Day One: We started trip with a three hour ride after ending an 8-hour work day and stayed the night in two rooms at a Bates-style motel in Franconia with a comfy grandma feel. We took bacon with us to supplement the carb breakfast the motel serves, then found out breakfast wouldn’t be served until after we planned to leave. We ended up taking our bacon across the border to Canada, in effect making it Canadian bacon.
Day Two: We began our day with a four hour drive. That’s a lot of games of “Guess Your Character.” Cell service shut off right at the border. Panic ensued until we reached the city boundary and had something to look at besides scenery and each other. We arrived at the Hilton not long after lunch and took no time getting to know the executive club then lunch at Restaurant Parmesan and walking around Old Quebec City. We discovered that the Red Bull Crashed Ice speed skating tournament was in town. This delighted the girls, since there were lots of cute young men to gawk see. We watched until it got too cold to bear then went for cocktails at the Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac, followed by more walking and shopping and cocktails and snacks at the executive club. Dinner was at the hotel restaurant, Allegro. They were having their weekly all you can eat seafood buffet for $77 each. A bit pricey for our liking so we all ate from menu and the girls indulged in the all you can eat dessert bar. When the aging parents went to bed, the girls went clubbing. We were a little worried about them doing so in a strange town, but we realize they will do these things on their own so let the little birdies fly with a request that let us know when they return so we wouldn’t worry ALL night.
Day Three: Everyone was excited about a trip to the behind-the-scenes tour of the Ice Hotel we booked the day before. It was very impressive and unique, but also very cold. When we first arrived Ginger wondered if we would be searched for salty substances and detained for a salting the structure were any found [drum roll please]. Our original plan for the afternoon was to tour Parliament Building but it turned out they were closed for tours. Instead, we walked the unexplored section of Old Quebec City and watched Crashed Ice finals rehearsals. Lou wanted to buy an official hat, but wasn’t willing to part with $30. Ginger hopes it wasn’t because he parted with much more for the beautiful necklace he bought her the day before. Anyway, by this point we were all getting quite tired of the cold so returned to the hotel to warm up. While Ginger and Lou were in the executive lounge the girls went to the indoor-outdoor pool. You enter the pool from the inside of the building and swim to the outside. Jess said she couldn’t stay out there long because even though the water was quite warm, the air on her head and face was quite cold. We dined at an amazing french restaurant, Le Hobbit. EVERYTHING was so delicious, and even Lou and Ginger got their very own desserts for once. Chocolate mousse, of course.
Day Four: It seems the only thing we did on our last vacation day was drive: Drive the seven hours back home and then drive the girls back to school. For the record, we saw no live OR dead moose the whole trip. We never see moose. We’re convinced they’re extinct. We believe that recent sightings are of a stuffed moose that’s moved around secretly by an underground movement.
Great photos. I noticed you didn’t cite the infraction that got Lou kicked out of the sidebar …. or maybe that was a joke that went over my head?! Must have been fun to make your own shot glasses to drink out of. I would have had to wear double gloves and scarves and earmuffs…. brrrrr.
It was a slow day and they didn’t have the side bar set up OR the rope across the entry. I guess he was too close to the center bar for their comfort.
Love seeing your pics and reading your adventures… vicarious living through you, and all. Looks like fun was had by all- nice to spend time with your girls, I’m sure. No way that I could’ve stayed in that Ice hotel- my fingers and toes would’ve been white and painful the entire time. But, so cool to see!!
My fingers did that just during the tour. For the record, next time I won’t be laughing at the people who showed up for the tour in their ski gear.