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After seeing a bit of Montréal, we took my aunt for a long drive to visit other parts of Quebec, with emphasis, of course, on religious shrines. We stopped at Trois-Rivières to see the Sanctuaire Notre-Dame-du-Cap (Our Lady of the Cape Shrine). It is Canada’s national shrine to the Blessed Virgin Mary, one of the five national shrines in the country, and the third largest Marian shrine in North America. Located in beautiful Trois-Rivières, a city founded by French colonists

We took my aunt to Montréal to meet my husband’s family and to visit the city’s magnificent churches. Oratoire Saint-Joseph du Mont-Royal (St. Joseph’s Oratory of Mount Royal) Upon arrival in Montréal, we drove directly to Oratoire Saint-Joseph du Mont-Royal (Saint Joseph’s Oratory of Mount Royal), a Catholic shrine founded by Saint André Bessette in honour of Saint Joseph. It is a National Historic Site of Canada and the country’s largest church with one of the largest dom

My late aunt, whom I considered my second mom, finally agreed to travel back to Canada a year before she was diagnosed with a serious illness (and sadly, she passed away the following year). Her very first trip to Canada was with me, many years ago, when I was still living in Manila. We visited my other aunt in Vancouver and did a side trip to Portland, Oregon that time. It took almost a decade, long after I had moved to Canada for good, to persuade her to travel again (She w

If you would like to travel back in time, even if it is just to pretend, I would recommend visiting Niagara-on-the-Lake, a pretty, little town nestled in the corner of the Niagara Region in Ontario. Yes, it is but a 20-minute drive from the bustling city of Niagara Falls, but the moment you arrive, it will feel like you have been transported back longer, not just in distance, but in also centuries. The well-preserved Heritage District most feels like a movie set for a period

Niagara Falls is one of the, if not the most iconic tourist destination in East Coast Canada. Anyone visiting Toronto usually visits the famous falls as well, since it is only about an hour and half drive from the city. I recall visiting Niagara Falls from the U.S. side in the early 90s. Unfortunately, I lost all travel photos prior to 2001, so my memories of it are very vague. From what I remember, we drove to the Niagara Falls State Park in New York State to view the fall

When our son was about five years old, we decided to drive to Toronto one long weekend to basically traipse around, do fun things, and be kids again. On the list were the LEGOLAND Discovery Centre in Vaughn Mills, the Toronto Zoo, and Ripley’s Aquarium. This trip was going to be all about our son and the things he was crazy about (at that age) – LEGO, animals, and aquariums. We did not plan anything else, as for sure, the three fun places alone would tire us. Ripley’s Aquariu

When our son was about five years old, we decided to drive to Toronto one long weekend to basically traipse around, do fun things, and be kids again. On the list were the LEGOLAND Discovery Centre in Vaughn Mills, the Toronto Zoo, and Ripley’s Aquarium. This trip was going to be all about our son and the things he was crazy about (at that age) – LEGO, animals, and aquariums. We did not plan anything else, as for sure, the three fun places alone would tire us. Toronto Zoo A fr

When our son was about five years old, we decided to drive to Toronto one long weekend to basically traipse around, do fun things, and be kids again. On the list were the LEGOLAND Discovery Centre in Vaughn Mills, the Toronto Zoo, and Ripley’s Aquarium. This trip was going to be all about our son and the things he was crazy about (at that age) – LEGO, animals, and aquariums. We did not plan anything else, as for sure, the three fun places alone would tire us. LEGOLAND Discove

On our most recent to Québec City, we decided to leave our car in Montreal and took the train instead. And since that was my first time to get into the city by rail, it was also my first time to see their main train station, Gare du Palais. I must say it is one-of-a-kind. Unlike the commercial-and-generic-looking train stations all throughout the country, Gare du Palais has character. Built in 1915 by the Canadian Pacific Railway in the style of the Fairmont Le Château Fronte

A cool thing about staying in Sainte-Foy is the opportunity to traverse Boulevard Champlain underneath Pont de Québec on our way to and from the Old Town and our other destinations. This majestic bridge is a road, rail, and pedestrian bridge built across the Saint-Lawrence River connecting Sainte-Foy and the district of Lévis. With a total length of 987 meters, a height of 95 meters, and a free span of 500 meters from one pillar to the other, it is considered the longest cant

Our son loves aquariums and marine animals, so naturally, if there is an aquarium attraction in the city, we would certainly be there. We took him to the ones in Vancouver, Toronto, Montréal, and now in Québec City. Our then-six-year-old boy was beyond thrilled. Sprawled across 16 hectares and overlooking the stately Pont de Québec that span the Saint-Lawrence River, the Aquarium du Québec has a collection of nearly 10,000 specimens representing 300 species of indigenous and

Québec City will always stand-out from amongst the other big cities in Canada. Its charming quaintness emanates from a blend of North American and European cultures that is not intrinsically and purely North American, but not comprehensively European either. Rather, it has a unique characteristic that embraces the combined heritage of all the peoples that have lived in that land while never losing touch with its French connections. The result is a seamless amalgamation of var

Québec City will always stand-out from amongst the other big cities in Canada. Its charming quaintness emanates from a blend of North American and European cultures that is not intrinsically and purely North American, but not comprehensively European either. Rather, it has a unique characteristic that embraces the combined heritage of all the peoples that have lived in that land while never losing touch with its French connections. The result is a seamless amalgamation of var

Québec City will always stand-out from amongst the other big cities in Canada. Its charming quaintness emanates from a blend of North American and European cultures that is not intrinsically and purely North American, but not comprehensively European either. Rather, it has a unique characteristic that embraces the combined heritage of all the peoples that have lived in that land while never losing touch with its French connections. The result is a seamless amalgamation of var

Québec City will always stand-out from amongst the other big cities in Canada. Its charming quaintness emanates from a blend of North American and European cultures that is not intrinsically and purely North American, but not comprehensively European either. Rather, it has a unique characteristic that embraces the combined heritage of all the peoples that have lived in that land while never losing touch with its French connections. The result is a seamless amalgamation of var

Québec City will always stand-out from amongst the other big cities in Canada. Its charming quaintness emanates from a blend of North American and European cultures that is not intrinsically and purely North American, but not comprehensively European either. Rather, it has a unique characteristic that embraces the combined heritage of all the peoples that have lived in that land while never losing touch with its French connections. The result is a seamless amalgamation of var

Québec City will always stand-out from amongst the other big cities in Canada. Its charming quaintness emanates from a blend of North American and European cultures that is not intrinsically and purely North American, but not comprehensively European either. Rather, it has a unique characteristic that embraces the combined heritage of all the peoples that have lived in that land while never losing touch with its French connections. The result is a seamless amalgamation of var

Québec City will always stand-out from amongst the other big cities in Canada. Its charming quaintness emanates from a blend of North American and European cultures that is not intrinsically and purely North American, but not comprehensively European either. Rather, it has a unique characteristic that embraces the combined heritage of all the peoples that have lived in that land while never losing touch with its French connections. The result is a seamless amalgamation of var

Québec City will always stand-out from amongst the other big cities in Canada. Its charming quaintness emanates from a blend of North American and European cultures that is not intrinsically and purely North American, but not comprehensively European either. Rather, it has a unique characteristic that embraces the combined heritage of all the peoples that have lived in that land while never losing touch with its French connections. The result is a seamless amalgamation of var

Québec City will always stand-out from amongst the other big cities in Canada. Its charming quaintness emanates from a blend of North American and European cultures that is not intrinsically and purely North American, but not comprehensively European either. Rather, it has a unique characteristic that embraces the combined heritage of all the peoples that have lived in that land while never losing touch with its French connections. The result is a seamless amalgamation of var