In accordance with our plan, it was time to head west: we had obligations in Michigan as early as August 3, and we didn’t want to have to rush our journey.  We struck out from Shediac and broke up our journey with Walmart overnighter in Edmonston, New Brunswick.  I think this is the same one we stayed in last year during our trip to Quebec.  We didn’t have quite as many RV neighbors this time, but a handful of other units joined us before nightfall. 

And also like last year we again stayed at Camping la Relache (something like “Relaxation Camping” or “Camping to Relax”) due to its easy proximity to the city, late notice availability during a weekend at a popular destination.  At just under $46 USD a day it has been our most expensive Canadian RV park, easily topping Inverness Beach Village’s $38 a night.  We had 50 amp full hook ups with helpful and informative owners, but we might try something different if we find ourselves back in Quebec during a future year.

On the advice of the park owners the next day we drove along the river to the ferry terminal, helped along by a local couple that watched us turn into the wrong place and then followed us to make sure we got it right.  For $8 in parking and then $11 ferry fee we could be dropped off across the river right in the historic district without having to worry about city driving or parking.

Our top priority was to find the farmers market we had so thoroughly enjoyed last time around.  Alas, the market was no longer in the former downtown location; we would later learn it had moved to a bigger venue a few clicks north.  We satisfied ourselves with a walk around the historic area, a light meal at an Thai/Vietnamese restaurant (somewhat disappointing) and a drink at a bar (also rather uninspiring.)

Finally, feeling like we had loosened our purse strings far more than last year and been rewarded with nothing special, we stumbled into the Borgia Pub for a drink and lively conversation with the wait staff and fellow tourists.  So we closed out our afternoon in the city on a positive note and caught the next ferry back across the river.

Rose was excited to find one of her favorite beers available here since not many places carry Grolsch.  If you look closely at the label, however, this version had a noticeable problem.

For our final day we made the drive to the farmers market’s new location in a brand new facility that felt a lot like a mall.  We didn’t find the spectacular salami vendor from last year, but I had my eagerly anticipated fried cheese squares, we purchased some fresh leafy greens, and a bottle of mead that goes down remarkably close to a beer.

Yeah, I don’t know either.

I don’t have much to say about this Quebec City visit.  We probably should have done more research, but it just felt a bit disappointing, to be honest.  I will say that any fears you have about the language barrier are largely unfounded.  We never had a problem, and we never got any attitude for speaking English.  Just open with a bonjour (morning or day) or bonsoir (evening or night) and then go from there.  I am told that 20 years ago things were more challenging, but nowadays everyone seems to just make an effort. 

Next up: we make a major change to the 2019 plan with a race back to the states for a special event.