Quebec City

WHERE WE STAYED: We rented a room at "Chez Pierre" right outside the fortified city walls just off Rue Saint-Jean. A clean and quiet place, just a shame that the street was a complete disaster zone, in the middle of some major construction. The perk: Great location and fresh breakfast groceries brought every morning by our host Pierre.

BEST MEAL: A delicious duck burger with beats at Chez Victor. 

NATURAL HIGH: A long, but entertaining, bus ride took us an hour out of town to see the Montmorency Falls, but frankly I was more into the view of the Saint Lawrence river and the nearby ice cream parlour. Also at the foot of the falls someone spelled out something cool with tree logs. Damn, wish I had better French skills.

DON’T MISS: Some kind of Cirque du Soleil excitement. We got the see their free show “Les Chemins Invisibles” set-up below the highway underpass (why can’t the Gardiner take a hint?) complete with flying bird-creatures, acrobats and fire! And on my birthday. Just for me.

HIGHLIGHT: The Image Mill, a re-telling of 400 years of Quebec City's history,  an incredible installation projected onto grain silos in the city’s harbour. The combination of animation, lights and sound held out attention for nearly an hour. Watch some video here.

FIRST TIME: I forgot I was in Canada.

BIZARRO MOMENT: Watching a genius pan-handler sit high atop the city walls fishing for coins. The cup was on a string and attached to a stick which he used to tease the tourists trying to part with their change.

MOST RELAXED: On our last (and rainy) day, walking through the empty fields of Abraham, huddled under an umbrella, followed by a trip to the Musée des Beaux-Arts and some warm drinks.