CANADIAN NIAGARA FALLS & CAPITAL CITIES TOUR. This was not an RV tour. We traveled with Tauck Tours.
We hastily changed our departure date for Toronto to a day earlier in order to avoid the Jacksonville airport shutdown for the approaching Hurricane Lee. We lost some extra money that we had paid for extra legroom for our seats on the originally scheduled flights. It was hectic, but we made it to Canada safely a day early. The new combination of flights involved flying into Dulles Airport, then having an Uber driver get us to the Baltimore/Washington airport for the completion of our journey. Nothing else was available.
Whenever available, Tauck always books their guests at Fairmont hotels. These are hotels originally built by the Canadian Railroad to promote rail travel. They were very fancy, for the age when they were built, but the in-room bathrooms were added later, squeezing them in a small space. Thus the bathrooms are cramped.
The first night we were booked into a room at the Fairmont Royal York Ontario. The "royal" aspect was visible throughout the hotel, with an exhibit from the 2002 visit to Canada by Prince Phillip and Queen Elizabeth II.
CLICK ON ANY PHOTO TO ENLARGE
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| Exhibit of Prince Phillip and Queen Elizabeth II |
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| Signatures of Queen and Prince |
Since we were in town a day early, we decided to walk to the Toronto Aquarium. I was still tired from plane travel and did not take my good camera with me, so all efforts at photography were with my phone, which has its limitations. It was very dark in the aquarium, so I ended up with very slow shutter speeds, which blurred the images somewhat. It is a pity, since there were many great photo opps available.
Along the way to the aquarium, we passed beautiful flower arrangements. Toronto had the best flower displays of all the tour.
The next day we were off to Ottawa, the capital of the nation of Canada. Our hotel while in Ottawa was the Le Chateau Laurier. Note how much French weaves its way through everything, even in the supposedly English-speaking provinces.
The elevator section on our floor of the hotel had a sitting area whose furnishings looked like something out of the late 1950s or early 1960s.
The first adventure in Ottawa was a cruise down the St Lawrence River with Rockport Cruises, sailing through the area known as the Thousand Islands. The salad dressing is named after it. The cruise is mostly viewing expensive houses along the river.
The following day in Ottawa we walked to Parliament Hill. As we saw in so much of this part of Canada, most buildings are under repair or renovation. Notice the scaffolding.
Among the items in the museum were exhibits of political history. Three early prime ministers of Canada are pictured below.
Upon returning to the hotel, we noticed an artist at work on the sidewalk outside the hotel. He was producing an enlarged duplicate of photos he held in his hand.
Before leaving Ottawa the next morning for Montreal, a retired Mountie gave us a talk. He was out of uniform for the talk, but put on his coat and hat for photos.
And there were prayer candles for sale. Each one is good for 4 hours. By my calculations, $4,380 should make you good for a year. Still plenty left in the rack.
If the basilica is too much for you, they also offer a meager prayer chapel to the side.
The walking tour included seeing the Montreal parliament building.
And you find that the Brits counter with occasional statues of English royals to remind the viewer who is really in charge, or so they think.
In the mall were two exhibits of pieces of the Berlin Wall, complete with their original graffiti.
The Tauck tour director seemed to contrast the British presence in the 19th century with the French presence by contrasting architecture. The French buildings, especially their Roman Catholic churches, were compared to the British banks, as if to say the British worshiped money or wealth. Bank buildings, including one now converted for other purposes, had lavish hallway ceilings and doors. Even the elevator doors were ostentatious.
Along our walk, Betty got the following shot of the falls.
One of the first items on our personal agenda was doing laundry. We asked at the hotel desk how to find the laundry, which resulted in a flippant pointing to a map, saying "just go left, then right, then left, then right, then ... " We called a cab to take us there.
After using the change machine, we got several loonies ($1 coins) for running the washers and dryers. Everything in Canada is far more expensive than in America. As many loonies were required here for a load as were quarters in America. $1.50 a load in America. $6.00 a load in Canada. Good thing we got some relief from the exchange rate of $1.00 Canadian to $0.74 American.
A faster route from the hotel to the old city is to use the rail tram called the Funiculaire du Vieux.
That night we ate at one of the old city restaurants. Then we walked back in the dark.
Our Farewell Banquet for the end of the tour was held in the Rose Room of the old hotel. This room is famous for the planning of Operation Overlord (D-day Invasion) during World War II.
The view from the windows of the Rose Room were the best in the hotel. The waterfront and the plaza with the statue of Champlain, the city's founder, are clearly viewed.
The next day was a free day for us, since our next tour did not begin until the following day. So Betty and I took a cruise from the waterfront out into the St Lawrence River and back. The long-anticipated 2023 Grand Prix Cyclist Race began this day, so as we waited for the cruise to begin, we could see periodic bunches of cyclists zoom by the waterfront.
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| Toronto Flowers |
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| One of My Better Attempts to Get a Phone Shot in the Dark |
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| Another Photo Effort |
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| Betty Got This Shot |
The next day when the tour officially started, the bus took us to their welcome supper at the Royal Ontario Museum. Tables were set up in the lobby area, and after supper we were given tours of the museum. Most of the exhibits were behind glass, so photography, even using a polarizing filter, resulted in disappointing results due to reflections of light.
The next day we were off to the Niagara Falls.
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| Entrance to the Royal Ontario Museum |
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| Ceiling Just Inside the Museum Entrance |
One exhibit that was not under or behind glass was the very tall totem pole presented by the Nisga'a and Haida peoples. All the museums we visited were careful to represent the indigenous peoples of Canada.
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| 25-meter Pole of Sagaween |
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| Bottom Part of Totem Pole |
The next day we were off to the Niagara Falls.
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| A Fellow Tourist Took This Shot of Us |
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| The American and Canadian Falls |
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| The Tour Boats Launch Way Down There |
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| Tour Guide Tristan Poses with Betty on Niagara Falls Boat |
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| Tour Boat Next to Canadian Falls |
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| Closeup of Canadian Falls |
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| Water Crashing at Bottom of American Falls |
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| Closeup of Bottom of American Falls |
The next day we were off to Ottawa, the capital of the nation of Canada. Our hotel while in Ottawa was the Le Chateau Laurier. Note how much French weaves its way through everything, even in the supposedly English-speaking provinces.
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| Le Chateau Laurier in Ottawa |
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| Sitting Area by Elevator on Our Floor |
The first adventure in Ottawa was a cruise down the St Lawrence River with Rockport Cruises, sailing through the area known as the Thousand Islands. The salad dressing is named after it. The cruise is mostly viewing expensive houses along the river.
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| Betty by the Rockport Sign |
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| Castle on the River |
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| Humble Abode on the River |
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| Another Humble Abode |
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| Castle Partly Covered by Trees |
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| This Man Has a Small Lawn to Mow (If Any) |
The following day in Ottawa we walked to Parliament Hill. As we saw in so much of this part of Canada, most buildings are under repair or renovation. Notice the scaffolding.
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| Parliament Hill Ottawa |
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| Centre Block |
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| West Block |
Along the way, we observed the national changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, much like what we have in Washington, D.C. This likewise is very formal, including much marching and stomping on the ground with heavy boots.
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| Tomb of the Unknown Soldier |
After the parliament walking tour (we did not go inside), we rode in the bus to the Museum of History.
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| Museum of History in Ottawa |
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| One of the Many Exhibits for the Indigenous Peoples |
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| Spirit of Haida Gwaii by Bill Reid |
Spirit of Haida Gwaii by Bill Reid (Reverse Side)
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| John A. MacDonald, George-Etienne Cartier, and George Brown |
Cartoon Depicting Mother Britain Not Wanting Canada
and America Eager to Step Into Her Place
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| Map of Eastern Canada |
Upon returning to the hotel, we noticed an artist at work on the sidewalk outside the hotel. He was producing an enlarged duplicate of photos he held in his hand.
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| Artist at Work on Sidewalk |
Before leaving Ottawa the next morning for Montreal, a retired Mountie gave us a talk. He was out of uniform for the talk, but put on his coat and hat for photos.
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| Retired Mountie |
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| Mountie Uniform on Display |
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| Mountie Poses With Betty |
Then we were off to Montreal where we had lunch at the Les Enfants Terribles Restaurant. In English it means the terrible children. Go figure.
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| Lunch at Les Enfants Terribles Restaurant |
After lunch we had a walking tour of Montreal, which included viewing inside the Notre-Dame Basilica. Note once again that the building is under renovation, like most other buildings in this part of Canada.
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| Exterior of Notre-Dame Basilica |
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| Interior of Basilica Facing the Altar |
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| Interior of Basilica Facing Rear of Cathedral |
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| The Pulpit of the Basilica |
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| Closeup of Ezekiel and Jeremiah Below Pulpit |
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| Closeup of Ceiling Over Pulpit |
And there were prayer candles for sale. Each one is good for 4 hours. By my calculations, $4,380 should make you good for a year. Still plenty left in the rack.
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| $2 Prayer Candles |
If the basilica is too much for you, they also offer a meager prayer chapel to the side.
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| Prayer Chapel |
People come from all over the world to marvel at the artistic fashioning of wood and metal here, but most come to see art rather than worship. One wonders if the ones who come to worship might not be distracted from their worship by all the things that dazzle the eye.
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| Montreal Province Parliament Building |
We passed the statue of a Frenchman who was very put out that to his back stood a building of English origin.
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| Miffed Frenchman |
And you find that the Brits counter with occasional statues of English royals to remind the viewer who is really in charge, or so they think.
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| Statue of a Young Queen Victoria |
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| View Out Our Room at Fairmont Queen Elizabeth Hotel |
The next day was Labor Day in Canada, spelled Labour Day. Tauck had planned a walking food tour for us through a mall of merchants, most of whom were closed for the holiday. Brilliant planning.
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| The Merchant Mall |
Among the merchants who remained open for the holiday was a place selling Montreal bagels. They were very proud of these bagels and gave us each one (see below). Not that great!
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| Montreal Bagel |
In the mall were two exhibits of pieces of the Berlin Wall, complete with their original graffiti.
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| Piece of Berlin Wall |
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| Another Piece of Berlin Wall |
Old Montreal architecture was noted for its buildings with "S" braces, used to allow supporting beams to keep the walls from bulging out.
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| Note "S" Braces on Walls |
The Tauck tour director seemed to contrast the British presence in the 19th century with the French presence by contrasting architecture. The French buildings, especially their Roman Catholic churches, were compared to the British banks, as if to say the British worshiped money or wealth. Bank buildings, including one now converted for other purposes, had lavish hallway ceilings and doors. Even the elevator doors were ostentatious.
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| British Bank Stairway & Ceiling |
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| Hallway Ceiling |
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| Elevator Door |
On our way from Montreal to Quebec City, we stopped at Montmorency Falls for lunch and a special guided tour. We were given a ride on the cable tram leading to the falls, then a walking tour led by a guide in period dress.
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| Tram Leading to the Falls |
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| The Falls Shot from the Tram |
Our charming tour guide, dressed in Canadian 19th century attire, could have easily passed for a Southern Belle in the American South of the same period. She even had like mannerisms, except she would need some work on her accent.
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| Our Vivacious Tour Guide |
Along our walk, Betty got the following shot of the falls.
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| Betty's Shot of the Falls |
On the tour bus along the way, our guide showed us some Canadian currency. He noted the image of Queen Elizabeth II on the $20 note. He noted that soon her image would be replaced by Charles III, but that due to his unpopularity, they may use a Canadian's image instead and complete their separations from the UK.
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| Canadian $20 Bill |
Arriving in Quebec City, we checked in at the elaborate Fairmont Chateau Frontenac.
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| View Out Our Room at Chateau Frontenac |
After the cab driver got us as close as he could, given that many roads had been blocked off for the soon-to-begin 2023 Grand Prix Cyclist Race, we walked a block to the nearest intersection. Nothing was there resembling a laundromat.
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| Anyone See a Laundromat? |
After asking around, we found out that the laundromat was hiding behind a nondescript front.
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| Red Loop Marks the Spot |
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| Friendly English-Speaking Local Helps Betty |
After using the change machine, we got several loonies ($1 coins) for running the washers and dryers. Everything in Canada is far more expensive than in America. As many loonies were required here for a load as were quarters in America. $1.50 a load in America. $6.00 a load in Canada. Good thing we got some relief from the exchange rate of $1.00 Canadian to $0.74 American.
We were taken on walking tours through Old Quebec City. It looks so much like old Europe that film companies shoot films here whose setting is in Europe in order to save money. Notably the movie "Catch Me If You Can," starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks, was filmed in a few of the buildings here. An old bank building, now a restaurant with poor lighting, was used in one scene.
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| Old Bank Turned Restaurant |
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| Closeup of Bank Window Where DiCaprio Approached Teller |
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| Betty Walking Streets of Old Quebec City |
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| Old World-Looking Streets |
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| Betty Walks Through Alley Tunnel |
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| Chateau Frontenac Towers Over Old Quebec City |
A faster route from the hotel to the old city is to use the rail tram called the Funiculaire du Vieux.
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| Funiculaire du Vieux |
That night we ate at one of the old city restaurants. Then we walked back in the dark.
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| Walk Back After Supper |
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| One of the Photos in the Rose Room |
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| Another Photo in the Rose Room |
The view from the windows of the Rose Room were the best in the hotel. The waterfront and the plaza with the statue of Champlain, the city's founder, are clearly viewed.
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| Waterfront View from the Rose Room |
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| Plaza with Champlain's Statue |
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| Our Rose Room Farewell |
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| Our Table at Banquet |
The next day was a free day for us, since our next tour did not begin until the following day. So Betty and I took a cruise from the waterfront out into the St Lawrence River and back. The long-anticipated 2023 Grand Prix Cyclist Race began this day, so as we waited for the cruise to begin, we could see periodic bunches of cyclists zoom by the waterfront.
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| Cyclists Seen from the Waterfront |
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| Betty Waiting for the Cruise to Begin |
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| The Hotel Looms Over the Waterfront |
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| View of Waterfront from Cruise Ship |
The following day we were taken to the airport to fly to Halifax where our next tour would begin.