Transport and Quebec City

Friday was a long day of travel.  Walk to local train station, train to airport, plane to Montreal,  wait around, plane to Quebec City, taxi to hotel. The taxi driver and I communicated quite well, until the end of the ride.  Arabic was his first language and English, Italian and French equal second. I tried to use French but quickly realised he could equally understand the Italian that often came out of my mouth if my brain could not find the French quickly enough, so just carried on regardless.  We arrived at about 9pm in this little square,  lightly snowing, all the buildings lit up and sparkly, big drifts of snow everywhere, happy people walking around.  I said it was like being in a fairytale. He didnot know the English word and I didnot know the French or Italian.

This morning breakfast in the hotel was a huge ham and cheese omelette,  a large amount of lightly fried potato and some cut -up fruit, all on the 1 large plate.

It was  -15 degrees when I set off at 9.30. It got up to the maximum for thE day -10 at 2pm. Mostly bright blue skies.  I wandered around, looking at the view over the partially frozen St Lawrence River, the Basilica,  the English church , windows of shops for most of the day.  I walked  to the railway station and returned a different way and decided that on Monday I would chose a different method when I go to Montreal. I am fairly sure my boots are as good as most people's and better than some but I have not got the technique of walking down hills in the slippery thick slush that covers the footpaths mastered. Several times I have almost fallen. I have seen quite a few other people slip and slide down the hills.  So dragging a suitcase would be silly.

Apart from my eyes which run in the cold, mostly I am fine in the conditions, as long as I donot take a photo or look at a map!.   I cannot take a photo on my phone with my gloves on. I will try with my camera shortly.   If I stop to look at my map, my glasses fog up.  This evening I went to a supermarket about a km away and did not try very hard coming home and followed my nose, which didnot work particularly well and my route home was longer. Maybe because my nose as well as my eyes run in the cold,  it didnot lead me very well.