely that we bought a photo of the outside 

of the cafe from a local artist to commemorate our Montreal visit.

At a corner near Rue Saint Paul in Montreal, another

Rose-Aimee Belanger sculpture.

Macarons at Marche de la Vieux Port in QC.

Back in Montreal, D noticed that John the Baptist looks like he's taking a selfie.

A small chocolate shop right around the way from our hotel in Montreal.

We laughed every time we walked by this place because in our heads we pronounced it, "Couch-tard," a derogatory statement for couch potatoes.

In French, it is pronounced "kush-tar" and means "night owl."

It is a convenience store for those late night needs.

A piece of the Berlin Wall on the site where Montreal's boundary wall once stood. 

Now in the World Trade Centre of Montreal.