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Québec City – A Photo Gallery Walking Tour
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Québec City – A Photo Gallery Walking Tour

by mccownJanuary 25, 2018
This entry is part [part not set] of 12 in the series Montreal & Quebec City

After spending some time in Montreal, we tacked on a visit to Québec City to the end of our trip. While not nearly the size of Montreal, it was a great addition to our Montreal trip because it gave us a better taste of Canada. Montreal, while totally worth visiting (it feels like Europe-meets-North America), has more of an international city vibe and doesn’t give you a true Canadian experience. Québec City, although still quite touristy, was much more of a cultural experience than Montreal.

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Although the city changed from French rule to British rule in 1763, only a mere 1.5% of the population is considered an Anglophone — 95% of Québec’s population speaks French as its first language. Québec City is the seat of Québecois government and about 95% of the people conduct the government in French. With a total of 550,000 people living in the city, appx. 50,000 were provincial government and 30,000 were Federal and government subcontractors…so a LOT of these Québec City residents are fluent in French.

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Sure, Québec is French Canadian, but there’s no doubt that these parts were settled by the French not too long ago. Many things about the walled city are similar to Arles, a walled city in “its motherland.” In fact, Grande Allee looks almost identical to a road in Arles. And, FYI: this street is DEAD on a Monday night at 11pm in May…although rumored to be hopping on weekends in the summer.

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Even though you surely won’t need as much time to explore this small city as you would in Montreal, the drive up is absolutely, 110% worth it because of the pretty Canadian countryside you pass on the way up and also for the authenticity it offers– despite feeling a bit like a tourist trap.

After wearing shorts in Montreal (in May), just a few hours north (and, granted, a significant cold front coming in), it was literally FREEZING in Québec City. I mean, WTF? All I packed was flip-flops and we’ve only got 1 day in this city…so, as much as I wanted to stay inside, explore we must. The #FWP of a self-proclaimed “adventurer.”

Inside the walled city, the atmosphere is a little more lively, with at least a few stragglers walking along the streets and several bars filled with who I would assume to be fellow tourists. The Saint Alexandre Pub was filled with people at 11:45 pm on a Monday night. We highly recommend it for a little atmosphere– and a break from the numbing cold.

 

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