The Musee de Civilization is Quebec City'd premier museum. If you stay in the upper city it’s a bit of a hike but if you stay at the Auberge St. Pierre you can walk out the front door, cross the street and enter the rear entrance to the Musee. It couldn’t be more convenient.
At first glance, you will under estimate this fabulous museum. It is divided into galleries on either side of the museum on two floors. You have the option of touring on your own or taking a guided tour. The guided tours alternate French and English every hour. Don’t miss the exhibit of the Barque which is on the main level; it is a 200 year old boat that was discovered only a decade ago. These are the very vessels that were used to build this province.
There are several permanent exhibits and many that change. We decided to take the guided tour of the exhibit on the Middle Ages, Gratia Dei . It was a 45-minute tour that gave a very good overview of the entire exhibit but it left me wanting to come back to do a closer tour of the exhibits. There were items on display from museums all over Europe. I was very impressed. The exhibit spilled over into the center courtyard where there were costumed players reenacting middle age crafts; this was a great favorite with children and adults. While we were waiting for the tour to start, we did a quick run through the exhibit Forever Blue . This was a fabulous exhibit of everything from art, to clothes, uniforms, statues of Mary and just about anything you can imagine that is blue, including some live blue birds.
My favorite exhibit is always the one on this history of the province Memoires. It covers the history through the lives of regular people. You see what life was like for the Quebecois over the last almost 400 years. You see their homes, their jobs, their clothes, their religious beliefs and it brings you right into where they are today. This exhibit will teach you more than any history book about what it means to live in the province of Quebec.
Encounter with the First Nations will introduce you to the Native Americans who populated Canada long before the white man arrived. You are introduced to the different tribes, their ancestral homes and their life styles.
What really surprised me was how entertained I was by the Skin Talks exhibit and It's a Dog's Life exhibit. Both of them are excellent. We spent more than three hours touring through the museum and we could have spent more. If you have lots of energy, you can even climb the tower for an outstanding view of the Old Port.