[ July 2019 ] During our walking tour in Quebec City in Canada, we visited the seminary founded by the first bishop in New France (the French colony in North America) called François de Laval, which was an impressive white building.
After that we looked down the old port of the city.
This port used to be very important in the 19th century because the large boats could come in up here and they had to transfer their cargo to smaller boats to go up the river.
And in those days shipbuilding was flourishing, too.
However, the dredging technology progressed later and they did not need to transfer their cargo anymore, so this port became obsolete and this area became rough.
Since 1980s they started redeveloped here and now it is nice and safe again.
We went down the slope and enter the so called Lower Town, the old town along the river.
This is the first place people settled when Samuel de Shamplain founded the city.
Within this area, there is a street called rue de Petit-Shamplain and this is the oldest commercial district as well as the one of the narrowest streets in North America.
Our tour finished in this street.
And it was the lunch time.
We went back to an Italian restaurant we had seen during the tour, but we realised it was a vegetarian restaurant, so we did not go in and we looked for another restaurant specialised in rabbit dishes called Le Lapin Sauté.
We walked here and there looking for it, and in the end it was just around the corner from the place the tour ended.
It is the unwritten rule that the finding a good restaurant is my husband role, but sometimes I think we had better change the role, because he has not got the good sense of direction.
In front of Le Lapin Sauté, there were people waiting for the free tables and among them there was a Japanese family.
And after we sat at a table, another Japanese couple came in.
It must be listed in Japanese guidebooks.
The places where Japanese people go are usually good.
It is a smallish crowded buzzing restaurant and the interior was nice.
What I ate here was the salad with rabbit liver.
It was one of the top three dishes I had during this holiday.
The white wine produced in Quebec was not that great, though.
My husband had a stewed rabbit cooked in a pot and the bread was covering it, just like the Russian gorshok and it looked good, too.
We did not have any starters or desserts and had our wine in a carafe and the bill was 101 C$ (£63, €69, $76), which was not cheap, but it is worth trying here.
Actually the guide we met two days later recommended here, too.
By the way, the local dish here is not rabbit, but something called Poutine which is the French fries with cheese.
We did not eat it, though.
When our walking tour guide had a Russian tourist, apparently he pointed out “That reminded me of our president”.
After the satisfactory lunch, we went back up to the Upper Town by the short funicular railway (3.5 C$).
