A tale of 3 cities in Canada-Quebec, exuding an old world charm (part 1)

From the minute I arrived in Quebec city, I could sense that it is different from all the other Canadian cities that I had been to thus far. For starters, its entire population spoke French and this province definitely embodied quite possibly every element of French culture. This may seem innocuous to the casual observer, but somehow, the population of Quebec gave me the impression that they are trying to create their own unique identity in the English speaking continent of North America. In short and in my own humble opinion, they probably want to be different from the rest of Canada. From the slide show I saw during a lecture on 'World Cities', I could vaguely remember that the buildings in European cities are rarely a couple of stories high and sky scrapers are indeed a rare sight. Quebec city fits nicely into this description and if I was to conjure an image of an European city, Quebec city would provide an ideal source of reference.




Narrow streets and low rise buildings in Quebec city evoked a nostalgic ambience.




The most iconic architecture in Quebec city, Chateau Frontenac, a magnificent looking hotel with a roof made out of bronze (due to oxidation, the roof has turned green).




Quebec city lies on the Northern banks of the St. Lawrence river. In the 1700s, the contest for supremecy in North America during the French Indian wars between the British and French empire saw the construction of numerous fortifications and batteries in their respective sphere of power. The province of Quebec was a major stronghold of the French and predictably, heavily guarded by French garrisons. Standing on the Northern banks, I realised the strategic importance of St. Lawrence river. With well constructed batteries, there is no chance that any naval fleet could navigate along the river without coming under a steady stream of barrage from the artillery fire of Quebec city's coastal fortifications. Hence, heavy caliber cannons were strategically placed along the coastline of the Northern bank of St. Lawrence river to command the approach of any naval vessels from the mouth of the river.





The city of Levis is on the Southern shores of St. Lawrence river, with ferries transporting commuters between the 2 cities on a daily basis.



The Petit Champlain district, surreptitiously tucked away in the basse-ville (lower town) of Vieux Quebec (old Quebec). Walking through the narrow streets of this charming part of Quebec city, I couldn't help but feel that Quebec city has a distinctive European identity rather than a North American one (even though I have never been to Europe, this is probably what Europe looks like in the figment of my imaginations). Romantically lit by Christmas lightings and surrounded by throngs of French speakers, you could be forgiven for mistaking this place for a small French town. I was totally captivated by the beauty of Petit Champlain and the rest of Quebec city, there is without a doubt that Quebec city is the most beautiful city compared to the other cities I have been to in Canada.

A tale of 3 cities in Canada- Ottawa, the low key capital of Canada

We finally arrived at Ottawa, the capital city of Canada after spending close to 8 hours on a coach that took us from Toronto to the city. It was 0430 am when the bus arrived at its desination and predictably, the entire city was still in deep slumber with the exception of a couple of commuters who were on their way to Tim Horton's (the Canadian's version of Starbucks) for a quick bite. With the cold gust of morning wind sweeping at us, we began to traverse through the city of Ottawa lugging our luggages along and navigated our way to the famed parliament house in Ottawa equipped with a map of the city.


As we were walking towards the parliament building, we past by the broadcasting station of the city. Located on the ground floor of a tall and massive building, passerby could easily peer through the window pane to see the DJs doing a live show.




Lying across the opposite bank of Ottawa is the province of Quebec. Although we have no idea what that building that was emitting a red light is, its unique lightings and beauty prompted us to take a few pictures.



After walking for close to 15 minutes, we reached the gates of the parliament house. As you can all see from these pictures, dawn has yet to break. Hungry, cold and obviously exhausted from the lack of proper rest aboard the bus, the thought of reaching our destination comforted us somewhat. A patrol car of that was doing its round stopped by and we could see the officers in the vehicle guessing our intents when we were loitering around the compunds of the parliament house in the wee hours of morning. It was until we started clicking away with our cameras did the patrol car drove off to its next check point. I bet the police officers in that patrol must be thinking, "Crazy tourists..."




At long last dawn breaks, and along with that, the rays of sunshine casted away the cold morning air.


Serenity exuded from the compound of the parliament house makes this a good spot for yoga or tai chi exponents.


A statue of her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on her steed. I could almost hear the cries, "For Queen and country!"


An elegant but somewhat solitary pavilion behind the parliament house. We were speculating the function of the pavilion, and my guess was that the pavilion was probably used to conduct matrimonial unions.


Statues of women of unknown identity. The presence of these women in a scenario that looks like a meeting of sort prompted my guess that these statues were erected in memory of some feminist movement.




The full view of the opposite bank was unveiled before us when dawn breaks. Already, Quebec promises to be a place of scenic beauty when we set our sights on these views.


The three of us huddled together for a picture in front of the parliament building, but poor camera angle failed to capture the parliament house in this picture.


The parliament house basking in full glory when the first rays of sunshine were casted upon the magnificent looking building.


A chapel-like building located behind the parliament house with solid masonry.

Our tour of Ottawa was a mere 4 hours before we caught the next bus bound for the city of Montreal in Quebec. There was little doubt that we did not cover the entire city during our short stay. However, from fellow international students who shared their travel experiences in Ottawa, we learnt that the only significant tourist attraction is the parliament house. Hence, the explanation of our short visit to Ottawa and the parliament house as the only places of interest we went to. Although it may seem unfair for me to pass the comment that Ottawa is a 'low key' capital city in Canada during this short stay, I was not sufficiently bowled over by its attractions to heap praises on this city. The parliament house may be Ottawa's architectural pride, but to contend with Niagara's famous falls, Toronto's towering skyscrapers and London's reputation as a unique forest city, Ottawa became pale in comparison. Suffice to say, we were not particularly sorry to leave for Quebec city when we boarded the next Greyhound coach bound for Montreal.