Doing Quebec's Charlevoix HEATHER DAVIS
The lumps and bumps they call mountains in Quebec are splattered with colourful character houses -- they belong to dogsledders who roam the hills, and painters who, of course, paint them. I've been dying to come here since we moved, and it's a dream come true. The sky is blue, and every ten minutes I make Ghis stop the car so that I can give my camera some air.
I miss the ocean, but this is the next best thing. The St. Lawrence River is big enough that I can pretend it is the sea, and as the road twists and turns its way along the riverbanks, I forget to miss British Columbia.
Charlevoix is a celebration of colour, of heritage, and of nature. The palette is everywhere -- on houses, in paintings, and bouncing off the hills as the sunsets. Every second business downtown is an art gallery while in the country, people are advertising snowmobile, ice fishing, and dogsledding trips.
Charlevoix has history -- the old-looking buildings are truly old, the artists actually famous, the country food legendary. The four-star Manoir Richelieu was originally built in 1899. Many of the same families have lived in the area for a century more than that.
In BC there are an endless numbers of places where you can experience the outdoors. There are also art galleries, historical sites and farm markets -- even places where people speak other languages.
Perhaps what makes Charlevoix special is its relative compactness. So many of the good things in life packed into one region. Visiting Charlevoix is like attending a fair celebrating the best of nature and culture. Charlevoix is Quebec's great recreational playground, weekend paradise, it's vacation destination.
I love Charlevoix, but even so, I am pleased to return to Drummondville at the end of the week. Charlevoix makes a great backyard, but Drummondville makes a nice house. And one in which I can daydream about our next trip when I hope to meet more of the local people, taste more of the food, breathe more of the cool river air, and of course, pat more dogs.
Copyright © 2000 Heather Davis/Log Cabin Chronicles/03.2000 |
After all, there is something here that BC is missing. Never in BC could you find the magnificent churches that every village here takes for granted, but other than that, it's hard for me to put my finger on it. BC has colourful buildings, scenic drives, and art exhibits. What then is so different here?
We had to visit some of the huskies, but we limited ourselves to three different outfits -- about 100 dogs. They were all as friendly as we had hoped, wagging their tails, and even posing for pictures on the tops of their doghouses.
Charlevoix has a European feel to it that goes beyond hearing and speaking French. There are eclectic villages, family farms, and fresh breads and cheeses for sale at charming markets. And it's not something they made up to attract tourists. Charlevoix is authentic.