A Fun Day, And A Sad One

Another day of exploring, and we were once again able to score a free ride on the Ecolobus. Not as easy as you might think. The maps that they have in the bus are not completely accurate, but we are starting to get the hang of it.

On The Road Again


Who says disco is dead? Certainly not in Quebec City.

Waiting For The Village People


Right across the street from the world's largest disco ball was a little pizza place and it was getting to be about that time.

Street-side Dining


I wasn't sure if I wanted pizza, but the Mysterious Chinese Woman saw that they were doing a fashion shoot outside and I think she was hoping to be discovered.

Maybe It Was For A Deodorant


Are They Looking, Are They?


Sadly, she remained undiscovered. Possibly because she kept her armpits hidden away.

I Just Ignored The Whole Thing


As we continued our walk I got a new appreciation for the term 'pissing like a racehorse.'

No Racehorse, But I Got The Picture


Just A Picture Of A Scenic Street


I did manage to get some souvenier shopping done, and also picked up a tee-shirt for myself. And no, it doesn't say 'Baby Aboard.' The Mysterious Chinese Woman thinks 'Repellent All The Time.'

Stubborn And Rebellious, I Think


On Monday evening we headed down to the river area again for our rabbit and duck dinner. We stopped for a pre-dinner cocktail on the way down what I think they call the Breakneck Stairway.

An Apricot Brandy And Something


A Stinger For Bar Man, An Old Favorite


We got the same table we had the last time in the restaurant and the Mysterious Chinese Woman decided to take some 'artistic' shots.

Bar Man Preening For The Camera


We started out with what the waiter said was 'A little gift from the chef.' Kind of a black olive thing with pieces of toast.

The Chef's Gift


It went well with a beer, though. But, then, what doesn't.

Everything Goes Better With Beer


And then we had our mighty meal. Rabbit sausage, rabbit confit, shredded rabbit, duck confit, smoked duck tongue, duck pate, a nice mixture of greens and condiments, a most excellent selection. Accompanied by a nice bottle of Canadian red wine, you couldn't have asked for much more.

More Than Satisfying


Yesterday we visited a museum and tonight is the Grand Finale of the Fireworks Competition. I should be able to get caught up on my posts tomorrow. I think we are also going to go to the big market to pick up sandwich fixings for tonight and there is also a flea market there to check out. And we want to check on getting tickets for Cirque du Soleil. So much to see and do and only a few days left. It will be nice to get back to Brooklyn, though. Lot's to see there as well.

On a sadder note, a very good friend of mine and the Mysterious Chinese Woman, Fred Stabbert, passed away the other day. You may remember him if you have been following my blog. He and Shirley are the ones who live up in Callicoon. We have spent many an enjoyable day at their get-togethers and I have posted about many of them. We will miss him terribly. He was 81 and lived a very full life. I am sure he left many happy memories behind.

Here is Fred, to the right, with his good friend Art and his daughter Kathy at Fred and Shirley's Doll House Bar, number 675 on my trek towards 1000.

To The Aquarium, And Stuff

We decided to visit the aquarium on Saturday. There is a free shuttle bus that takes you there and to a nearby shopping mall. We passed on the mall, however.

Right across from where we caught the shuttle bus, about a block from our hotel, was another trompe l'oeil facade. The building is right across the street from a hospital so it depicts a medical building of some kind or another. Again, being from New York, the lack of grafitti defacing this was somewhat amazing.

Nary A Moustache


Our Free Shuttle Bus


It was a nice sunny day so, as you might expect, the aquarium was pretty crowded.

And Here We Are


It was a pretty small aquarium, all things considered. But then I may be a bit spoiled by the one in Coney Island. They did have nice landscaping though.

Pretty Flowers


A Nice Waterfall


After a few hours we headed back to town and were happy to see that Quebec City was being overrun by the indigenous peoples.

No Cause For Alarm, Just Move Along


We stopped in a nice little restaurant for our lunch.


La Cavour


I was not overly hungry so I settled for some pate and a bowl of French onion soup. Both very good.

A Plate Of Pate


Supping On Soup


The Mysterious Chinese Woman was feeling a bit more peckish so she had the Coq au Vin.

A Mighty Meal


We shared a nice desert, a kind of an apple muffin topped with a caramel sauce.

A Fitting End


And then it was off to the fireworks. This was the Canadian display and the theme was diamonds with all of the appropriate music: Diamonds Are A Girls Best Friend, Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds, Shine On You Crazy Diamond... Well, you get the picture.





I may be a bit biased, but I would have to say that the Fourth Of July fireworks in New York that are put on by the Grucci family of Long Island are better. That is not to say that the ones here are not good, but just not quite as good. In my humble opinioin.

On Sunday we walked to another little neighborhood full of restaurants and shops. The Mysterious Chinese Woman had to go in and see this chocolate shop and kind of a museum.

How Sweet


Chocolate Serving Things


A Chocolate Statue


This neat looking little house was actually a place that sold stuff for making beer and wine. Unfortunately it was closed. Not that I was planning on hauling around a sack of barley or anything, though.

Teach A Man To Make A Beer...


We found a nice restaurant with a porch out front set up for dining, so this is where we decided to have our Sunday dinner.

How Romantic


Sausage And Sauerkraut For The Little Lady


Duck Confit For Me


We shared, though, swapping plates when we were half done.

I had an after dinner coffee and it was far and away the best I have had since I have been here. Not that the coffee tends to be bad, it was just that this was most excellent. I was told that they were known for their coffee and they also sold sold it, ground or whole beans.

I Had To Buy A Bag


Right across the street was an Irish Pub, so that was a good place to stop for a post-dinner beer.

Well, It Was Right There


Looking Pleased With Myself


I am guessing that St. Patricks Day is pretty big here.

Just A Guess


It was a long walk back to the hotel, so one last beer was in order at another of my favorite little places.

Easy To Settle In


I bought the New York Times and thought it was awfully thin for a Sunday paper. I should have looked more closely, it was the Friday edition. Oh well, nothing seems to be happening anyway.

At Least I Look Well Informed


And that was about all for the day except to stop in at Lostradamus and say goodnight to my now good friend Bernard.

Bernard The Bartender


That is it for now. Last night we went back to the rabbit restaurant, so I will post about that tomorrow. I think the Mysterious Chinese Woman has plans to go to some kind of a museum today but it might rain, so we shall see.

Catching Up

Well, not so much. People waiting for the PC so I do not feel comfortable spending a great amount of time composing my witty post. I did upload a lot of pictures and because that took so much time I am going to take a break and let others us the PC to catch up on their mundane affairs. Nothing as entertaining or as important as my documenting my eating and drinking.

However, to tide you over, I will give you this picture of the Mysterious Chinese Woman in her usual photo-taking stance. People gather around when she is about to take a picture, and I am sure you can see why.

Another Ansel Adams In The Making


I will post more later today or, perhaps, tomorrow morning.

Out And About In Quebec City

A lazy Sunday morning here, so thought I would try to catch up a bit on my postings. Not a whole lot of exciting stuff, just more of my being out and about here in Quebec City with a side-trip to the Aquarium.

On Thursday we headed down to the river again where it was, as usual, very crowded.

Crowded As Usual


We checked out a few places for lunch but they were either too crowded or did not look all that appealing. We really liked the rabbit place so we headed back there. This time we got a spot outside in their little garden area.

Outdoor Dining


Intimate Seating


I started out with a refreshing gaspacho to go with my beer.

Cold Tomato Soup


And I had something a bit more traditional this time, just a plain old rabbit stew.

A Typical Easter Dish


The Mysterious Chinese Woman opted for the boulibasse, and I must admit, it looked mighty good.

Big Chunks Of Fish


To give you an idea of how much we like this place, we made dinner reservations for Monday night. They have a rabbit and duck dinner for two that we are eager to try, so I am looking forward to that.

Quebec City is having their annual Quebec Days celebration. This is a week-long event and features people dressed up in period costumes, from the 1700s, I would guess, and interacting with the crowds in-character. Their are also demonstrations of how people lived back in the day so it is pretty interesting.

I asked this guy if he knew his dog was dead.

Poor Fido


Actually, you cannot see it too well, he had a dead fox draped over his shoulder, which is what provoked my comment. He just smiled and patted it on the head and told it not to listen to me.

A Weaving Demonstration, Or Something


This was a military band playing in front of another wall with a Trompe L'Oeil painting set in the same period. It made for a nice affect.

And The Band Played On


Passing by that same little park on the way home another entertainer was plying his trade.

Round And Round I Go


These street entertainers must audition or something because they are all very, very good. Much better than what you usually see.

We just stopped and picked up some bread, wine, cheese, and pate for a bit of a in-room dinner again.

Home Cooking, Kind Of


The Mysterious Chinese Woman said the pictures of what we eat in our hotel room are getting boring so that is the last one you will see. Unless we eat something very large or very interesting.

I am not sure what all we did the next day. Must have been kind of a lazy morning because my first picture is of where we went for lunch. Oh yeah, now I remember. The Mysterious Chinese Woman said she found another restaurant row so we walked up and down and then settled on this place on a side-street.

Forgot The Name


I will have to look for the place again and get the name because it really was a very nice restaurant with excellent service. So far the service has been very good and very friendly everywhere we have gone.

The had a nice menu that started out with your choice of a salad or a soup. The soup of the day was a creamy leek soup which we both ordered, and it was very good indeed.

The Mysterious Chinese Woman Leeking


The Mysterious Chinese Woman ordered a roasted pork dish and really liked the potatoes, heavy with butter and cream.

Potatoes And Pork, And Veggies Too


I opted for a steak done in a red wine and shallot sauce. It also came with the potatoes and veggies and was very tasty.

Same As Above But With Steak


The meal also came with your selection of desserts and coffee or tea, and who can resist a free desert. The Mysterious Chinese Woman had a creamy cake of some kind and I had the flan with a carmel sauce topping.

Cake


Flan


After our meal I headed upstairs to use the restroom and saw they had some nice little dining rooms up there for private parties.

A Good Place For A Get-Together


Could not miss this guy tucked in an alley-way. I could not help but think of a Jamaican Silver-Surfer.

Riding The Waves


And, again, on the way home, another entertainer.

Playing With Fire


Later that evening we went to see a large installation displayed on a bank of grain elevators. This was the one we went to see the other night, but it was not showing that night. It is a series of images, some still and some moving, depicting the development of Quebec City from back when only native North Americans lived in the area up until the modern day. It was really quite good and will be playing here for five years, so you have plenty of time to see it.

Unfortunately, with the camera that I have, I was not able to get a real good picture.

This Will Have To Do


The project was put together by Robert Lepage and his idea was to share the story of Québec City, which he calls "the best kept secret in North America" with the world. He wanted everyone to remember the different views of the city, the people who built it and the challenges of building the city while keeping its culture and heritage. And he did this over almost a half a mile stretch of silos. Quite impressive, especially when you consider the display stretches for four-tenths of a mile.

Well, I was going to try to catch up on my posts all the way to today, but I think this is enough for now. And I am sure this is about as long of a post as most people want to read. It is going to be a kind of lazy Sunday, I think, so maybe I can catch up on Monday morning if we do not do to much. We shall see.