Recent Trip to Quebec

My wife had a conference in Quebec City last week, so we accompanied
her (me and our two daughters) for four days in Quebec City followed by
four days in the beautiful Charlevoix region a couple of hours east of
Quebec City.


A few thoughts follow.


I had expected to find people unwilling to communicate with people like
us who know little or no French. That was not the case at all.
Granted, we were dealing with businesses which didn't want to turn down
a sale. But in general people were very friendly and as long as we
were willing to share a cheery 'Bonjour!', they didn't seem to mind
that we couldn't speak much more. I did become adept at saying "Je ne
pas parles Francais....I only speak English" and that seemed to help as
well. (I chose to leave out the
next phrase I was thinking....'Je suis en stupid American'.)

In Quebec City, I amused the kids and myself by just wandering around
the old city...going into gift shops and art galleries, hiking the
promenade, and watching the street performers. Several public squares
are filled with street performers throughout the day...most are a
combination of acrobats and clowns. They like to keep the audience
involved and there was little language barrier. They would end a show
(Le Spectacle!") by announcing in French and English that the city does
not pay for their performances and that we should help them make a
living by donating. How much to donate?
"Well if you give five dollars, you will be my friend. If you give ten
dollars, you will be my brother. If you give 20 dollars, I will call
you mama." Followed later with 'Mama! Where's Mama?' It really was
thoroughly entertaining.

It took a bit but we figured out that a flashing green light is a
protected left turn. Cross walks all have walk lights that count down
the seconds before the don't walk signal flashes. There are dedicated
bicycle lanes and lots of bike paths. But expect to pay $15 to park
near the Old City for a day.

In Charlevoix, we stayed in a lovely inn by the St. Lawrence. They
seem not to have figured out how to design roads with the contours of
the hills. The road from the main road to the little village where we
stayed went down an 18 degree slope. The river is on the bottom and
you feel like you're just going to go straight in, car hood first! But
the inn was lovely....with about 20 guest rooms, three sitting rooms,
full breakfast included, a tennis court, and a restaurant serving
traditional Quebec food...such as lamb sausages. We had a room with a
double bed, a fold out couch and a portable
cot with plenty of room left over. So the kids were quite pleased.
I'd like to recommend the place: Auberge Beausejour located about 15
km east of Baie St Paul. Look them up on the web if you're interested.


There are some spectacular national parks in that part of Quebec. We
first went to the shores of the Saguenay ... one of the longest fjords
in the world with towering cliffs overlooking it. The next day, we did
an Adirondack High Peaks scaled hike in the Parc national des
Hautes-Gorges-de-la-Rivi=E8re-Ma=ADlbaie ... where you climb up 1000
meters from the bottom of the gorge to truly Alpine peaks. Unlike the
Adirondacks, where we do most of our hiking, the national park in
Quebec has well engineered trails, with rocks placed as steps and lots
of switch backs so you're not climbing straight up the cliff face.
There were lots of people hiking, including many who don't look like
typical hikers....just look like families out for a stroll in the
bright sun and gale forced winds.

Anyway, I recommend this trip. Oh we also went on a whale watch on the
St. Lawrence...kind of pricey and you can actually spot beluga whales
from the shore. But fun just the same.

It's nice to travel in a foreign but friendly place so close to New
York State.

Bill in Schenectady, Upstate New York wrote:
My wife had a conference in Quebec City last week, so we accompanied
her (me and our two daughters) for four days in Quebec City followed by
four days in the beautiful Charlevoix region a couple of hours east of
Quebec City.


A few thoughts follow.


I had expected to find people unwilling to communicate with people like
us who know little or no French. That was not the case at all.
Granted, we were dealing with businesses which didn't want to turn down
a sale. But in general people were very friendly and as long as we
were willing to share a cheery 'Bonjour!', they didn't seem to mind
that we couldn't speak much more. I did become adept at saying "Je ne
pas parles Francais....I only speak English" and that seemed to help as
well. (I chose to leave out the
next phrase I was thinking....'Je suis en stupid American'.)

That would be redundant, although it might get you a sympathy discount.



In Quebec City, I amused the kids and myself by just wandering around
the old city...going into gift shops and art galleries, hiking the
promenade, and watching the street performers. Several public squares
are filled with street performers throughout the day...most are a
combination of acrobats and clowns. They like to keep the audience
involved and there was little language barrier. They would end a show
(Le Spectacle!") by announcing in French and English that the city does
not pay for their performances and that we should help them make a
living by donating. How much to donate?
"Well if you give five dollars, you will be my friend. If you give ten
dollars, you will be my brother. If you give 20 dollars, I will call
you mama." Followed later with 'Mama! Where's Mama?' It really was
thoroughly entertaining.

It took a bit but we figured out that a flashing green light is a
protected left turn. Cross walks all have walk lights that count down
the seconds before the don't walk signal flashes. There are dedicated
bicycle lanes and lots of bike paths. But expect to pay $15 to park
near the Old City for a day.

In Charlevoix, we stayed in a lovely inn by the St. Lawrence. They
seem not to have figured out how to design roads with the contours of
the hills. The road from the main road to the little village where we
stayed went down an 18 degree slope. The river is on the bottom and
you feel like you're just going to go straight in, car hood first! But
the inn was lovely....with about 20 guest rooms, three sitting rooms,
full breakfast included, a tennis court, and a restaurant serving
traditional Quebec food...such as lamb sausages. We had a room with a
double bed, a fold out couch and a portable
cot with plenty of room left over. So the kids were quite pleased.
I'd like to recommend the place: Auberge Beausejour located about 15
km east of Baie St Paul. Look them up on the web if you're interested.


There are some spectacular national parks in that part of Quebec. We
first went to the shores of the Saguenay ... one of the longest fjords
in the world with towering cliffs overlooking it. The next day, we did
an Adirondack High Peaks scaled hike in the Parc national des
Hautes-Gorges-de-la-Rivi=E8re-Ma=ADlbaie ... where you climb up 1000
meters from the bottom of the gorge to truly Alpine peaks. Unlike the
Adirondacks, where we do most of our hiking, the national park in
Quebec has well engineered trails, with rocks placed as steps and lots
of switch backs so you're not climbing straight up the cliff face.
There were lots of people hiking, including many who don't look like
typical hikers....just look like families out for a stroll in the
bright sun and gale forced winds.

Anyway, I recommend this trip. Oh we also went on a whale watch on the
St. Lawrence...kind of pricey and you can actually spot beluga whales
from the shore. But fun just the same.

It's nice to travel in a foreign but friendly place so close to New
York State.

On 8/2/05 12:50 PM, Bill in Schenectady, Upstate New York wrote:

It took a bit but we figured out that a flashing green light is a
protected left turn.

We actually call this an 'advanced green' which allows traffic in one
direction to have right of way so that people turning left can avoid
the oncoming traffic. I actually did not think that Quebec had
advanced green lights.

In Ontario, you can also turn right at a red light which I believe is
not allowed in Quebec or in the US.

GQ wrote:

We actually call this an 'advanced green' which allows traffic in one
direction to have right of way so that people turning left can avoid
the oncoming traffic. I actually did not think that Quebec had
advanced green lights.

In Ontario, you can also turn right at a red light which I believe is
not allowed in Quebec or in the US.

There are signs posted on the highway into Montreal that you cannot turn
right on a red in the city.

In Ontario you can also turn left on a red light from a one way street to
a one way street.

"GQ" wrote in message
...
On 8/2/05 12:50 PM, Bill in Schenectady, Upstate New York wrote:

In Ontario, you can also turn right at a red light which I believe is
not allowed in Quebec or in the US.

It is allowed in Quebec, though there are exceptions, the island of Montreal
being the most significant.

It is also allowed in (parts of?) the US.

Richard

"Bill":
It took a bit but we figured out that a flashing green light is a
protected left turn.

G.Q. Lee:
We actually call this an 'advanced green' which allows traffic in one
direction to have right of way so that people turning left can avoid
the oncoming traffic. I actually did not think that Quebec had
advanced green lights.

Most Canadian provinces do, although Ontario and perhaps other provinces
are moving away from them in favor of a "green plus green left arrow"
combination.

In British Columbia, flashing green has a completely different meaning
(but the flashing is slower, which helps you remember this).

In Ontario, you can also turn right at a red light which I believe is
not allowed in Quebec or in the US.

Right turns on red are now allowed everywhere in Canada except Montreal,
and everywhere in the US except New York City, except where posted at
the specific intersection. You are required to stop first. In many
states and provinces, left turns from a one-way to a one-way street
are also allowed in the same way; a few places may allow other left
turns involving one-way streets.
--
Mark Brader "A moment's thought would have shown him,
Toronto but a moment is a long time and thought
is a painful process." -- A. E. Housman

My text in this article is in the public domain.

On Wed, 03 Aug 2005 18:01:11 -0400, Dave Smith
wrote:

GQ wrote:

We actually call this an 'advanced green' which allows traffic in one
direction to have right of way so that people turning left can avoid
the oncoming traffic. I actually did not think that Quebec had
advanced green lights.

In Ontario, you can also turn right at a red light which I believe is
not allowed in Quebec or in the US.

There are signs posted on the highway into Montreal that you cannot turn
right on a red in the city.

In Ontario you can also turn left on a red light from a one way street to
a one way street.

In general these right and left turns are allowed in most of the
US, except where specifically prohibited, as in the city of New
York.


************* DAVE HATUNEN ) *************
* Tucson Arizona, out where the cacti grow *
* My typos & mispellings are intentional copyright traps *

Hatunen wrote:

In general these right and left turns are allowed in most of the
US, except where specifically prohibited, as in the city of New
York.

It would be nice is such traffic laws were standardized. I was chided more
than once by a Danish passenger for making right turns on red lights. It is
not allowed there. Good thing I didn't get caught by the police :-)

It is also allowed in (parts of?) the US.

For what I know: everywhere in the US and Canada, except New-York
(Manhattan?) and Montreal island. By default, it is legal in Quebec-City
except where posted, that means every corner.

--
Michel Talbot
Montreal

Formula One Photo Database: http://www.F1Pics.net

On Wed, 03 Aug 2005 21:03:24 -0400, Dave Smith
wrote:

Hatunen wrote:

In general these right and left turns are allowed in most of the
US, except where specifically prohibited, as in the city of New
York.

It would be nice is such traffic laws were standardized. I was chided more
than once by a Danish passenger for making right turns on red lights. It is
not allowed there. Good thing I didn't get caught by the police :-)

I see little reeason why the Danes should standardize their laws
to our standards in North America rather than vice versa.

************* DAVE HATUNEN ) *************
* Tucson Arizona, out where the cacti grow *
* My typos & mispellings are intentional copyright traps *