Touring Canada: Québec City and its Surroundings

Last year, Ramón and I conducted a grand tour across a portion of Canada. Canada is a large country, and we knew ahead of time we could not tackle the whole country in one go. Our adventure in a nutshell consisted of flying into Québec City, picking up a car and driving to our hotel, staying a couple of nights, then making our way later to Montréal, then Ottawa for a quick second, then back on the road to Toronto, and eventually make a quick stop at Niagara Falls. With that said, this blog will cover the first stop of our Canadian tour: Québec City.

When I was younger, I actually visited Québec City quite a few times with my family to visit the Sainte-Anne-de-Beuapré Basilica nearby. I have faint memories from those visits, so I was thrilled for us to have the opportunity to see what Québec was like now that I am older. Yet, since we only had a couple of days in Québec, I had to create a rough itinerary: explore Québec City, eat delicious food, visit some churches (including a road trip to St. Anne’s), and look around some museums. Not mentioned but very important - carve out time to relax.

Looking back on our trip, the first full day was fairly successful. Of course, our day started early so that we could enjoy the city in its quiet state. Empty streets with only the hum of the wind in the air allowed for the architecture and design of the city to stand out in the Upper Town. Breakfast in the city included two delicious crepes at Le Casse-Crêpe Breton; mine is featured to the right in case you were curious. The cuisine set the tone of what we saw as we meandered, as I felt like we were actually in a small European town. I cannot say which town here, as I saw French bakeries nearby Irish Bars around the corner from Italian restaurants. But the architecture styles and other parts of the city provided that European flare. Once the crowds started to pick up, we gently descended down the cliff (which did not feel as drastic as it would be later to ascend) to Lower Town, and made it to the Musée Naval de Quebéc.

By the museum, we were able to stand by and watch boats gently floating along the glittering St. Lawrence River. However, behind us loomed the true height of Québec’s Upper Town on the cliff. Well… this will be something to tackle later, I thought. The museum was quite enjoyable, and surprising to me because it focused on telling stories of peace and human connection - something I do not typically see in American military museums. While I do not seek out military history museums on the day-to-day basis, I highly recommend this museum as it provides context of how Canadians participated in different wars, numerous perspectives from World War One and Two, and how we, the global community, can form bonds of friendship to promote peace.

After the museum, we decided to slowly make our way towards a cozy lunch spot. What was unbelievable was looking around this part of Québec (still in Lower Town Québec, but this area is known as Old Québec), and wondering, did I transport into France? Or to the Italian countryside? City streets with buses and large crowds quickly transformed into a quaint, small rustic-looking town filled with small galleries, shops, and a beautiful church called Notre-Dame-des-Victoires. As a side note, it was not until we entered into this church that I realised that there are two Notre-Dame churches in Québec. I shall discuss the other one later. Back to Old Québec, this area was quite magical to behold. Especially with the grand Fairmont Le Château Frontenac looming overhead.

What was not magical was once we started to seriously look for food from our list of recommendations, we realised just how much of a vertical climb we had to take to explore the other half of our options. A note to all types of developers of the various map applications, please include elevation changes and stairs. Please. We could have used the furnicular to scale up the cliff, but it was early in our vacation and we each had a good pair of walking feet. Thus, we climbed up wooden stairs, past entrances to shops on different levels of the winding staircase, until we reached the top. I am both embarrassed but not shy to say that I was huffing and puffing at the top of the cliff. I should have packed some more water or a snack as by this time of day, we had put a lot of mileage on our feet.

On the bright side, this gave us a lovely excuse for lunch. We chose somewhere nearby the Fairmont Le Château Frontenac called La Buchette. From the busy European-style streets, we were transported into a ski lodge. Though, the fans were struggling with the summer heat, so we were quite warm at our table with views of winter sports equipment everywhere. Regardless, our meal was amazing, refreshing, and the boost we needed to keep exploring.

For the rest of our day, we played it by ear. Of course, we wandered through the Fairmont Le Château Frontenac, at least the parts that are open to the public without reservation. Despite not having a tour, we were still able to view some grand staircases, see on display various artifacts unearthed from this location, and enjoy some beautifully designed carpets. I could only imagine how grand the interiors must be just from the glimpse we had.

Conveniently, nearby the hotel is an archaeological site that holds the ruins of the Château Saint-Louis, one of the original French (and later English) buildings of the city dating all the way back to the early 17th century. A short walk away from the archaeological site entrance, nearby the street performers, we picked up our tickets for a guided tour of the underground chateau. This was such a vital stop that shaped my perspective for the rest of the trip, as it helped remind me that while Canadian history may seem so recent and new, there are hundreds of years of history here. Also, on the topic of history and people from this area, I learned that it is generally more accepted to call Indigenous people of the Americas as people of the First Nations when in Canada.

The rest of the day was fairly calm, which set us up for success the next day for our remaining time in the greater Québec City area. The main part of day two was to see Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré Basilica and Shrine. While I remember it as a place my family frequented, this shrine is known to Catholic communities as an epicentre of numerous medical miracles. Inside around different columns, you can actually see hundreds of walkers, canes, and other walking related devices hung up from people who have been cured of their ailments after their visit to this basilica.

As we approach the basilica and walk inside, I am surprised by the varied conglomeration of art styles that exist in this one building - clearly I had forgotten a lot. Picture this, a white Romanesque Revival style church that is backlit by the sun. Then, walk inside and look up. I was slightly jarred by the use of various fonts on the ceiling, paired with the blend of art styles ranging from neo-classical, neo-gothic, and modern and contemporary utilised in mosaics and stained glass windows. Yet, there was something about this composition of works that kept my eyes wandering even after the mass began. Despite feeling like ants in this massive church (slightly longer than the Sacré-Cœr in Paris but less than half the length of St. Peter’s in the Vatican), there was a homey feeling as I sat in the pews listening to the music.

Once the mass concluded, we walked towards the transept to view the relics and altar, then descended into the Lower Chapel - also known as the Immaculate Conception Chapel. Walking around the chapel, I felt a familiar connection to the place, a feeling I could not quite place my finger on. It was not until I saw a replica of Michelangelo’s Pieta that I understood why I felt that way. The original sculpture is housed in St. Peter’s in the Vatican - a sculpture I saw frequently during my time living in Rome. Though, I should note that newer creations in the chapel captured my attention and were equally beautiful. In the main part of the Lower Chapel, column capitals are decorated with ornate animal and insect mosaics. You might pass them by if you ever visit, so here is an example of one of the many mosaics.

As our visit to the shrine concluded, we decided to head back into Québec City for lunch and one last look around. Another reason I wanted one last visit to the city before we left for Montréal was that I learned that the only Holy Door in the Americas was in Basilique-Cathédrale-Notre-Dame de Québec in Upper Town. Compared to the Basilica of St. Anne’s we were just in, this cathedral was a small, ornately decorated church that also felt like we were baking in an oven. Nevertheless, I was fascinated with its Holy Door. With respect to the door I wanted to see, it was not an ordinary door, but a relief of an image of Jesus. Instead of a handle, his hand was the mechanism that would open the door - by push, not twisting a wrist.
For more information about Holy Doors, especially during a Jubilee Year like this year, here is some additional reading. The door is not supposed to be open until a Jubilee year. However, for some reason, a group managed to open it and walk through while we were visiting the church! Remember, this happened in 2024. I almost shrieked in shock, but was able to keep it to myself.

After we finished exploring the neo-baroque interior of the church, our stomachs were ready for lunch. The city was overflowing with crowds, but we were able to make our way to a small café on a side street for a bite to eat. I had some gazpacho to cool off as I sketched a window nearby. With our trip to Québec City coming to a close, I am still reeling by how varied and complex this area of Canada is. A puzzle I need to come back to again to explore its history further.

With that said, I hope you enjoyed this summary of our trip in Québec City and the surrounding area. Let me know either on Instagram or Buy Me a Coffee if you have any questions or would like to hear more about our trip across Canada. In addition, if you are interested in seeing the drawing I made of the window on our last day, you can see the coloured version here.

Thank you, and until next time.