Photo courtesy of Tourisme Îles de la Madeleine. Photographer M. Bonato

This Quebec Maritime story follows our British Columbia (BC) post on the Dogsled Mail Run. Each describes an unusual way that mail was delivered in Canada. In 2010, Canada Post issued two stamps commemorating these unique mail deliveries. I stumbled on both while researching dogsledding in Canada. Even though I was raised in Quebec, I’ve never been to Quebec’s Magdalen Islands  (aka Îles de la Madeleine), the site of the second unusual mail story .

Reproduction « ponchon » barrel at Musée de la Mer, on the Magdalen Islands, in the Gulf of St-Lawrence between Newfoundland and Nova Scotia.

It was winter 1910 when a telegraph cable stretching across the Gulf of the St. Lawrence broke and left the residents of Quebec’s Magdalen Islands completely cut off from civilization. Magdalen Islanders knew they had to come up with a way to deliver the mail but island fishing boats were deemed too dangerous to sail because of moving ice. That’s when local, Alcide J. Gaudet, came up with the idea of using an empty molasses barrel. Letters were placed in the barrel, a sail and rudder were added and they signed the barrel “Winter Magdalen Mail”. It was launched on February 2, 1910 and just over a week later, it washed up near Port Hastings, Nova Scotia. Murdoch McIsaac found the barrel and when he opened it, he discovered a note from the islanders requesting their mail be delivered so that’s what McIsaac did.

Although the molasses barrel has long since disappeared, one of its letters survived and is on display at the Magdalen Islands’  Musée de la Mer (Museum of the Sea). According to a Magdalen Islands blog, in the 1990s, a second group of islanders tried to recreate the barrel launch. Despite launching in similar weather, tides and currents, their barrel was lost at sea.

Photo courtesy of Tourisme Îles de la Madeleine. Photographer G. Theriault

Photo courtesy of Tourisme Îles de la Madeleine. Photographer M. Bonato

One of our Montreal friends, Steve, is a huge windsurfer/kiteboarder and heads to the islands every year. Canadian travel journalists, Katherine and Eric Fletcher are also big fans and include the Magdalen Islands in their Quebec Off the Beaten Path guidebook. Katharine also gave me a good travel tip. She suggested we drive to Prince Edward Island, hop on the Souris ferry, tour the Magdalens and then catch the ferry and return to central Canada via the St. Lawrence River. The photos on this Mountain Equipment Coop blog  have also whet our appetite. Magdalen Islands and Quebec Maritime tourism sites are informative and the staff I spoke to at both were helpful too.

I think it’s time for a visit.

Photo courtesy of Tourisme Îles de la Madeleine. Photographer M. Bonato

 It  started with  @whygocanada tweet. Julie Ovenell Carter is a well known Canadian travel writer and she tweets for WhyGoCanada.com, a Canada travel source.  Julie’s tweet read: “My favourite food souvenir from Canada? Hawkins Cheezies of course! What’s yours?…”

I discovered one on a road trip to Quebec last year.

We were with Carole and Andy,  friends from Calgary, staying at a cottage in the Laurentians. While in town shopping for groceries, we spied Grandma Ste-Catherine kisses.

Now, if you’ve ever trick or treated on Hallowe’en, you know what a Hallowe’en kiss is. Gooey, taffy-like candy and done right,  made with molasses. In my old neighbourhood, Halloween kisses were popular. They came in orange, black and yellow wrappers. They were cheap. And they were shelled out by the handful. Here’s the deal: Grandma Ste-Catherine kisses are different. They’re better, WAY better.

Bigger, softer and good.  Very good. Too good. The four of us went through an entire bag in a week. At Christmas, Glenn and I looked for a bag to send Carol and Andy thinking they’d get a good giggle. We never found the kisses

Julie’s tweet for our favourite souvenir food was my motivation to find out the story behind the kisses. My online / telephone journey took me across Canada from Vancouver all the way east to the city of  Saint John, New Brunswick and the home of the  Grandma Molasses company. Turns out it Grandma Molasses doesn’t make Grandma Ste-Catherine kisses but it does supply the molasses.

Molasses is made from 100% sugar cane juice amd has been a staple in North America for over 200 years. According to Grandma Molasses, it used to arrive in Saint John by ship in ‘puncheons’ (big wooden barrels) and was sold in bulk at local general stores. That got me to wondering if my dad’s habit of serving us toast topped with molasses on winter mornings didn’t come from his New Brunswick roots. Original Foods , a Quebec company, makes Grandma Ste-Catherine kisses. So my next call was to Original Foods, based in Montreal. Two calls later  I found out that you can’t buy Grandma Ste-Catherine kisses in Vancouver (Sorry Julie!). but Metro and Walmart sell them in stores in the  Maritimes, Quebec and Ontario.

As for Julie’s favourite, Hawkin’s Cheezies. Check this Halloween post that Julie wrote for more about them.

In the evening on July 20, 1969, my mother took my sister and I outside the house in Winnipeg to look up at the moon. Neil Armstrong and “Buzz” Aldrin were, at that very moment, walking on that dusty surface about a quarter of a million miles away. Mum knew I was interested in what was going on up there. I had been collecting badges and scrapbooking the progress of those first American astronauts.

Today, as I listen to the F-16s and the Snowbirds rehearse for the airshow over the Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto, I hear from the Canadian Space Agency’s headquarters in Longueuil, Québec, that Chris Hadfield will become the first Canadian commander of the International Space Station. Cool! We’ve come a long way from the clunky lunar module that Neil and Buzz had to kick around in.

It will be the first time a Canadian will command the space station. He’s an experienced astronaut with two space shuttle missions under his belt, the first Canadian to walk in space, and he spent 25 years flying fighter jets in the Canadian military. He’s a nice guy from Sarnia, Ontario who’s taking his guitar up into space with him.

They’ll fly him up to the station in a Russian rocket in December 2012. Good Luck Chris.

Degrees of Canadian separation: I used to work with Philippe Garneau, brother of the first Canadian in space, Marc Garneau. Philippe’s partner at the time, Michael Wurstlin, was the designer of the original Canadian board game Trivial Pursuit.

Drumheller, Alberta's T-Rex has a viewing platform between its teeth!

Chambers’ Dictionary of Etymology defines the term “mascot” as an animal, person or thing that is supposed to bring good luck. According to the dictionary, the word is borrowed from the french word, “mascotte” meaning sorcerer’s charm or good luck piece.

Canada is a land of mascots. I’m not sure why but they’re plentiful here. The largest is Drumheller, Alberta’s T-Rex. Four times the size of a real Tyrannosaurus Rex, it weighs 145,000 pounds, stands 86 feet tall and is 151 feet long. The cost to build T’Rex caused a bit of mascot controversy in Drumheller. But today most who live here would tell you their mascot has brought them good luck in the form of tourism dollars. This dinosaur-themed town is now the heartbeat of the Canadian Badlands, an Alberta region known for its dinosaur fossils, many of which are displayed in Drumheller’s famous Royal Tyrrell Museum.

The Big Apple, Colborne, Ontario

Drive enough of Alberta and you’ll find mascots for just about everything. The world’s largest lamp for a lamp museum. A giant cornstalk in Taber, Alberta famous for its corn. Coronation Alberta’s giant crown was chosen to honour the coronation of King George V. A model of the  Starship Enterprise stands in Vulcan, Alberta.  Manitoba’s mascots include the Melita banana, a giant mosquito, the world’s largest curling rock, and ‘Tommy the Turtle’.  A massive snowman, a giant set of hockey cards, several big buffalo and and a huge pitchfork are some of Saskatchewan’s mascots.

Shediac, New Brunswick, lobster capital of the world

Joe Muffraw, the lumberjack from Mattawa, Ontario

Sparwood, British Columbia has the world’s largest truck and Sudbury, Ontario has the largest nickel. A giant lumberjack is Mattawa, Ontario’s mascot. It was carved by a local artist using a chainsaw. In Canada’s Maritmes, you can’t miss the enormous red lobster as you drive into Shediac, New Brunswick, the lobster capital of the world. On a road trip through Quebec’s Saint-Joseph-du-Lac, we found Verger Lacroix’s basket of fruit and wine representing the apple orchards here. The Colborne area of Ontario is another apple region. The Big Apple at the side of a Highway 401 exit here has sold millions of apple pies to travelers.

Giant fruit basket in Saint-Joseph-du-Lac, Québec

In Pictou, Nova Scotia, the town mascot is Ship Hector, a reproduction of a sailing ship that brought the first Scottish settlers to the birthplace of “New Scotland” in 1773.

Hector Heritage Quay Interpretive Centre and the Ship Hector – photo: courtesy Town of Pictou, NS

Got a mascot in your neck of the woods? If so, we would love to hear from you.

On-board Ship Hector – photo: courtesy Town of Pictou, NS

View of Montreal from Mont Royal

Rather than drive, we flew to Montréal and spent six glorious nights in Quebec’s largest city. Our flight was complimentary, thanks to WestJet Airlines. Westjet’s VP happened to pick my husband’s business card out of a bowl at a conference and it won us two tickets anywhere WestJet flies (except Hawaii). After much discussion, we chose Montréal. Why? Because of our affection for this city.

I was born and raised in Montreal. Later, I completed a degree at Montreal’s Concordia University. Even though I’m biased, I think most Canadians would agree that Montréal is one of Canada’s BEST cities to visit. “Les Montréalais” are truly special. They have the best fashion sense in the country, particularly the women, who always dress with a “je ne sais quoi” appeal. Les Montréalais are also known for their “joie de vivre”. You’ll find plenty of it especially at the city’s major events like Just for Laughs , North America’s largest comedy festival or the Grand Prix Montréal. The city’s biggest annual party though is the Montréal Jazz Festival.

"This is the first time I was ever in a city where you couldn't throw a brick without breaking a church window." – Mark Twain on a visit to Montreal in December 1881

Montrealers have a love affair with their delis. Two of the best are  Schwartz’s and The Main. They sit right across the street from one and other on Boulevard St. Laurent and both are famous for their smoked meat sandwiches and fries washed down with cherry cokes. Fresh bagels are another passion. St. Viateur and Fairmount Bagel run 24-7. For many Montrealers, a Friday or Saturday night would not be complete without a stop for a dozen of these hot out of a wood-burning oven.  Then there’s the Montreal Pool Room‘s hotdogs. Don’t ask me why but they taste better here than anywhere else. Van Houtte coffee is Montreal’s answer to Starbucks. But Montreal cafés don’t need a brand name to be popular, they just need an outdoor patio. People-watching is, after all, a main activity in this town.

Two Canadian musicians waxed poetic about their hometown of Montreal in hit tunes- Gino Vannelli couldn’t forget “those nights in Montreal” in  “I Just Wanna Stop” and for Sass Jordan, it was St. Laurent Boulevard in “Going Back Again”. The one way street has played such an important role in this city that in 1996, it was designated a national historic site. The boulevard crosses Le Plateau, a popular neighbourhood just east of Mont Royal, which dominates Montréal’s landscape.

The Casa Bianca B&B in Le Plateau, a Montreal neighbourhood

We stayed in the Plateau in an affordable place I found online called the Casa Bianca B&B. Its interior was a bit sparse and I got tired of the fresh danishes for breakfast. They were delicious on our first morning but not six mornings in a row!! Our room was large enough although it lacked some of the nice touches that I’ve come to appreciate in B&Bs, like bed-side tables and good lighting. Still, the place served us well and the price was right. The Casa Bianca is on a quiet street across from a city park which was a good thing because the park separated us from avenue Parc, a busy Montreal thoroughfare. Luckily, there were traffic lights on Parc that allowed us to cross it easily to the lower part of Mont Royal Park which is dominated by a massive monument dedicated to Sir George Etienne Cartier (coincidentally sculpted by a great-great uncle of mine). This park access point is good to know about since Mont Royal Park extends to the top of the mountain and it is a favourite gathering place for Montrealers. Downtown was also easy to get to on foot. If you prefer cycling though, check out Bixi, Montreal’s new public bicycle system.

My husband went to high school in Westmount and he was keen to check out his former ‘hood, so we took the Metro, Montreal’s subway, to the Decarie stop and walked back over the mountain through Mont Royal Park, and down the other side to our B&B. Several lookout points along the way gave us spectacular city views and we saw lots of Montrealers enjoying the park and Beaver Lake.

Indoors at Marché Jean-Talon

We’re big fans of city markets which save us a ton of money on food when we’re traveling.  Montreal’s Atwater Market is in the southwestern corner of the city while Jean-Talon Market is in Little Italy, in the city’s north end.  Both are well worth visiting.

Joggers enjoy spring conditions on the roads and paths near Beaver Lake on Mont-Royal

Le Massif overlooking the St. Lawrence River - photo: Benjamin Gagnon

Late January update: Le Massif has a 330cm base, powder and groomed ski conditions is the latest report. If you are headed to Quebec for Bonhomme Carnivale, this is a great side trip!

What do Le Massif (french for “The Massive”) and the Cirque du Soleil have in common? Le Massif, a ski hill east of Quebec City is owned by Cirque du Soleil co-founder, Daniel Gauthier. Through my volunteer work with a large Canadian travel media association, I had the pleasure of meeting Dany Gauthier in Quebec City earlier this year. He’s good looking and fit as a fiddle and I couldn’t resist asking him if he had once been an acrobat (thinking Cirque du Soleil). He chuckled and told me that no, his role with Cirque had been more as a bean counter.

Helicopter ride over the St. Lawrence River

Later, my colleagues and I flew in Dany’s private helicopter. Flying just above the icy St. Lawrence, the pilot hugged the mountainous shoreline all the way to Le Massif. It’s popular with Quebec City area skiers, but few outside of Quebec have ever heard of the place. That’s about to change. Le Massif and nearby Baie St. Paul, a picturesque town on the St. Lawrence, are about to become Canada’s next big ski destination. But not just any ski destination. With Gauthier at the helm, this one is expected to have a creative flair not seen in the ski world before. Baie St. Paul is, after all, the birthplace of the Cirque du Soleil. Gauthier and his busker buddies hatched the Cirque idea in a youth hostel here while performing at a local buskerfest. If Dany Gauthier has his way, Le Massif and Baie St. Paul will not only deliver great skiing but will be a feast for all the senses.

Town of Baie St. Paul, Quebec

93 kilometers (58 miles) from Quebec City may seem like a crazy distance to get to in the height of winter (this region gets a ton of snow) but Gauthier has negotiated a deal with a railway. A new tour train will run along a stretch of existing track that hugs that same shoreline we flew over from Quebec City to Baie St. Paul. The scenery is drop dead gorgeous and I’m willing to bet the train will become an instant hit. Other forms of transportation planned for the project include dogsleds and electric cars. The Farm, a unique resort complex being built in Baie St. Paul is lean in terms of size and that’s for a reason. Gauthier is committed to sustainable development so, the resort is slated to be low density and energy efficient with spectacular views of the St. Lawrence River and the Farm’s working fields. There will also be a spa, a Farmer’s Market selling locals’ fare year round and of course, a new, spectacular train station. The Farm opens in summer 2011 and the entire operation is expected to be fully operational by 2013.

But the Cirque du Soleil and Dany Gauthier’s connection to Baie St Paul are not the town’s only claims to fame. This was a favourite destination of Canada’s famous Group of Seven painters too. Le Massif and Baie St. Paul sit on the doorstep of Charlevoix, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. The 6000 square kilometre region is Canadian Shield, the oldest rock formation on earth. 350 million years ago a 15 billion ton meteor slammed into the earth here creating a crater 56 kilometres wide. Besides its beauty, Charlevoix’s reputation as  a foodie destination was around long before everyone in the tourism business starting pitching destinations as such. The Quebecois are like their cousins across the Atlantic. Their ability to prepare great food comes naturally.

The Automatiste Revolution: Montreal 1941-1960, opened at the Varley Art Gallery in Unionville, Ontario last week. It’s a fantastic tribute to Canada’s best known and original avant-garde artists. This is the group that paved the way for contemporary art in Canada. The group included Jean Paul Riopelle and Paul-Emile Borduas.

From the Varley, the exhibit will travel to the  Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, America’s pre-eminent gallery for post-war art. The Albright-Knox exhibit which opens in late March 2010, will be the first time ever that the Automatistes have exhibited in the United States. Guest-curated by Roald Nasgaard, this landmark exhibit is one not to be missed. I think it’s the best show I have seen at the Varley to date.

Nasgaard is a professor of art history at Florida State University. He is also the former chief curator of the Art Gallery of Ontario. He and Ray Ellenwood, Professor Emeritus and Senior Scholar at York University in Toronto, have co-authored a new book on Canada’s first avant-garde art movement called The Automatiste Revolution.

The Automatistes were a group of Quebec artists formed in the 1940s and 50s that included avant-garde painter, Jean Paul Riopelle. The group came together around Paul-Emile Borduas, another Canadian painter. Borduas was an activist for the separation of church and state, especially for art, in Quebec. In 1948, he and his fellow artists signed a manifesto called Refus Global which became one of the pillars of the Quiet Revolution, a period of intense change in Quebec. Although the group disbanded with the death of Borduas in 1960, The Automatistes, which included painters, poets, a playright, a TV producer and sculptors, continue to influence Quebec society and culture.

I’ve been to Quebec City twice in recent years.

View from our room high up in the Fairmont Le Château Frontenac

Our summer trip was during Quebec’s 400th anniversary celebration in 2008. Lucky for us, we got to stay in the Fairmont Le Château Frontenac thanks to a big travel media/industry event taking place at the same time. Our room high up in the hotel had walls four feet thick and deep set windows overlooking the St. Lawrence River. Glenn figured a celebrity would have loved the place. Even a long range camera lens wouldn’t have stood a chance snapping a pic of our room’s interior.

Quebec City street during July tourist season

Quebec is the only walled city in North America. Blink and you’ll swear the old town, with its four hundred year old churches, cobbled streets and colorful shops and cafes, is in France. But no, this is New France as it was called in the days of Samuel de Champlain. He was a French explorer and the celebrated founder of Quebec City.

Aftermath of a big winter storm in Quebec City

Quebec City knows how to party whether its a 400th anniversary or its February Bonhomme Carnaval. During my second trip last January, the city was setting up for it after a huge snowstorm. I am not the best flyer so, I commend the Air Canada pilot for landing us that day in a full blown blizzard.

Born and raised a Quebecker in Montreal, I love this part of Canada. My dad was in the lumber industry and worked his entire life en francais. He was always keen for us kids to learn french and I remember traveling to Quebec City in the summer of 1969 to stay with a french family. It was the week that Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the moon and I watched it all on french TV at a big outdoor party at nearby Lac Beauport. That trip was one of several Quebec forays my dad sent me on to learn french. Every one of them gave me a great appreciation for French Canadian culture and I am indebted to my dad for giving me the opportunity. Not many English Canadians are as lucky.

Glenn and I are just back from another glorious Canadian road trip. This time we traveled to Quebec and the foothills of the Laurentian Mountains (Les Laurentides). I’m originally from Montreal but I don’t ever remember taking the Oka-Hudson ferry. This 100 year old service links the towns of Hudson and Oka on the Ottawa River just west of Lake of Two Mountains and the island of Montreal.

Eglise de l’Annonciation d’Oka, Paroisse St-Francois D’Assise, founded in 1721.

Right beside the ferry docks on the Oka side is a magnificent stone cathedral and La Mairie, Oka’s town hall. There’s a tourism booth in it so, we stopped and got a map of Les Basses Laurentides (the Laurentian foothills). Oka is famous for its cheese, which was originally made by Trappist Monks so, I asked if the factory was close by and if we could visit it. Turns out it’s just five minutes away and while it does not have tours, it does have a store. Glenn thought Magasin Abbaye Oka was a bit of a tourist trap but I was impressed with the place. Not only is there a huge selection of Oka cheeses including Oka curds (which were really good), the store has cheeses from all over Quebec including the Portneuf, Saguenay and Charlevoix regions. It also sells locally made bread, homemade chocolate and apple cider. We managed to polish off a bottle of it in a matter of minutes, it was so good. L’Abbaye Oka also has some wonderful artisan works for sale including beautifully woven textiles, local pottery and little oils depicting local winter scenes which I thought were well rendered and priced at just $130 each.

Welcoming signage at Lacroix Orchards, St-Joseph-du-Lac, Quebec.

Back in the car, we started exploring the region’s back roads and discovered that the Basses Laurentides region is big apple country. There were vergers (french word for orchards) everywhere. Our favourite town was St-Joseph-du-Lac. Perched high above the river valley, its Quebecois farmhouses with their steeply sloped roofs house many artisans who’ve obviously been drawn here by the area’s exceptional beauty.

Quebec colonial architecture – one of the oldest houses in St-Joseph-du-Lac.

We hope to get back to this part of Quebec and explore it further. It really is a piece of paradise.

Picturesque cottage in apple country, St-Joseph-du-Lac, Quebec.