Quebec Province

After visiting the city of Quebec, I continued along the St. Laurence river, driving around the province of Quebec. The weather continued to be cloudy/rainy and cool (but no snow!). The highway turned into a regular two-way road, limiting my speed to about 40 mph. The road followed the coast, around through the town of Gaspe, on the eastern-most point of Quebec. The entire coastal route was over 650 miles long, so it took me a while to get through it. It turns out that I was even in a new time zone where I'd never been before!

There were some very small towns along the road, each one with a beautiful old church. However, the entire route was mostly deserted, as this part of Canada looks like it's only a summer-time getaway. There were many, many small cottages along the water, all abandoned for the winter, as well as many closed resturaunts and campgrounds. I "dry camped" all the way around Quebec, and actually was stuck for 2 days waiting for a nasty storm to blow on by. The winds from that storm were incredible!

After the long road around Quebec, I traveled south to Prince Edward Island, and stayed in the capitol city, Charlottetown. It is a very beautiful island, with lots of farms, rolling hills, and coastline. The nasty weather continues to follow me. Although not raining, a lot of overcast weather. Really missing warm and sunny San Diego right now! Anyway, here are the pics:



A lookout just off the highway on some summer cottages



In the town of Perce



Again in Perce, with The Perce Rock in the background



A nice picture from Prince Edward Island



Some sand dunes on Prince Edward Island



The coastline after Perce



A beautiful church along the road



A lighthouse on the coast

Quebec

After leaving Chuck's place, I traveled about 150 miles north to the very French city of Quebec, where people don't know what the word "Starbucks" or "Internet" mean. Very frustrating! My limited French was not much help. I didn't stay long, just enough to spend one day in the old parat of the city, taking some pictures. The weather was in the low 50's during the day and quite overcast with occasional rain. Here are the pics:

Uncle Chuck's (100 miles east of Montreal)

After visiting Montreal, I drove about 100 miles east, near the town of Sherbrooke, to visit an Uncle that I haven't seen in 26 years. Chuck lives with his wife, Cathy, and they have two children, Mary (24) and Virginia (27) who live nearby. I stayed with them for 6 days, two of which I helped Chuck install a sink and plumbing into Virginia's apartment. Apparently, Chuck and I share the same interest in home repair.

Here are some shots of Chuck's place:



Chuck's house



Chuck's chicken. Actually, he has one rooster (pictured) and several hens that lay eggs every day.

Cathy, Chuck, and I went for a day sightseeing. We checked out some of the surrounding area and even drove into Vermont briefly toward the end of the day. Here are the pics:



A nice country view.



Lots of scenic views.



Some daisies on a mid-October day.



An old monestary.



How beautiful is this?



In Vermont...best shot of the day!

Montreal, Canada

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After Toronto, it was onto Montreal. Finding places to stay was becoming more and more difficult for some reason. I had to stay in a Flying-J truck stop about 20 miles outside of the city. It was actually a pretty good place to stay.

I made it into the city for only a day, and spent my time in the "old town" area. There were many old buildings to see, but too many resturaunts and souvenier shops for my liking. Again, I didn't get any names of the buildings and churches I saw, so just enjoy the view!

















Don't forget, I've got more pictures at www.tomsphotosonline.com

Toronto, Canada

I only stayed at Niagra Falls for an hour or so, then I drove on to Toronto, which was about an hour and a half away. I stayed in an RV park quite a ways from downtown for 2 nights, then got a hotel room much closer to the city. It was my first time sleeping away from the RV and my boys, but it was very welcome to have all the amenities that we take for granted!

I only spent one day in Toronto proper. I started the day visiting a place called Casa Loma, which was the former home of a very famous Canadian, Sir Henry Mill Pellatt. This castle was built for a huge sum at the time, but eventually Sir Henry fell upon tough times, forcing him and his wife to move to a nearby hotel.



Casa Loma at night

After I saw the castle, I hopped on a sightseeing bus for a look at downtown Toronto. I took many pictures of all the beautiful sights to see, then went up into the famous CN tower at dusk to take a few night shots. I really didn't get the names of these buildings and churches, so you'll just have to make due!



I know this one...CN tower



Many beautiful churches in Toronto



Downtown was full of condos



Lots of great churches, too.



Here's another...



...and another.

Niagra Falls

Hello there! I'm in Prince Edward Island right now, just north of Halifax, Nova Scotia. I haven't posted in awhile because, well, there's not many places where I can find internet access. Apparently, the province of Quebec doesn't have any Starbucks!

Anyway, since I last posted, I traveled from Chicago, Illinois, to Toledo, Ohio, where I visited with a good friend from my Qualcomm days. I stayed in Toledo for a few days, then headed for Niagra Falls, New York. I quickly passed through Pennsylvania and Buffalo, New York, intending to see the falls from the New York side. However, I took a wrong turn and wound up crossing the border into Canada before I had a chance to see things from the US side.

It was no big deal, because the view of Niagra Falls and the accompanying Horseshoe Falls from the Canadian side was probably better than on the US side. I can't tell you how huge and powerful both falls were (especially Horseshoe Falls). They make any other falls that I've seen on my trip pale in comparison. Here are some photos of the falls:



Pano shot of Niagra Falls



Niagra Falls and US/Canadian bridge



View of Niagra Falls from a nearby observation tower



Horseshoe Falls, just south of Niagra Falls



Closeup of Horseshoe Falls. Just amazing!

Chicago, Illinois

I arrived in Chicago after visiting St. Louis. A great city! I stayed the first two nights in a Wal-Mart parking lot, then 2 nights in an RV park WAY outside the city, the another 2 nights in another Wal-Mart. I spent a lot of my time in the north part of the city on Michigan Ave, otherwise known as the "Magnificent Mile". Lots of upscale shopping for the ladies on this stretch of Michigan Ave.

The city was full of very old skyscrapers and other very interesting buildings. I took an architectual boat tour, where they explained many of the landmarks around town, who designed them, etc. I also took a double-decker bus tour of the city and just walked around a lot. Of course, no trip to Chicago would be complete without going to the observation deck of the Sears Tower and the John Hancock building. Had a great meal at Ditka's Restaurant. Had a really good time in this city!



Arrival in Chicago



City Skyline looking west



View from Sears Tower looking north



Chicago Water Tower - Survived the big fire of 1871



View of the city and Lake Shore Drive from the Hancock Building



"Big John" and 311 South Wacker Drive



Roman goddess of agriculture, Ceres, on top of the
Chicago Board of Trade building



Aon Center (left) and Two Prudential Plaza



Carbide and Carbon building



Chicago River near the Michigan Avenue bridge



35 East Wacker building