From Sydney to Sydney

Today finds us in Sydney but not Sydney, Australia but Sydney in Nova Scotia! It is a thriving metropolis after yesterday but in reality a very quiet little maritime town. Both owe their name to Lord Sydney and their colonial past but this Sydney is actually 3 years older.

We walked around the town in a few hours and visited 3 museums and 2 old churches.

The main street in the morning peak hour. Some of the houses were beautiful wooden structures.

One of the museums was the Jost family house. It was one of the earliest in the community.

This old Apothecary display was in the Cossit House. This was the home of the first Anglican minister. The houses must have been very crowded as they had lots and lots of children.

This was a fascinating place to visit because of the Sydney connection but was very quiet.
We were told several times of people who had been booked on flights here when they were expecting to be arriving at Sydney, Australia

It was a short stroll back to the ship for a delicious lunch and fine wines! It's a hard life!

From Cap au Meules

We are at a tiny island between Labrador, Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island. A very quiet spot! The major industry is fishing for lobsters.
We had a tour of the island on an old school bus..they only have a few ships visit every year!
The photos show the stark landscape but it is a friendly welcoming community

                                        Rob tying up the ship with some old fishermen.

                            The coast has cliffs and beaches but just a little too cold to swim!

The houses are very colourful. Originally this was so the fishermen could locate their house from the sea. This place has the second highest number of shipwrecks in North America.

We enjoyed our visit and believe we came here because it is too rough at this time of the year to go to Prince Edward Island. Our next port of call is Sydney, Nova Scotia

More from Quebec

Another beautiful day in Quebec but it will be snowing by next week. We walked down to the local markets this morning. Interesting produce and a few tasty treats.

                                                                 Local mead and Foie Gras

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                                                           Cidre de Glace..Cider Ice wine

We walked on to the train station, not to catch a train but because it is an iconic building!

                                                   The Gare du Palais A palace of a train station!

We plodded up towards the old town and came to the Hotel de Ville and the Basilique Cathedrale Notre Dame De Quebec. One had a display for Halloween, the best yet  and the other ornate altars. Quite a contrast!

                                             Gail, the witch and the black cat
We did check out the dress shops and a Christmas shop. You may have read about The Black Nativity..We found The Black Bear Nativity

We walked down from the upper level of the old town and again marvelled at the beauty until we reached the lower town and our ship. Another larger ship had docked. Ours is the one at the back.

Quebec So Frenchy So Chic

We love Quebec. It is our favourite city so far.

We departed Montreal on The Seabourn Quest and sailed down the St Lawrence River and when we woke we were in Quebec

We docked in the Old Port a short walk to all the attractions of the old town. The town comprises two levels with a funicular that we rode to the upper level

The lower level was delightful with old buildings and lots of interesting shops and restaurants.

This was one of our favourites. In 1985 to prevent US ownership the local craftsmen and artisans purchased the entire area as a cooperative. We saw glassblowers at work and lots of art and crafts.

The view from the funicular as we rode to the Upper Town

Dominating not only the Upper Town but all of old Quebec is the Chateau Frontenac. This was the first thing we saw in Quebec! It is the Fairmont Hotel and totally overshadows all else. It is a beautiful building.

We decided that it was such a great day that we would walk up the Governors Promenade. This is 310 steps each way! The view were even more spectacular and we also walked across the Plains of Abraham where General Wolfe defeated Champlain to see the end of French rule and the end of New France.

                                            The site of the British victory

                                           You can see our ship in the background

Eventually we walked back down to the Upper Town and continued down the steps and streets to the Lower Town

This shot of the Lower town must have been taken on the way up as we had shed our coats as the day warmed. We saw the toboggan slides where in only weeks they will be sliding down in the snow

We didn't go into this shop as we couldn't fit a new car into the bag..even a toy one.

                             Robert asleep in the pumpkin patch. Still getting ready for Halloween!

Special Festivities

Today is Canadian Thanksgiving so we expect Turkey for dinner tonight when we are on board our cruise ship. The Canadians stayed with the traditional date but in the USA they now celebrate closer to Christmas
The other thing that we notice everywhere we go is the preparations for Halloween. We have included lots of photos for our younger readers

Hope you enjoyed looking at the scarey pumpkins and special Halloween cookies. Boo!

Montreal

We have spent a few pleasant days in Montreal a city rich in history and culture. We especially enjoyed the old town area with its classic buildings and lots of galleries and historic places.

We visited the Notre Dame Basilica huge on the outside and very elaborate on the inside.

In the old town we looked at galleries and shops but came away empty handed. We were close to our weight limit over last few trips and towards the end the restrictions are even stricter.

                                      Gail tried this dress on along with a few others. Beautiful designs.

There were many beautiful old buildings the grandest being The Hotel de Ville or Town Hall
Among the historic buildings was the Chateau Ramezay and we went on a conducted tour. There were fascinating insights into the struggles between the French and English along with great museum pieces.

A beautiful model of a ship. Shipping was very important as this was how settlers gained access to the interior and Montreal was the furthest that they could come upstream in winter.

We were also close to Chinatown and ate one lunch there. Montreal is overwhelmingly French with English and Chinese as second languages. It was rare to hear a conversation in anything other than French and this was the language of all signage

                                                            Robert and the lion

Ottawa The Canadian Capital

We received mixed advice about travelling to Ottawa. People have mixed opinions as they do about Canberra, the Australian capital. We had an enjoyable few days!
The Parliament hill area has a great charm and character and the city has a wealth of museums and fine eateries. We specialised in the eateries and not the museums this time.

Gail in Sparks street a pedestrian only area where we had dinner the first night and breakfast this morning

The Parliament building is very impressive. We had a double tour. We have had too much Canadian and US electioneering but did enjoy making comparisons with our own system

The first part of the tour took us to the Peace Tower with its magnificent views and architecture.

Gail with the spire of the Parliamentary library in the background

Inside the Memorial Chamber. It records the war dead and we were there when the daily ceremony was conducted to turn the pages so that each name is shown at least once a year.

They ensure that the First Nation and minorities are incorporated into memorials.

                                           The lower house is called The House Of Commons

                                             The Parliamentary library

                                         The Senate. Representatives are appointed and not elected

It was lunch time when we finished our tours so we headed down towards the Byward market area

                                              On the way we passed the famous Rideau canal

We worked up an appetite by looking at the fresh fruit and vegetables. These are " ground cherries". Like a tiny tomato inside the fibre cover.

We went on a long walk down to the Rideau Falls before retracing our steps to our hotel

 After the falls we visited the War Memorial and a park near our hotel before a rest to head out to the restaurants in Elgin street for dinner