Quebec City--I can’t get enough

Only two hours from Boston or New York by air, Quebec offers a unique opportunity to experience European ambiance and culture without the high price tag and the seven-hour transatlantic flight.

Grande Allee is the Champs Elysees of Quebec. It stretches from the Plains of Abraham to the Saint Louis Gate and offers some of the best dining and nightlife options in the city. No visit would be complete without a stroll by the outdoor cafes. Summers are short in Quebec, and locals and tourists alike take every opportunity to enjoy open-air dining.

Perhaps the most famous hotel in the world, certainly the most recognizable, the Chateau Frontenac has dominated the skyline of the old city for over 100 years. Staying there is a very expensive experience. Don’t despair, they offer a guided tour that takes you to some of the areas that you would never get to see, even if you were a guest.

Quebec is a city of parks, I would like to recommend Cartier-Brebeuf. This park on the north side of the city offers plenty of greenery, river views, extensive bike trails and a good dose of history thrown in for good measure.

To get a little taste of London , you can visit the Citadele at 10am on most days during the summer. The changing of the guard is said to rival that of Buckingham Palace. It was, unfortunately, canceled the day we visited.

The Terrace Dufferin and the Promenade des Gouverneurs offer a strenuous walk if all the wonderful French Canadian food makes you fear that your clothes aren’t going to fit in the morning. For a change of pace, you can try the fortifications. You can take the easy way up the stairs by the St. Louis Gate and walk easily to the St. Jean Gate. It offers some unique views and some dizzying heights.

Visit the Tourist Office on the Rue St. Anne. One brochure that I found of particular help was “The Mini-Guide to 36 Museums”. It not only lists the more famous museums, but it offers some really unique and even obscure choices. I always carry my Access Guide to Montreal & Quebec City with me whenever I go to Quebec.

Quick Tips:

There is always free entertainment happening in Quebec City. Any park or open space is a likely venue. On any given day, you can listen to classical violin music on the Terrace Dufferin, watch a magician perform on the Rue Petit Champlain, enjoy a mime’s performance at the Place de l’Hotel de Ville, and encounter a juggler in the Park des Gouverneurs. A hat will be passed for donations or an instrument case left open, but you can enjoy a whole day of entertainment for under .

ATMs in the old city are few and far between. To date I have located two, one on the Rue St. Anne where it meets the Rue des Jardins and one on the Rue St. Jean near the Rue Couillard. The one on the Rue St. Anne did not accept my card and I had to resort to a Bureau de Change. Actually, I was surprised - the rate wasn’t bad and the charge was very small. Given the distance to the other ATMs, I would suggest in the interest of time to just go ahead and pay the small difference. Time is money on vacation.

Best Way To Get Around:

Parking is expensive and limited in Quebec. Within the old city, walking is your best option. The city is, however, built on a cliff, which makes for some steep streets, and the cobblestones and this can prove daunting. The funicular can inexpensively transport you from the upper to lower town in under a minute. Even if you enjoy a good workout, you will want to try it at least once for the unique views that it offers.

To visit Cartier-Brebeuf, you will need a car. There are buses running in the streets outside the fortifications, and I am sure it would be possible to travel to the park by bus if it was necessary. Taxis are also available at several locations within the city or by having your hotel arrange for pickup.

A bicycle would also be an option. There are numerous bike paths around the city and in the parks.

And don't forget - language is only a challenge, not a barrier. Smile and give it a try - the results will astound you!

If your wallet is fat or your budget unlimited, then you will want to stay at the Chateau Frontenac, but if you want to stay in the same area and pay less than half the price, then the Hotel Chateau Bellevue is an excellent alternative.

This hotel is not just in the same neighborhood as the Frontenac, it is physically in its backyard. Located on the north corner of the Parc des Gouverneurs, you can look across the park to the Frontenac’s back door. It was love at first sight; the beautiful gray stone building was a warm and welcoming sight. We climbed the steep stone steps and were immediately in the cozy reception area. Our welcome was just as warm as the decor

This is a small hotel, three floors of rooms and a basement area that includes ice machine and soda and refreshment machines. There is complimentary coffee and hot chocolate in the lobby. Not just regular coffee either, you can choose from cappuccino, espresso and mochaccino. There is free Internet access at the computer located in a roll-top desk and a lovely grandfather clock and leather sofa for relaxing.

We both had rooms that overlooked the park; in the cooler weather, when the trees are bare, there would be a view of the river as well. The rooms are compact, small by American standards but lovely. The walls are covered in textured wallpaper with a floral pattern in a neutral color. We loved the comforter and shams; they were done in an overall floral in earth tones the first day and in a rich purple the second day. They were identical except for the color.

In our room, there was a wing chair in the corner. In Jason’s room there were two club chairs, both comfortable and well situated for relaxing, watching TV or reading. The windows could be opened to let in the breeze, but the room was air-conditioned. There was a remote-controlled TV with more than 40 channels, plenty of them in English, though I would not allow children to scan the channels alone - there was some risqué programming.

The bathroom was a beauty, with a deep tub, pedestal sink and double mirror. There was a basket of amenities and attractive tiled floor and walls. Everything was immaculately clean, and the first morning while we were out to breakfast they made up our room and changed the sheets, comforter and shams.

In the winter there is a continental breakfast included, but we had to go out to one of the local restaurants. Free newspapers are available in the lobby every day but Sunday. Valet parking was free but as of July 5 it will be $10, which is an excellent bargain in Quebec, where it is usually $18 a day.

I can’t recommend this hotel highly enough. It is charming and the staff couldn’t be more helpful and friendly.

We tried Café Conti on the recommendation of the receptionist at the Hotel Chateau Bellevue. She even called and made a reservation for us. We arrived at the café at about 5 minutes early for our 9:30pm reservation and the place was hopping. There was no table available so we had to wait about 15 minutes to be seated. I was glad that we had a reservation, because it would have been nearly impossible to get in otherwise until about 11:00, when things slowed down a bit.

The Rue St. Louis was filled with people just walking around, it was a beautiful evening and everyone in town seemed to be packed into this historic little street. When we were seated at our table, we were delighted to be at one of the windows. It opened onto the side street and was open with no screen or glass to interfere with the cool evening breezes, an altogether charming atmosphere.

The building itself is one of the historic stone buildings that line the St. but the interior was anything but with a fabulous bar and very modern lounge area. The dim lighting and crisp white and black décor enhance the atmosphere. The bar is lit from beneath and there are pillars in the middle of the room that provide indirect lighting.

This was a meal that took time to prepare and to serve, but we never felt neglected. Our water glasses were always full and we had a breadbasket filled with tasty temptations to snack on. I chose one of the set menus. I began with Parmesan fondue with fruit chutney. A delicious warm square of Parmesan that oozes when you cut into it and perfectly complements the sweetness of the mango in the chutney. My salad was baby greens with a balsamic vinaigrette. For a main course, I chose pork tenderloin with mistelle of apple. My plate had three medallions with a light sauce; whole baby carrots, mushrooms and a potato cut to look like a mushroom. A beautiful presentation that tasted as good as it looked. Everything that we ordered was beautifully done. Jen had lobster ravioli and Jason has goat cheese on a fresh bread crouton with baby spinach and pancetta. His raspberry vinaigrette had fresh raspberries in it.

For dessert, I chose a fresh fruit salad, a simple but delicious way to complete my meal. Al had chocolate pyramid, which was just as delightful as it sounds, and Jason and Jen shared a cookie dish of ices. Nothing disappointed.

Service was attentive but never hovering. My meal was $23. The Table d’hôte meals were between 21 and 29.50 and offered meat, fish and pasta choices. We thoroughly enjoyed our meal and will surely return here next year.

You have to love a restaurant called the Crazy Pig. Crazy like a fox, this restaurant has one of the best locations in Quebec. The Rue Champlain offers some of the best people watching anywhere this side of the Atlantic. Le Cochon Dingue can be entered from either the Rue Champlain or the Rue Petit Champlain. If you come down the funicular, then the Rue Petite Champlain is easiest, just go down the stairs and you will be in the dining room. We chose to eat outdoors, but there is also seating inside. If smoking bothers you, then inside may be best, since outside is a smoking area.

What brought us here was Sunday morning brunch. Al and I have had many lunches here over the years but never breakfast. We didn’t know what to expect, but the weather was beautiful and we were in the mood to eat outdoors. We arrived at about 10am. We got the last table and soon there was a line of people waiting for a table. I am happy to say that our waitress never seemed anxious for us to finish our meal and continued to bring fresh coffee for as long as we wanted it. It was exactly the sort of leisurely breakfast you expect to have on Sunday.

I ordered the brunch plate. It was two eggs, a crepe, potatoes, bacon, sausage, fruit, toast, juice, coffee, tea or hot chocolate and a homemade donut. Everything was delicious, the scrambled eggs soft and buttery, the potatoes crispy and the coffee fresh and hot. Even the jam was exceptional, chunky, sweet and fruity.

Al had a three-cheese omelet, Gruyere, cheddar and goat. I didn’t taste it, since I had way too much yummy stuff on my own plate, but he assured me that it was delicious. The brunch plate is so big that Jen and Jason split one. Obviously, I can handle a meal big enough for two. I wish I could say that I didn’t eat another thing until supper, but we visited the farmers’ market and I couldn’t resist the fresh strawberries and a piece of maple sugar fudge.

One disadvantage of staying at the Chateau Bellevue is that they don’t have a restaurant. This means looking for a restaurant first thing in the morning. Again, our desk staff was happy to suggest a few places. L’Omelette is just around the corner from the hotel and what the heck, when you are an Atkins person, you have to go for a restaurant with a name like L’Omelette.

The menu is made up of a good mixture of breakfast choices. We chose a #2, which included juice, eggs, bacon, sausage or ham, potatoes, toast and coffee. $6.50 for 1 egg, $7.50 for 2 eggs.

The restaurant is located in another of the beautiful stone houses on the Rue St. Louis. We weren’t lucky enough to get one of the window seats; we had a small table right next to the cash register, not ideal by any means. The waitresses are in typical French costumes with green dress and white aprons. They were all very busy running around, but somehow it took way too long for us to get our first cup of coffee, and then only I got one, not Al. I thought at first it might have been a language glitch but no, the pot was empty and they would be back as soon as more coffee was made. Jason and Jen don’t drink coffee and we were pleased to see that they got a large glass of orange juice instead.

Now if I had to judge this restaurant on service and atmosphere, I would find it a bit lacking. However, the food was the saving grace. I know, how wonderful can a scrambled egg be? But it’s amazing how delicious the simple egg can be when it is perfectly cooked in butter with some really good toast. You don’t get any choice of toast, but who cares; the ones they give you are perfect.

The tables are plain wood, but the atmosphere is lightened by the beautiful flower boxes in the open windows. We were here on the 4th of July weekend and the restaurant was very busy even early in the morning. You probably don’t need a reservation if you do not mind waiting a little, but the food is certainly worth it.

Tours are held every hour on the hour between 10am and 6pm. They are offered in both French and English. Reservations are recommended. Cross the lobby and go down the stairs to the lower level. You will see a costumed guide at a desk; you pay her your $7 fee and she gives you a badge to wear. This makes it easy to remember who is in your group. French and English tours have different color badges.

On a practical note, the restrooms at the Chateau Frontenac are not open to the public. You need your room key to open them. I remembered this from our stay last year. I suggest that if you need to use the restroom you hover around the door, eventually someone will let you in. I felt no guilt whatsoever - for the price I paid for my room last year, I am sure it includes lifetime use of the facilities.

Our guide, Charlotte, was great. She is playing the part of a hundred-year-old chambermaid who has never left the Chateau. She encouraged all of us to enter into the game and pretend it was 1893. We all had to say where we came from and how we got here. Needless to say, cars weren’t an option. This broke the ice and made for a very enjoyable tour.

We learned some interesting facts about the Chateau: it has 18 floors of rooms, the roof is made of copper and the famous green color is due to oxidation. The hotel employs between 500 and 600 staff in the summer and the chef has a garden in a courtyard on the fourth floor. We also learned about Governor Frontenac - one interesting tidbit was that his wife sent his heart back to New France saying that was where it belonged. (Evidently he spent very little time with her when he was alive.)

If you have ever dreamed of seeing the most expensive room at the Chateau, the tour is the least expensive way to not only view the Van Horne Suite but to get to sit on the sofa. It offers a splendid view of the St. Lawrence River and three very well appointed rooms.

The D-Day invasion was planned in the Churchill Lounge. One fascinating note was that a notebook was lost at the conference which contained the complete plans for the invasion. Luckily for the Allies, it was found by a waiter, who turned it over to his supervisor. The rest is history.

The tour takes one hour and involves climbing some stairs. There were young children on our tour and they seemed to enjoy it as much as the adults. The tour ends in the corridor off the lobby. This is where the shops are located, so while not a gift store per se, it certainly is a shopping opportunity.

At first glance, Jacques Cartier and Jean de Brebeuf seem like strange bed fellows. The rapacious explorer who was more than willing to exploit the friendly natives and the dedicated Jesuit who would give his life to bring the teachings of Christ to the Iroquois.

This modern park is located on the site of Cartier’s second winter camp and the Jesuits first seminary, hallowed ground for many reasons.

That this is a historically significant site wasn’t at first evident to us. We parked along the street near the monument and we could not see the visitor center from where we were. I wasn’t quite sure if the monument was all there was, it seemed a bit lame if it was although the park itself was quite lovely. It was very evident on this warm July day that this was a popular spot with locals. There were people sunning in the grass and the bike paths were crowded with bikers and skaters. They take their bike paths quite seriously here and they have built a beautiful bridge over the St. Charles River for the bikers. There is another bridge that was crowded with people, as we walked across, we saw why. There were several families of ducks in the river, of all different ages, very tiny little ducklings, bigger ducklings, young adults and whole families, it was a charming vista and we joined the throng for several minutes.

We followed the path to what appeared to be a wooden palisade. We could see an Indian longhouse through the trees but it took us a while to figure out how to get inside. We met some young people who were collecting an entrance fee and they suggested that we join a tour at the visitor center, which we did. The visitor center is a short walk away and there was a parking lot there, somehow we had arrived on a different street and had missed this completely.

We paid our very minimal entrance fee and then began to tour the visitor center on our own while waiting for our guide. Julie didn’t keep us waiting long. I just want to say a few words about Julie; she spoke beautiful English and was not only knowledgeable but also excited about her subject. I can’t tell you what a difference it makes when a guide doesn’t just reel off fact from a memorized script. She could answer questions and if she didn’t know the answer, she seemed genuinely sorry that she didn’t. We enjoyed our 45 minutes with her and we learned a lot about not only Jacques Cartier, Jean de Brebeuf but also about the Iroquois who are what the two have in common.

The tour does involve some walking and the ground is hilly, so it may not be suitable for someone with limited mobility. It is well suited to children, since there are things to touch, to eat and to drink.

Entrance fee is $8. Entrance into the Citadelle in on the Cote de la Citadelle, the first street on the right after you come through the Saint Louis Gate. This is an active military base so be prepared to go by some very official looking guard stations. The uniformed personnel are real soldiers going about their daily jobs with a little showmanship thrown in.

Tours alternate between English and French. The French tour left at 11am and the English at 11:15. While we were waiting for our tour, a military parade marched by. Everyone was delighted by the uniforms especially the tall beaver hats. We could hear the music coming for several minutes before they came into sight. We caught the end of another parade at the end of our tour.

Our guide was named Julie. She has only been giving tours for three weeks and though she knew her memorized information quite well, off the cuff questions were beyond her ability to answer. Again, we were reminded that we were visitors on an active military base and we were not allowed to roam away from our tour.

The Citadelle is built according to Vauban's design. It is a four point star bastion. The French began the fort several times but it was never completed (one has to wonder weather this might have changed the results of 1759). It wasn’t until 1820 that the British finally completed it. It is a little embarrassing to find out that it was fear of an American invasion that finally made it a reality.

The Cap Diamant Redoubt is the oldest building in the Citadelle and dates to 1693. It was built after the attempted invasion of Quebec by the English leads by Phipps. Luckily, his troops were defeated down river at Riviere Ouelle and never made it as far as Quebec.

The tour involves some climbing. We walked up to see Rachel, a nine-ton cannon with a range of three kilometers, impressive indeed. Even more impressive are the views of the city from this deck where the cannon is mounted. They are truly spectacular.

The residence of the Governor General of Canada is located within the Citadelle. It can be visited free on your admission ticket. It opens at 1pm so you may want to plan your visit accordingly.

There are two small museums which we visited, one in the former brig has lots of information about the 22nd Royal Regiment who are stationed here and the second museum in the Powder Magazine has some interesting displays of uniforms. Another part of the tour took us into the shooting gallery, which is an underground, bunker. If you are claustrophobic, Julie recommends that you skip this part.

The tour ends near the gift store. It lasted about an hour and fifteen minutes. Wear comfortable shoes for climbing.

If you are a little girl or even a grown-up girl who loves dolls, then this is a shop that you will not want to miss.

This is not your average toy store - it deals exclusively in dolls, and even Jason couldn’t imagine how his daughters could prefer an American Girl Doll to a handmade doll, made right in this shop. We visited on a Saturday and there was only one person working in the workshop, but it was still interesting to watch her create a doll.

Les Dames de Soie - The Ladies of Silk provides an opportunity to visit a small museum tracing the history of dolls, reinforcing what all doll lovers already know: this is no passing fancy.

If you have always dreamed of making your own doll, this is also possible at this shop. If you prefer, you can choose from one of the fabulous historic and collectible dolls of all sizes that are for sale here. To call them gorgeous doesn’t begin to do them justice.

I have never considered myself a doll collector, but I fell in love with the lush fabrics and beautiful porcelain face of Gwenevere. I didn’t indulge myself, but it took a great deal of restraint.

If you can’t get to Quebec, you can still order a handmade doll from the shop - they have a web site, www.damesdesoie.com.

This is a delightful, one-of-a-kind shop for girls (and boys) of all ages. There are dolls in a full range of sizes and price ranges, from $20 to over $1000.