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Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Sailing away again tomorrow!
We are once again heading off to another wonderful cruise. Except this time, it will actually be TWO cruises! We are flying to Seattle and will be on the Pacific Princess, one night to Vancouver, BC. We will stay in Vancouver for two nights, then board the Golden Princess for a repositioning cruise down the West Coast with ports of call at Nanaimo, Victoria, San Francisco, Catalina Island, San Diego and Los Angeles.
I will be posting my Travelogues along the way - so keep in touch with what we're doing and seeing here on my Blog.
And now - back to packing!
I will be posting my Travelogues along the way - so keep in touch with what we're doing and seeing here on my Blog.
And now - back to packing!
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Travelogue #14 Post Cruise Comments
Hello everyone!
I hope you enjoyed reading about our Holland America Canada/New England cruise in May, 2009.
Our next trip will be a driving vacation to Washington's San Juan Islands in July. We will be staying in Friday Harbor and taking in all that San Juan Island has to offer. Of course, I will be sending my usual Travelogues to share our experiences with you.
After that, this September, we will be taking a one day cruise from Seattle to Vancouver on the Pacific Princess - staying two nights in Vancouver - and then cruising back down the coast in a repositioning cruise from Vancouver to Los Angeles on the Golden Princess.
Please visit my website at www.carpentertravel.net and let's plan your next vacation or cruise together!
Till next time...get out there and enjoy!
Barbara
I hope you enjoyed reading about our Holland America Canada/New England cruise in May, 2009.
Our next trip will be a driving vacation to Washington's San Juan Islands in July. We will be staying in Friday Harbor and taking in all that San Juan Island has to offer. Of course, I will be sending my usual Travelogues to share our experiences with you.
After that, this September, we will be taking a one day cruise from Seattle to Vancouver on the Pacific Princess - staying two nights in Vancouver - and then cruising back down the coast in a repositioning cruise from Vancouver to Los Angeles on the Golden Princess.
Please visit my website at www.carpentertravel.net and let's plan your next vacation or cruise together!
Till next time...get out there and enjoy!
Barbara
Travelogue #13 Final Travelogue from Quebec, Canada
TRAVELOGUE
Thursday, May 21, 2009 and Friday May 22, 2009
Québec City, Québec
Hello from Québec ~
We could not have asked for anything more than to have the last two days in Québec City. The weather has been 70 to 75 degrees, crystal blue skies spotted with puffy white clouds now and again and a slight breeze blowing. The weather has been gorgeous, and our time here has been just fascinating.
On Thursday, we had a leisurely morning and then had a walk and wine tasting tour in the afternoon just after lunch. There were only about 28 of us on this tour. We boarded our motor coach and headed east out of Québec City to Montmorency Falls, a beautiful river and huge water falls almost right alongside the highway. There are several smaller falls along the hillside before you reach the “big” ones where the gushing white winter snow melt is crashing over the falls and creating a huge mist as they reach the bottom of the falls and crash into the river below. We thought the view was just spectacular – but we were in for even more of a treat at our next destination – Canyon Ste. Anne. Both of these falls are taller than Niagara Falls – but, not as wide.
We disembarked our bus and walked down a path about a quarter of a mile to our “first” suspension bridge. The river was rushing in front of us and across the river was a very sturdy suspension bridge made of large steel cables and two inch thick planks to walk across. Below us the river fell down through the canyon, white water splashing and pounding over the rocks below into a deep canyon below where we could see two more suspension bridges, each at a lower level than the first one. We continued along the path to the second suspension bridge through the beautiful evergreen forest thick with moss ladened trees and thick undergrowth of ferns. There were several sets of wooden steps to climb down to reach the second suspension bridge. As we reached that point, we couldn’t help but notice the natural rainbow that was forming through the mist. With the white waters below and the beautiful green forest surrounding it, it was truly an incredible sight. We chose not to climb down the canyon as far as the third suspension bridge. We had been told that it was not as sturdy as the other two and felt we seeing it was good enough. We climbed up the hill from where our trek began up a wooden stairway where every so often there was a viewing platform and benches to rest on before you climbed further. The views kept getting more and more spectacular as we eventually reached the top. Needless to say, we really enjoyed our water once we got back to the concession stand!
From there, we went across the Ste. Lawrence River over to the Isle of Orleans. There we visited a small vineyard where the owner showed us the entire process of his winery and then to the best part – wine tasting! They really only make four wines – rouge – blanc and rose. But, they also make an aperitif wine that we both thought was quite nice, and so we purchased a bottle of that. We hope you will all come to enjoy it with us when we return home!
Last night we finished the last jigsaw puzzle and it appears they are not going to put out another one for us to start as the table is bare today. We thoroughly enjoyed working on those puzzles during this cruise in the evenings before dinner and have met many interesting people.
This morning we again had a leisurely morning and came back after breakfast and started our packing as we have to have our suitcases out in the hall tonight for disembarkation in Montreal tomorrow morning. One nice thing about Holland America is that they allow you to stay in your stateroom until your number and color are called.
After lunch today we set off for our last tour a walking historic tour of Québec City and tea at the Hotel Frontenac. We started our tour by going through the Museum de Québec where we saw the wooden hull of a sailing vessel that had been pulled out of the remains of a pier during an icy winter hundreds of years ago. It is so interesting to see these old artifacts. What is hard to imagine is how they sailed so many miles in those small ships with so many men on board.
From the museum we walked through lower Québec City which is the “old” town with the buildings still standing from hundreds of years ago. We heard many stories about the history as we walked through the cobblestone streets up to the vernicular where we rode the tram up to the upper city. I was lucky enough to be one of the last people to board, and so I was able to take several pictures out across the Ste. Lawrence River over towards the Isle of Orleans. Being that it was such a gorgeous day, I’m really hoping my pictures will show the true beauty of the day.
Our tour guide took us past Notre Dame, the Catholic Cathedral and the Anglican Church, all standing so majestically with their tall spirals against the blue skies and white clouds with the trees in full bloom with their bright green leaves of Spring. There were some beautiful trees with a purple/red color flower on them, something similar to the cherry blossoms we saw in Newport, but a much much richer color of red. It seemed that around every corner our tour guide took us, there was another bronze statue of someone else famous to the history of Québec City, some even mounted on marble.
We enjoyed tea around 3:00 p.m. at the Hotel Frontenac where we were served in a lovely café room. We had some homemade biscotti, a cream puff and a small opera cake with layers of chocolate and raspberry filling, along with two pieces of decadent chocolate.
The tour was over at that point, and Jim and I wanted to walk around the city a bit more and do a little more shopping before we headed back to the ship. We had such a nice afternoon and walked all the way down the hill from the Hotel Frontenac on this steep, winding cobblestone street that was just charming and so pleasant because it was no nice outside.
Dinner tonight is at 8:00 and is the “Master Chef’s Dinner”. Our dining stewards are going to sing and dance and juggle tableside as they serve a special meal created by the HAL Master Chef. It sounds like a lot of fun and one last photo opportunity!
Tomorrow we will disembark in Montreal and will have a tour of the city on our way to our hotel. We will be home Sunday around 5:00 p.m. It will certainly be fun going through all of the pictures once we get home and creating our newest album of memories.
This is our final Travelogue from this cruise. Thanks for coming along! We’ll see you soon!
Thursday, May 21, 2009 and Friday May 22, 2009
Québec City, Québec
Hello from Québec ~
We could not have asked for anything more than to have the last two days in Québec City. The weather has been 70 to 75 degrees, crystal blue skies spotted with puffy white clouds now and again and a slight breeze blowing. The weather has been gorgeous, and our time here has been just fascinating.
On Thursday, we had a leisurely morning and then had a walk and wine tasting tour in the afternoon just after lunch. There were only about 28 of us on this tour. We boarded our motor coach and headed east out of Québec City to Montmorency Falls, a beautiful river and huge water falls almost right alongside the highway. There are several smaller falls along the hillside before you reach the “big” ones where the gushing white winter snow melt is crashing over the falls and creating a huge mist as they reach the bottom of the falls and crash into the river below. We thought the view was just spectacular – but we were in for even more of a treat at our next destination – Canyon Ste. Anne. Both of these falls are taller than Niagara Falls – but, not as wide.
We disembarked our bus and walked down a path about a quarter of a mile to our “first” suspension bridge. The river was rushing in front of us and across the river was a very sturdy suspension bridge made of large steel cables and two inch thick planks to walk across. Below us the river fell down through the canyon, white water splashing and pounding over the rocks below into a deep canyon below where we could see two more suspension bridges, each at a lower level than the first one. We continued along the path to the second suspension bridge through the beautiful evergreen forest thick with moss ladened trees and thick undergrowth of ferns. There were several sets of wooden steps to climb down to reach the second suspension bridge. As we reached that point, we couldn’t help but notice the natural rainbow that was forming through the mist. With the white waters below and the beautiful green forest surrounding it, it was truly an incredible sight. We chose not to climb down the canyon as far as the third suspension bridge. We had been told that it was not as sturdy as the other two and felt we seeing it was good enough. We climbed up the hill from where our trek began up a wooden stairway where every so often there was a viewing platform and benches to rest on before you climbed further. The views kept getting more and more spectacular as we eventually reached the top. Needless to say, we really enjoyed our water once we got back to the concession stand!
From there, we went across the Ste. Lawrence River over to the Isle of Orleans. There we visited a small vineyard where the owner showed us the entire process of his winery and then to the best part – wine tasting! They really only make four wines – rouge – blanc and rose. But, they also make an aperitif wine that we both thought was quite nice, and so we purchased a bottle of that. We hope you will all come to enjoy it with us when we return home!
Last night we finished the last jigsaw puzzle and it appears they are not going to put out another one for us to start as the table is bare today. We thoroughly enjoyed working on those puzzles during this cruise in the evenings before dinner and have met many interesting people.
This morning we again had a leisurely morning and came back after breakfast and started our packing as we have to have our suitcases out in the hall tonight for disembarkation in Montreal tomorrow morning. One nice thing about Holland America is that they allow you to stay in your stateroom until your number and color are called.
After lunch today we set off for our last tour a walking historic tour of Québec City and tea at the Hotel Frontenac. We started our tour by going through the Museum de Québec where we saw the wooden hull of a sailing vessel that had been pulled out of the remains of a pier during an icy winter hundreds of years ago. It is so interesting to see these old artifacts. What is hard to imagine is how they sailed so many miles in those small ships with so many men on board.
From the museum we walked through lower Québec City which is the “old” town with the buildings still standing from hundreds of years ago. We heard many stories about the history as we walked through the cobblestone streets up to the vernicular where we rode the tram up to the upper city. I was lucky enough to be one of the last people to board, and so I was able to take several pictures out across the Ste. Lawrence River over towards the Isle of Orleans. Being that it was such a gorgeous day, I’m really hoping my pictures will show the true beauty of the day.
Our tour guide took us past Notre Dame, the Catholic Cathedral and the Anglican Church, all standing so majestically with their tall spirals against the blue skies and white clouds with the trees in full bloom with their bright green leaves of Spring. There were some beautiful trees with a purple/red color flower on them, something similar to the cherry blossoms we saw in Newport, but a much much richer color of red. It seemed that around every corner our tour guide took us, there was another bronze statue of someone else famous to the history of Québec City, some even mounted on marble.
We enjoyed tea around 3:00 p.m. at the Hotel Frontenac where we were served in a lovely café room. We had some homemade biscotti, a cream puff and a small opera cake with layers of chocolate and raspberry filling, along with two pieces of decadent chocolate.
The tour was over at that point, and Jim and I wanted to walk around the city a bit more and do a little more shopping before we headed back to the ship. We had such a nice afternoon and walked all the way down the hill from the Hotel Frontenac on this steep, winding cobblestone street that was just charming and so pleasant because it was no nice outside.
Dinner tonight is at 8:00 and is the “Master Chef’s Dinner”. Our dining stewards are going to sing and dance and juggle tableside as they serve a special meal created by the HAL Master Chef. It sounds like a lot of fun and one last photo opportunity!
Tomorrow we will disembark in Montreal and will have a tour of the city on our way to our hotel. We will be home Sunday around 5:00 p.m. It will certainly be fun going through all of the pictures once we get home and creating our newest album of memories.
This is our final Travelogue from this cruise. Thanks for coming along! We’ll see you soon!
Travelogue #12 from Saguenay, Quebec, Canada
TRAVELOGUE
Tuesday, May 20, 2009
Saguenay, Quebec
Good morning everyone ~
This morning we glided through the Saguenay Fjord along the Saguenay River for almost two hours viewing the splendid cliffs and scenery along the way. Every once in awhile there would be an opening and a small meadow with about five homes on it surrounded by these incredibly tall granite cliffs. As we approached the end of the fjord through the Bay of Ha! Ha! (literally – that’s what it is called) to La Baie (the bay). Although we were told we were going to the town of Saguenay, it is an amalgamation of three different towns.
La Baie is set at the far end of the fjord and surrounded by beautiful hills and granite cliffs. The people were again very welcoming and happy to see us as we disembarked the ship for our tours.
Our tour on a motor coach took us out of the city of La Baie touring the countryside with views of the spring leaves blooming on the trees here and beautiful fresh colors of green everywhere. There are a lot of maple trees in this part of the area.
Our actual first stop was for lunch at a restaurant high atop a hill overlooking the Saguenay River. Again, we had an excellent meal of lunch, salad, chicken breast and garlic mashed potatoes with banana cake for dessert. The views from the outside deck of the restaurant were stunning and so picturesque. Rolling meadows and farmlands lined with birch, maple and evergreen trees were everyway you looked. Then, the river, though appearing to be calm and clear as glass, was below and we knew the water was moving quickly.
After lunch we boarded our bus for a drive out to Ste-Rose du-Nord, a quaint little area also along the Saguenay River. It appeared to be an area for picnics and those wanting to hike as there were wooden steps leading up into the forest back behind the little shops. It was quite picturesque.
Then we trekked out to a museum that is now converted into a museum. The building itself was all made of granite and had a gushing river across from it. Inside of the museum was some quite unique – an entire house that one man had hand painted every inch inside and out during the course of two years. It was primitive art (like Grandma Moses), but quite beautiful in its own right. Because we were not allowed to take pictures, there were post cards that you could purchase.
Our next stop was to another museum and “aquarium” – which sounded nice – but the aquarium was actually 50 gallon salt water tank and there was at least one fish in it. The museum was actually supposed to be history on the fjord.
The best part of the whole day was across the street from the “aquarium” where we visited a hand made soap factory. We entered and went into a room with benches like a classroom set up. The own of the factory then began to speak and was by far, quite a comedian. He spoke and laughed for about 15 minutes. We wished we could have had more time there because he was really fascinating and learning how he made his special soaps and what each one for particularly for was hilarious. It was quite enjoyable and a wonderful way to end our day.
Our last formal night was last night and it was surf and turf night. We enjoyed a small filet mignon and lobster tail. The specialty dessert was from Chef Rudy who gave us a delectable tiny square of rich chocolate cake topped with a creamy dollop of chocolate mouse and on top of that was a molded white chocolate crest with his name written on it and cherries on the side (almost like a cherries jubilee. There was a small sugar form on top of the cherries in the shape of a swan swimming in a swirl of whipped cream.
We sailed out of Saguenay at 8:00 p.m. last night on our way to Quebec City, Quebec. At 10:30 last night the culinary staff put on a chocolate dessert “extravaganza” complete with ice sculptures turning with colored lights shining on them, platter after platter of chocolate dipped strawberries, martini glasses full of rich chocolate mouse and topped with a fresh strawberry fanned out, cheesecakes and black forest cakes, pies and even some marzipan; and of course, white and dark chocolate fountains for dipping fresh fruit and homemade marshmallows. Everything was on tables surrounding three sides of the large pool on the Lido Deck atop the ship. There were several pieces of “art” made out of bread dough and solid chocolate figures of animals and an Eiffel Tower made out of white chocolate.
Sailing the Saint Lawrence has been smooth and quite pleasant. Tomorrow the temperature in Quebec City is supposed to be warmer – 75 degrees and the forecast is for clear skies. It should be a beautiful day. We will be there overnight tomorrow and will sail for Montreal on Friday where our cruise will finally come to an end.
Tuesday, May 20, 2009
Saguenay, Quebec
Good morning everyone ~
This morning we glided through the Saguenay Fjord along the Saguenay River for almost two hours viewing the splendid cliffs and scenery along the way. Every once in awhile there would be an opening and a small meadow with about five homes on it surrounded by these incredibly tall granite cliffs. As we approached the end of the fjord through the Bay of Ha! Ha! (literally – that’s what it is called) to La Baie (the bay). Although we were told we were going to the town of Saguenay, it is an amalgamation of three different towns.
La Baie is set at the far end of the fjord and surrounded by beautiful hills and granite cliffs. The people were again very welcoming and happy to see us as we disembarked the ship for our tours.
Our tour on a motor coach took us out of the city of La Baie touring the countryside with views of the spring leaves blooming on the trees here and beautiful fresh colors of green everywhere. There are a lot of maple trees in this part of the area.
Our actual first stop was for lunch at a restaurant high atop a hill overlooking the Saguenay River. Again, we had an excellent meal of lunch, salad, chicken breast and garlic mashed potatoes with banana cake for dessert. The views from the outside deck of the restaurant were stunning and so picturesque. Rolling meadows and farmlands lined with birch, maple and evergreen trees were everyway you looked. Then, the river, though appearing to be calm and clear as glass, was below and we knew the water was moving quickly.
After lunch we boarded our bus for a drive out to Ste-Rose du-Nord, a quaint little area also along the Saguenay River. It appeared to be an area for picnics and those wanting to hike as there were wooden steps leading up into the forest back behind the little shops. It was quite picturesque.
Then we trekked out to a museum that is now converted into a museum. The building itself was all made of granite and had a gushing river across from it. Inside of the museum was some quite unique – an entire house that one man had hand painted every inch inside and out during the course of two years. It was primitive art (like Grandma Moses), but quite beautiful in its own right. Because we were not allowed to take pictures, there were post cards that you could purchase.
Our next stop was to another museum and “aquarium” – which sounded nice – but the aquarium was actually 50 gallon salt water tank and there was at least one fish in it. The museum was actually supposed to be history on the fjord.
The best part of the whole day was across the street from the “aquarium” where we visited a hand made soap factory. We entered and went into a room with benches like a classroom set up. The own of the factory then began to speak and was by far, quite a comedian. He spoke and laughed for about 15 minutes. We wished we could have had more time there because he was really fascinating and learning how he made his special soaps and what each one for particularly for was hilarious. It was quite enjoyable and a wonderful way to end our day.
Our last formal night was last night and it was surf and turf night. We enjoyed a small filet mignon and lobster tail. The specialty dessert was from Chef Rudy who gave us a delectable tiny square of rich chocolate cake topped with a creamy dollop of chocolate mouse and on top of that was a molded white chocolate crest with his name written on it and cherries on the side (almost like a cherries jubilee. There was a small sugar form on top of the cherries in the shape of a swan swimming in a swirl of whipped cream.
We sailed out of Saguenay at 8:00 p.m. last night on our way to Quebec City, Quebec. At 10:30 last night the culinary staff put on a chocolate dessert “extravaganza” complete with ice sculptures turning with colored lights shining on them, platter after platter of chocolate dipped strawberries, martini glasses full of rich chocolate mouse and topped with a fresh strawberry fanned out, cheesecakes and black forest cakes, pies and even some marzipan; and of course, white and dark chocolate fountains for dipping fresh fruit and homemade marshmallows. Everything was on tables surrounding three sides of the large pool on the Lido Deck atop the ship. There were several pieces of “art” made out of bread dough and solid chocolate figures of animals and an Eiffel Tower made out of white chocolate.
Sailing the Saint Lawrence has been smooth and quite pleasant. Tomorrow the temperature in Quebec City is supposed to be warmer – 75 degrees and the forecast is for clear skies. It should be a beautiful day. We will be there overnight tomorrow and will sail for Montreal on Friday where our cruise will finally come to an end.
Travelogue #11 from Sept Illes, Quebec, Canada
TRAVELOGUE
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Sept Illes, Quebec
What an exciting morning we had today! As we approached the small town of Sept Illes, Quebec, we were preceded by a tug boat spraying water high into the air and on either side of the ship there were small boats following along as we approached the harbor along with the huge Coast Guard tug as well. The MS Maasdam is the first international cruise ship to ever call on the small port of Sept Illes, Quebec, and I think the whole town showed up at the pier to greet and welcome us. There were news cameras everywhere, the mayor was there shaking everyone’s hands as we got off the tenders, and the entire dock was lined with people so happy to see us and shaking hands with everyone. When we got into the visitor’s tent, we were all given cloth bags from Sept Illes with some tourist information inside. Several of us were “interviewed” by TV stations. There were helicopters hovering above taking pictures of the ship in the harbor.
Our tour today was 7 ½ hours on a motor coach out through miles and miles and miles of highway flanked on either side by thick, dense forests of evergreens and birch trees that were still barren from the cold. The highway followed along the north shore of the St. Lawrence Seaway. Every now and then an opening would appear through the trees and the views would be of gushing white water rapids in a river headed towards the St. Lawrence or views of the St. Lawrence beaches and coastline. It was spectacular scenery along the coastline. The sandy beaches extend for long distances and then there will be rocks and cliffs jutting out, then back to sandy beaches.
We visited a lighthouse after being on the road for about two hours (100 miles). It is called Le phare de Pointe-des-Monts. It is on a point of land that juts out into the St. Lawrence Seaway and narrows the channel between the north and the south shores. It is built on massive granite rocks and there are three black canons mounted along the waters' edge for protection back in the day. It is a stunning location with the river and the rocks. The lighthouse has seven floors and the lighthouse keeper and his family used to live inside the lighthouse. The kitchen was on the first floor, then the bedrooms were on floors 2-6 and on the top was the lighthouse keepers “office”. Jim climbed up the narrow winding red steps to the top and said the view was spectacular. We were shown a 20 minute film about the lighthouse and were greeted by four employees all decked out in the nautical uniforms, again, so welcoming and friendly to all of us. In the house that was built to shelter the stranded, ship wreck passengers, they have turned it into a hotel with a lovely restaurant. The chef was there – white hat and all – serving us delicate crackers with a mouth watering shrimp dip and warm coffee all served on china and silver.
From the lighthouse we re-traced our route a bit back to a Ship Wreck Interpretation Center where we were greeted again very warmly. We saw a 20 minute film on the shipwrecks of the area and one in particular where a gentleman was pulling in his anchor one evening after being out fishing and it caught on something. There, 100 yards off of HIS own property was the shipwreck on a boat from 1690 that had never been found. There is now a nice building across the street from the Interpretation Center where many of the original artifacts are kept under glass. They recovered muskets, bottles, pewter serving dishes and numerous other items and have built this museum for that specifically.
After the Interpretation Center, we were driven to lunch at Resto-Pub Le Remous in a little community of Port-Cartier (pronounced Po – caw – ti) where we were again warmly welcomed and served a delicious lunch with a view alongside some beautiful waterfalls and white water river. We had vegetable soup; a choice of main course of either cannelloni, chicken kabob or a fish dish. All meals were served on large oval plates with more food than we could eat. And the triple chocolate cake with strawberries on top was our heavenly dessert. While we were there eating, the mayor of Port-Cartier came over and greeted us and told our tour guide she had something for each of us. So after lunch we stopped by the mayor’s office and they gave us all a canvas bag with all sorts of visitor information inside, a special pin and a pen. What was funny was that all of the information is in French. We can’t read a line of it! Pretty pictures though! And, quite thoughtful to do that for us at any rate.
Once we left Port Cartier we headed towards an actual shipwreck of the Lady Hera from 1977. The steel hull steam ship ran aground on the rocks right off the coast and the wreckage is still there for all to see. It was very interesting. Everything has been removed from the boat, except the boat which cannot be moved.
While driving back into town at the end of the day, we made another stop at another museum where a pulp mill once was and an old steam engine was out front on display representing the railroad taking the pulp back to the town when it was a functioning mill.
We passed several churches, but one thing became evidently clear to us – this is a poverished area. The homes are all small and appear to be track-type homes built very close together. Their largest store is Wal-Mart. Their main industry is the aluminum and iron plants over on the south shore of the St. Lawrence.
Our day was topped off with a wonderful dinner at The Pinnacle Grill Steak House last night on ship. We had reservations for 7:30 so we could watch the sunset. We had a window table and it was so enjoyable to sit and watch this gorgeous sunset that unfolded before our eyes with the sun dropping in the west and the skies brightening to a shocking pink.
It was an enjoyable day. Tomorrow we will sail up the Saguenay River through the fjords to Sageunay, Quebec where we will spend our day.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Sept Illes, Quebec
What an exciting morning we had today! As we approached the small town of Sept Illes, Quebec, we were preceded by a tug boat spraying water high into the air and on either side of the ship there were small boats following along as we approached the harbor along with the huge Coast Guard tug as well. The MS Maasdam is the first international cruise ship to ever call on the small port of Sept Illes, Quebec, and I think the whole town showed up at the pier to greet and welcome us. There were news cameras everywhere, the mayor was there shaking everyone’s hands as we got off the tenders, and the entire dock was lined with people so happy to see us and shaking hands with everyone. When we got into the visitor’s tent, we were all given cloth bags from Sept Illes with some tourist information inside. Several of us were “interviewed” by TV stations. There were helicopters hovering above taking pictures of the ship in the harbor.
Our tour today was 7 ½ hours on a motor coach out through miles and miles and miles of highway flanked on either side by thick, dense forests of evergreens and birch trees that were still barren from the cold. The highway followed along the north shore of the St. Lawrence Seaway. Every now and then an opening would appear through the trees and the views would be of gushing white water rapids in a river headed towards the St. Lawrence or views of the St. Lawrence beaches and coastline. It was spectacular scenery along the coastline. The sandy beaches extend for long distances and then there will be rocks and cliffs jutting out, then back to sandy beaches.
We visited a lighthouse after being on the road for about two hours (100 miles). It is called Le phare de Pointe-des-Monts. It is on a point of land that juts out into the St. Lawrence Seaway and narrows the channel between the north and the south shores. It is built on massive granite rocks and there are three black canons mounted along the waters' edge for protection back in the day. It is a stunning location with the river and the rocks. The lighthouse has seven floors and the lighthouse keeper and his family used to live inside the lighthouse. The kitchen was on the first floor, then the bedrooms were on floors 2-6 and on the top was the lighthouse keepers “office”. Jim climbed up the narrow winding red steps to the top and said the view was spectacular. We were shown a 20 minute film about the lighthouse and were greeted by four employees all decked out in the nautical uniforms, again, so welcoming and friendly to all of us. In the house that was built to shelter the stranded, ship wreck passengers, they have turned it into a hotel with a lovely restaurant. The chef was there – white hat and all – serving us delicate crackers with a mouth watering shrimp dip and warm coffee all served on china and silver.
From the lighthouse we re-traced our route a bit back to a Ship Wreck Interpretation Center where we were greeted again very warmly. We saw a 20 minute film on the shipwrecks of the area and one in particular where a gentleman was pulling in his anchor one evening after being out fishing and it caught on something. There, 100 yards off of HIS own property was the shipwreck on a boat from 1690 that had never been found. There is now a nice building across the street from the Interpretation Center where many of the original artifacts are kept under glass. They recovered muskets, bottles, pewter serving dishes and numerous other items and have built this museum for that specifically.
After the Interpretation Center, we were driven to lunch at Resto-Pub Le Remous in a little community of Port-Cartier (pronounced Po – caw – ti) where we were again warmly welcomed and served a delicious lunch with a view alongside some beautiful waterfalls and white water river. We had vegetable soup; a choice of main course of either cannelloni, chicken kabob or a fish dish. All meals were served on large oval plates with more food than we could eat. And the triple chocolate cake with strawberries on top was our heavenly dessert. While we were there eating, the mayor of Port-Cartier came over and greeted us and told our tour guide she had something for each of us. So after lunch we stopped by the mayor’s office and they gave us all a canvas bag with all sorts of visitor information inside, a special pin and a pen. What was funny was that all of the information is in French. We can’t read a line of it! Pretty pictures though! And, quite thoughtful to do that for us at any rate.
Once we left Port Cartier we headed towards an actual shipwreck of the Lady Hera from 1977. The steel hull steam ship ran aground on the rocks right off the coast and the wreckage is still there for all to see. It was very interesting. Everything has been removed from the boat, except the boat which cannot be moved.
While driving back into town at the end of the day, we made another stop at another museum where a pulp mill once was and an old steam engine was out front on display representing the railroad taking the pulp back to the town when it was a functioning mill.
We passed several churches, but one thing became evidently clear to us – this is a poverished area. The homes are all small and appear to be track-type homes built very close together. Their largest store is Wal-Mart. Their main industry is the aluminum and iron plants over on the south shore of the St. Lawrence.
Our day was topped off with a wonderful dinner at The Pinnacle Grill Steak House last night on ship. We had reservations for 7:30 so we could watch the sunset. We had a window table and it was so enjoyable to sit and watch this gorgeous sunset that unfolded before our eyes with the sun dropping in the west and the skies brightening to a shocking pink.
It was an enjoyable day. Tomorrow we will sail up the Saguenay River through the fjords to Sageunay, Quebec where we will spend our day.
Travelogue #10 from Gaspe, Quebec, Canada
Monday, May 18, 2009
Gaspé, Quebec, Canada
This was not a good day. I can summarize it by quoting one of the ladies on our whale watching tour today “This ranks right up there with having a root canal”. And so it was… That really was a pretty good description of how bad it actually was.
After they were 45 minutes late clearing us for customs and immigration, we had to take a tender into shore. I should have gotten the clue then that we were in for a rotten day – but I had great hope! What a fool!! Once we got off the tender, we were directed to a school bus and they said it would be a 45 minute ride over to where we would catch the whale watching boat. That was another clue that I missed…
AND, we did not realize we were going to be in an open zodiac boat. We did dress warmly, but not for that type of excursion. Had I realized what it was, I don’t think I would have made the choice at this time of year in this place. And, I don’t think that the other people on the tour realized it either because of the way they were dressed. When we got on the bus the tour guides looked at us and said they hoped we had warmer clothes to put on –but we were going to all get yellow rain coats to help keep us dry. Another clue – whoops!
Not one person on the tour had brought a lunch; and we did not leave the ship until after 10:30 – so none of us got lunch. And, we didn’t get back to the dock to take the tender until 3:00 pm.
The whale watch was unsuccessful on several levels, the worst being the captain pushed the limits when he could not find any whales in the Gaspé harbor and went far out into the ocean where the seas kicked up and the winds became stronger and everyone on the open zodiac got soaked to the bones in the frigid waters. One of the older women on the boat (late 70’s) was shaking so bad that she couldn’t move and they had to pick her up and move her to the front of the boat where it was more protected. We were all really concerned about her and afraid of hypothermia. At that point, the captain who was nice and warm and protected up in his little cabin, finally was told by the tour guide to give up his jacket for this poor woman. She only had sandals with socks on too! So, I know she didn’t know about the open boat. Every person on board was soaked to the bone and freezing cold. It took us hours to warm up after we got back on the ship.
As hard as I tried to keep my camera from getting wet, unfortunately I did not succeed; and it is now not working. We went down to the photo studio onboard the ship and they told me to take out the battery and the memory card and open as much of it as I could and let it sit overnight – and pray! So, we have purchased a throw-away camera for tomorrow in case that does not work. I am just sick about it. At least I’ve been uploading my pictures every day, so I didn’t lose any pictures – but – this just sucks.
Yes, I’ve already had my pity party for one and had my breakdown and a good stiff drink. We are back to the room early tonight and our wet clothes are spread out all over everywhere trying to get them to dry – it will take a couple of days I think. Jim is already in bed snoring and I’ll be there after I finish this.
Tomorrow will be a better day – no more zodiacs for us!! We are in the Gulf of the St. Lawrence now and on our way to a small town called Sept’ Illes.
Gaspé, Quebec, Canada
This was not a good day. I can summarize it by quoting one of the ladies on our whale watching tour today “This ranks right up there with having a root canal”. And so it was… That really was a pretty good description of how bad it actually was.
After they were 45 minutes late clearing us for customs and immigration, we had to take a tender into shore. I should have gotten the clue then that we were in for a rotten day – but I had great hope! What a fool!! Once we got off the tender, we were directed to a school bus and they said it would be a 45 minute ride over to where we would catch the whale watching boat. That was another clue that I missed…
AND, we did not realize we were going to be in an open zodiac boat. We did dress warmly, but not for that type of excursion. Had I realized what it was, I don’t think I would have made the choice at this time of year in this place. And, I don’t think that the other people on the tour realized it either because of the way they were dressed. When we got on the bus the tour guides looked at us and said they hoped we had warmer clothes to put on –but we were going to all get yellow rain coats to help keep us dry. Another clue – whoops!
Not one person on the tour had brought a lunch; and we did not leave the ship until after 10:30 – so none of us got lunch. And, we didn’t get back to the dock to take the tender until 3:00 pm.
The whale watch was unsuccessful on several levels, the worst being the captain pushed the limits when he could not find any whales in the Gaspé harbor and went far out into the ocean where the seas kicked up and the winds became stronger and everyone on the open zodiac got soaked to the bones in the frigid waters. One of the older women on the boat (late 70’s) was shaking so bad that she couldn’t move and they had to pick her up and move her to the front of the boat where it was more protected. We were all really concerned about her and afraid of hypothermia. At that point, the captain who was nice and warm and protected up in his little cabin, finally was told by the tour guide to give up his jacket for this poor woman. She only had sandals with socks on too! So, I know she didn’t know about the open boat. Every person on board was soaked to the bone and freezing cold. It took us hours to warm up after we got back on the ship.
As hard as I tried to keep my camera from getting wet, unfortunately I did not succeed; and it is now not working. We went down to the photo studio onboard the ship and they told me to take out the battery and the memory card and open as much of it as I could and let it sit overnight – and pray! So, we have purchased a throw-away camera for tomorrow in case that does not work. I am just sick about it. At least I’ve been uploading my pictures every day, so I didn’t lose any pictures – but – this just sucks.
Yes, I’ve already had my pity party for one and had my breakdown and a good stiff drink. We are back to the room early tonight and our wet clothes are spread out all over everywhere trying to get them to dry – it will take a couple of days I think. Jim is already in bed snoring and I’ll be there after I finish this.
Tomorrow will be a better day – no more zodiacs for us!! We are in the Gulf of the St. Lawrence now and on our way to a small town called Sept’ Illes.
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