Chapter Eight of Un Périple au Canada

26 juillet 2015 Ce que l’on trouve au Restaurant La Légende à Québéc est un repas légendaire, voir même extraordinaire. Trois plats, salade et dessert. Légumes, poissons, viandes, volailles, fruits: un vrai concerto gastronomique. Many customers, or at least those within earshot asked many questions. It seemed as though they were unnerved by the simplicity of the various offerings and then uncertain as to how to translate the components of each offering. The servers spent a lot of time explaining, answering questions before taking each customer’s orders. From my point of observation, it seems there is a hierarchy of servers: those who oversaw the wellbeing of the diners; those who brought out the plates; those who poured wine and water; those who took the plates away. Hidden away in the kitchens were the chefs working as so many musicians. In the end it’s theatre, the stage, the material, the players and their audience. The treat is expensive, though not unreasonable. The memory of the occasion lingers on. Hotel Bernières is a comfortable establishment used by locals for events. I chose it because of price. Considering the price of taxis in and out of Québéc proper, the savings is offset by the taxi fare. This morning: RAIN, and that despite yesterday’s pleasant weather - sunshine, warm breezes, etc. On the ride back from La Légende, I was surprised to see a colorful hot air balloon riding the currents in the beautiful light of a dusking evening. The driver told me this is a very popular activity. On the way from Rivière du Loup to Québéc I stopped to get closer to the Saint Lawrence River at the St. Roch d’Aulnay exit. I had seen a hike and bike trail that appeared to parallel the highway. The drive to Québéc seemed to leave me time for some sight-seeing. Once the car parked, I walked to the barrier protecting the trail from automobiles and found a sign inviting me to Le Point Rouge. After a quick walk to the spot, there was a panel explaining this point of interest. It seems there is a legend that St. Roch may have traveled in these parts. Near the shore are rocks with what appear to be footsteps and the imprints of an accompanying dog. If this is so, it is a significant miracle because St. Roch is a XIVth Century personnage living in France… More to the point, the nearby town of St. Roch belonged to a Canadian Seigneur d’Aulnay, whose family had connections with the name Roch. This morning I go off on a guided tour of Québéc city, La Vieille Ville. The bus will pick me up at the front door of the hotel. 27 juillet 2015 Le beau temps de ce matin rendra heureux ceux qui passeront après moi!! À l’ouverture des rideaux il semblait y avoir la possibilité d’une aube qui verrait le lever du soleil. Espoir décu car quelques moments plus tard le ciel est obscurci. Pour autant, le compte-rendu de ce périple est néanmoins plutôt positif: ce voyage représente la première occasion qui me soit offerte de satisfaire un désir sinon un caprice ou tout au moins une curiosité pour venir voir de quoi il s’agit au Canada - sa francophonie d’abord ainsi que son patrimoine historique et culturel. Tous ces éléments se mèlent dans le courant de ce fleuve qu’est l’histoire dont les eaux irriguent le riche terroir de ce vaste pays qui contient 19 fois la France… À ce fleuve qu’est l’histoire se mèlent les faits et gestes des aventuriers, explorateurs et agriculteurs qui y ont contribué leurs talents, perspicacité et courage autant que leurs faiblesses à réaliser la naissance et la continuation de la Nouvelle France. Mon témoignage n’est que de celui qui y a trempé ses doigts de pieds. Aujourd'hui je me dirige vers Montréal, ma dernière étape. On prévoit la canicule pour ces prochains quelques jours.