Arrived in Montreal Today

I got to Montreal this afternoon. Unfortunately, it was not on a train. You see, when I got to the Gare du Palais in Quebec City this morning, they told me the trains wouldn't be running today (due to engine problems or some such reason). So, the trains were replaced with buses.

And no, the bus was not as comfortable as the train. The traffic from Quebec City to Montreal was horrendous. Why? It finally occurred to me that because tomorrow is Canada Day, lots of people were taking advantage of the public holiday and heading to Montreal (for the International Jazz Festival) or Ottawa (for Canada Day celebrations).

Anyway, I heard there was a free jazz concert in downtown Montreal tonight (9:30pm), so I headed to the Place des Arts area at 7pm, just to see what the crowds were like... However, when a thunderstorm loomed overhead (around 8pm) and it was blowing a gale, I decided to come back to my accommodation, and call it a night. I'm exhausted, and I'm not a fan of jazz music anyway.


The start of the 30th International Jazz Festival in Montreal. This photo was taken at around 7pm today. Look at the crowd! People were there early to get a good position for the 9:30pm free concert.


It was starting to rain. I figured I should call it a night.

More Old World Charm (Quebec City Sights)

More photos of Quebec City:


This is Gare du Palais, the main (or central) train station you arrive at if you are visiting Quebec City by rail.


The fountain across from the train station. I saw some kids playing in the fountain in the late afternoon because it was so hot and humid.


This is a trompe l'oeil in Place-Royale. It looks like a real street with people in it, but is actually just a painting on a side wall of a building. I thought it was gorgeous!


An old-style building in Place-Royale.


A shop on Rue du Petit-Champlain. This is where you find many really interesting boutique stores.


A street scene on Rue Saint-Paul.


This is Place de la FAO, with its wonderful paver pattern that suggests water/waves, which is perhaps not surprising, because this is near the maritime museum. It really reminds me of the paving outside the Maritime Museum of Macau, which I had visited some years ago.


Rue du Sault-au-Matelot, another street with lots of lovely boutique stores. A shopper's paradise, I guess.


This is an écolobus, which runs on electricity (there is a sign on the side of the bus that says, "Je roule à l'électricité"). It's a free shuttle bus that goes around the city area. It can take about 20 people at a time. I consider it a great feature of the city.


Here's what the flag of Quebec looks like. I saw it all over Quebec City.

Old World Charm (Quebec City Sights)

Here are some photos of Quebec City, as promised earlier. Don't you just love the old world charm?

I daresay I now understand why people in Quebec are proud of their culture(s) and their home. Who wouldn't be if they lived in such a charming place?


This is the parliamentary building in Quebec City, the day after a huge party to celebrate Quebec National Day (which is on 24 June). I thought Aussie youths were huge beer drinkers, but I think they had nothing on the Quebec youths, judging by the amount of empty beer bottles I saw around the place.


Château Frontenac. Such a grand and majestic hotel! Imagine the view from the top floor of the hotel.


One of the streets in the Old Town area.


Again, in the Old Town area. I believe this is Place-Royale.


An example of the shops and restaurants in the Old Town area. This is a view of Rue du Petit-Champlain from Escalier Casse-Cou (Breakneck Stairs).


Horse-drawn carriages. One of the most memorable things during my tour of the city was witnessing a horse (with carriage in tow) parallel park itself into a parking bay. It pulled up, then reversed in at an angle, then straightened up (just like you would in a car). Amazing stuff!!! It must have done it often because it knew exactly how to do it. I saw another horse trying to do it later, but it was not so experienced and needed the handler to guide it. Practice makes perfect, I guess. :)


Manoir Montmorency, at the entrance of the park leading to the Montmorency Falls.


This is Chez Marie (8706 Avenue Royale, Château-Richer, QC G0A 1N0. Open 7 days a week), not far from the Basilica of Ste-Anne de Beaupré. Chez Marie is a homestyle bakery, with all the bread products sold at really affordable prices. Marie bakes her breads in an outdoor woodfire oven, and the breads are absolutely delicious! I suggest having your morning or afternoon tea here. See the next photo for what I ate during afternoon tea. :)


This cinnamon and raisin scroll (topped with maple butter) from Chez Marie was probably the best one I have ever had (and I have tasted many before, because it is one of my favorite pastries). The flavour was great, and the texture was so soft and fluffy. Mmmmm... the wonderful taste of freshly-baked pastries. I hope I can make something like this one day. That's something I am aiming for.

***************************************


This photo was just for fun. I liked the contrast of colours, so I just took a picture of it.

Montmorency Falls (Québec)

Yesterday (on Quebec National Day, 24 June 2009), I went on a bus tour of Quebec City, including the spectacular Montmorency Falls just outside the city area. I took lots of photos of Vieux-Québec (the Old Town, which is such a beautiful place), but I will display those photos later.

Right now, I would like to share with you a short video of the spectacular Montmorency Falls. It was such an amazing feeling to be standing so close to the waterfall, and hearing the deafening roar of the waterfall! Reminiscent of my visit to the Niagara Falls in August last year.




If you have never been to Quebec City, please consider going. I assure you it is well worth it. I personally found the beauty of the city (and the old-style architecture) quite inspirational.

Train Travel

I was travelling to Quebec City on a train (VIA Rail) yesterday, and this was what the economy-class cabin was like. More comfortable than a plane by a long mile, I reckon. More leg room, nice view of the Canadian landscape, affordable prices, no need to check-in hours before departure ... I really like travelling by train here.





Up until now, I've travelled by train from Toronto to Niagara Falls, from Toronto to Ottawa, from Ottawa to Montreal, from Montreal to Quebec City, and I've always enjoyed myself.

The next few photos were taken at Sainte-Foy, just outside Quebec City.


Sorry about the reflection from the train window. I only had a couple of seconds to take this shot while the train was moving. But I wanted to show you the spectacular view I saw from the train.

The next 3 photos were taken while the train was stopped at the Sainte-Foy station. I just felt like taking a few photos because it was such a beautiful day. I know these are not your typical tourist photos, but I wanted to capture a little of what I actually saw from the train.







This just reminds me of the scenery you see outside of major cities in Australia, in the semi-rural areas. Some might say, industry and human progress impinging on the natural landscape... Or, perhaps, last vestiges of natural beauty in the midst of human progress. Depends on your point of view, I guess.

So much of Canada remind me of Australia and New Zealand, yet there are many subtle differences too.

Sight-seeing in Merrickville, Ontario

Today I went with some friends to this quaint little town about an hour's drive from Ottawa. Merrickville is the name, and here are some scenic photos of the town. Please enjoy!



















It was a relaxing day. I enjoyed myself immensely. I'm looking forward to going to Quebec City by rail tomorrow.

Unusual Produce

While shopping in the Byward Market yesterday, I came across these unusual produce (see photos below). As always, I take photos of new ingredients that I come across, for my own records. I then try to read more about them, if I can.


These are Wood Blewitt mushrooms. I don't think I have ever seen these in Australia. They have a tinge of blue on them, and tastes (to me) a bit like a cross between a Shiitake and a King Oyster. Anyway, I am always keen to try different kinds of mushrooms.


These are Black Velvet Apricots. I thought they looked like plums, but when I tasted them, they reminded me of apricots. I like the flavour of these, and I think they would look stunning as a decoration in a dessert. (Note: these are actually apriums -- a cross between plumcot and apricot. A plumcot is a cross between a plum and apricot.)


These are Saturn Peaches. I thought they looked most unusual. These two were not very sweet.

Winding Down

These few days I have been catching up with friends and organizing my travel arrangements. I have not had much time to tend to this blog. This is basically a wind-down.

I will be doing some sight-seeing in Quebec City and Montreal (for 2 weeks) before heading to Europe for a short holiday. After that, I'm heading home. By the time I reach home, I would have been away for a whole year.

And what a year it has been! I shall never forget it.

I came to Canada looking for inspiration and to learn a new skill. I wasn't disappointed. I am grateful so many people (the chefs, my classmates, my housemates, my friends) cheerfully taught me what they know, and encouraged me to persevere when I needed moral support. This is a new beginning for me.

As a Chinese philosopher once said, "The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." I know this was just my first step in a new direction...

I feel a sense of renewal now, with the determination to forge ahead on my new career path.

Sight-seeing in Chelsea, Quebec

Last Thursday, the day before Graduation, DF (owner of Wilbrod House) drove me and another housemate to Gatineau and Chelsea (across the river, on the Quebec side) to get some wine and to do some sight-seeing respectively.

This was the highlight of the trip for me:

It's a quaint little ice cream parlour in Chelsea, called La Cigale. And they make really, really nice ice creams. Just about as creamy and smooth as the vanilla ice cream Chef made in Superior Pastry Lesson 1 demo. I could tell they use quality ingredients. Mmmm....


A list of the flavours they had in the ice cream parlour. I went for my favorite combination: citrus (oranges crémeux) and chocolate.




This is the lovely garden outside the ice cream parlour, where people can sit on the deckchairs to enjoy their ice creams. I really enjoyed myself here. Thank you, DF!

The other interesting place we came across was a boutique for wine accessories in Gatineau. It's called Boutique St-Hilaire and is near Carrefour du Casino.



The shop sells all kinds of wine- or alcohol-related equipment and accessories. It was fascinating for me to see all the different gadgets. All I can say is "Wow!"


I bet this is heaven to a wine-lover.

"Group B Mafia"

Here is one of the nicest photos of the "Group B Mafia" (a nickname given to us by Chef Hervé) -- Group B of Superior Pastry (Term 2, 2009). This photo was taken in the Student Lounge, five minutes before the start of our practical class on 4 June 2009. All twelve of us just decided to get on the couch to pose for a photo. It was completely spontaneous, and the photo turned out well.


(Click on photo for a larger image)
[Many thanks to the photographer -- a classmate from Group A, who happened to be walking by and was asked to take the photo for us.]

In the photo above, if you look at the back row, the first (Christine), second (Hanna) and fourth (Danielle) students from the left were the three students who were chosen to participate in the post-secondary baking section of the Skills Ontario Competition in early May (two representatives and one reserve). The two who ended up representing Le Cordon Bleu Ottawa came first and second in the Competition (i.e. they were provincial champions). Hanna first and Danielle second.

The winner of that provincial Competition (Hanna) -- who is also one of my housemates in Wilbrod House -- then had the chance to represent Ontario in the Skills Canada Competition (a national competition) in late May, and she came first again (i.e. she is the current Canadian champion)! Congratulations, Hanna!

Here are photos of some of Hanna's competition practice cakes, chocolates and petits fours (she practised for months leading up to the competitions in May, under the guidance of Chef Hervé). Aren't the cakes and chocolates beautiful?

Petits fours in the foreground, mousse cake and plated dessert in the background


Mousse cake on a display stand that is made completely from poured sugar (the rose is made from pulled sugar)


Chocolate box with chocolate bonbons (all handmade)


Buttercream cake with pulled sugar roses

I'd been taking photos of Hanna's practice cakes every now and then, but I was asked by the chefs not to post any of these photos online until after the competitions, hence I am posting them now.