Oh, Canada ~ How We Love You So!

Early in December, I scooted off for a 4 day trip to Canada and it turned out to be one of the best International trips I’ve ever experienced!  I went, of course, with my traveling girlfriends, Shauna & SheShe, and although each of us had always wanted to visit Canada before, none of us had actually had the opportunity to. So when Canada called ~ we answered! 

Let me first just say that if you feel like you somehow must travel to France so as to feel all the French Feels … why would you not consider Canada?  It’s on Eastern Standard Time, just a couple of hours away (no over the ocean ridiculously long flight) and Oh-So fabulously French … and more!   We were invited by the QuébecOriginal Tourism office, and their partners, to visit the FAB cities of Québec (pronounced KAH-beck and not QWah-beck)  and Charlevoix and there’s just so much to share, I must get started. 

Each of us arrived separately at the Jean Lesage International Airport, were picked up by our private D25 limousine drivers and brought to the newly opened hotel Monsieur Jean, … an influencers interiors dream and located in the heart of Old Québec.  Check out the rooms!

And the fab bathroom.  #MirrorGoals

All suites at Monsieur Jean come with a kitchenette, king sized bed and heated tile bathroom floors. 

OH ~ and a rubber duck in each shower/tub. I captured a few other images of the room and the hotel below. This was really a lovely place to stay. Book your room here. 

The next morning, I studied my VIP Passport Québec Cité to plan what we would be doing later in the day  …. 

… however the first thing on my mind was something from the fun grocery store/café, Bobo, located on the ground floor of the hotel. 

After fueling up, we met up with our morning tour guide, Michelle,  …

to go on a custom tour of Old Quebec, Battlefield Park and Ville de Québec ~ Québec’s City Hall. So much history ~ SO MUCH beauty. 

We learned that THE store to shop at  in Québec is Simons … (noted to self.) … 

… and strolled around and past some of the most wonderful streets and murals the city has to offer. FUN FACT: The charming street,Rue du Petit Champlain has been voted the prettiest street in all of Canada. 

And even though this was just the morning of our very first day in Canada ~ we were already having SO MUCH FUN!

Next we were off to the Grand Marché de Québec. The Grand Marché gives visitors a unique opportunity to interact directly with over 100  producers and processors from the region and has something for everyone all under one roof ~ the market’s butcher, baker, chocolatier, cheese maker, pastry chef, fruit and vegetable producers, and fishmonger sell delicious products all year round and is open every day.

I wish I had taken more images there but frankly … I had come to shop. I also ate, what is a true Québec specialty, Poutine, which is a dish of french fries, cheese curds and brown gravy.  SUPER delish and the Grand Marché de Québec is a must do.  

We then headed back to the hotel to rest for a bit and Monsieur Jean is such a  colorful delight to the eyes, we had to take a few outfit pics … just because. 

Next up was touring THE Fairmont Le Château Frontenac. FUN FACT: this FAB hotel is known to be the most photographed hotel in the world!  This gorge, 5-star luxury hotel is everything and more. 

We changed into some of our holiday best …

… and dined at Le SAM with the wonderful, Nancy, from Québec City Tourism.  Le SAM offers excellent food & service and although they had incredible sounding dishes to select from, I do what I always do … I went ‘veggie’. This meal, and our company, was a fantastic way to wrap up our first night. 

The next morning we had to capture our cute Soma jammies …

before I changed into Day no. 2 outfit, which was quite similar Day no 1. outfit ….. ANYTHING warm. 

We then headed to a very special place: Le Monastère des Augustines ~ a 10 minute walk from the hotel. 

Our hosts were Katie and Rachel and we were about to learn what a haven of heritage, culture and wellness the Monastère actually is.

Le Monastère des Augustines is a former monastery from the 17th century that was once the site of the first hospital in North America!  It has  been completely restored and is now a holistic retreat. Their mission is to bear witness to the lifestyle and social mission of the Augustinian Sisters, who laid the foundation and developed Canada’s healthcare system (!!!) … and 8 of these Sisters are still alive and living at Le Monastère.

The Sisters did not want their legacy, buildings, heritage and mission to disappear so they founded a Trust to carry on, among other things, taking care of the “body and soul” of their guests.

I say ‘guests’ because you can actually stay there. Their hotel, museum, wellness center & boutique opened August 2015 for all to learn from and enjoy.

There’s even a church on site to receive service and a spectacular organ that accompanies the Sisters when they sing.

Lastly, they have a farm-to-table restaurant where wellness in on the menu.  I, of course, went veggie.  Watch this short video to learn more about Le Monastère des Augustines.

Now feeling joyful and refreshed, we decided to go hat shopping …

and to go check out the magical German Christmas Market where we went LIVE on Facebook.  Did you catch it??? The market did not disappoint with beautiful decorations, a huge selection of German treats (bratwurst, mulled wine, gingerbread, and more), delicious terroir products, beautiful Christmas gifts, shows, indoor and outdoor performances!

We ate roasted chestnuts, sang Christmas carols (still available for viewing on our IG stories!) and it started to snow.  Like, major snow.

So we went back to the hotel to let the snow subside and rest before we headed back out to Louise Taverne & Bar à Vin, where the food is simple, yet tasty, and served in hearty portions. 

And if sausage & blood pudding is your jam ~ they’ve got you covered. 

Day 3 started with us packing and sadly saying Au Revoir to Québec, but not without hoping onto social media to share our love for this fun city!

We then got in our rental car, as we were about to embark on a road-trip through the Charlevoix region.  Snowy, winding, river-hugging mountainous roads, and a little bit of rugged landscape, was not too much for us 3 adventure addicts (as long as there were restrooms along the way.) and we were off to enjoy a curated lunch at Faux Bergers. 

Everything Faux Bergers serves is farm grown and/or raised and completely organic.  Although I’ve stated that I’m mainly veggie, I enjoyed the following three entrees:  1.) cabbage, fennel, rice puff, red onion w/magic sauce, 2.) chaga mushroom broth w/poached egg + beet bread crumbs and 3.) duck breast w/sunchokes + black currents.  FUN FACT: the chef and the sommelier are husband and wife. 

Fully stuffed, we climbed back into the car and headed to the place on our itinerary that I was the most intrigued about ~ Centre de l’Émeu. So even if you don’t read French, you can pretty much tell we were about to meet EMUs ~ and it was pretty AWESOME!

Ok, did you know that an emu egg looks like the one below?  Yep. It starts out with a cute green shell then grows into the handsome guy on the right. #WhoKnew

With more than 400 emus of all ages, Centre de l’Êmeu was quite a learning experience.  You tour around the farm and the outdoor enclosures and will gain a better understanding of all the steps involved in bringing this second-largest bird in the world to life. FUN FACT:  there are over a 1,000 different products that can be derived from emu. 

Such as, beauty and skin care products … (I cried internally while writing this as I realized they are currently sold out of the 100% pure emu oil.)  …. 

… and, of course, this.  … Have I shared that I’m vegetarian? I’m actually flexitarian, but I’m not THAT flexi.

After purchasing quite a few emu oil based skincare products, we headed to our final destination of the day, the majestic Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu.  FUN FACT:  The G7 summit was recently held here!  You know the one.  The one where the leaders of 7 industrialized countries, their spouses and loads of other dignitaries from all around the world attended. Yes ~ THAT one.  They also hosted Shauna, SheShe and myself. 

It’s QUITE GRAND at the 5-star luxury Le Manoir Richelieu with their unique gastronomy, spectacular views and abundance of activities to do. They have 405 luxuriously-appointed guest rooms and suites that are fully equipped with all the essential amenities to create YOUR  memorable experience. 

My room was spacious and a decadent plate of yummies was waiting for me … screaming out my name  …

as well as personalized shampoo, conditioner, body wash, etc.  #FAB

We quickly unpacked and dressed for dinner at Le Saint Laurent. 

The restaurant could essentially craft your dinner anyway that you’d like and I, of course, went veggie.  I’d like to also point out that the service there was spectacular!  We dined with the Director of Sales and Marketing and giggled with her like we had all been friends for years! 

We had no idea that she had arranged for us to have a very special dessert that we watched being made by the Chef in the Chefs kitchen.  Such a TREAT that was! 

This hotel was so accommodating they even assisted us in shooting a fun collaboration with SeroVital while we were there. (*Learn why we all love SeroVital HERE.)

I was sad that we really only had a few hours to experience such a lovely hotel as the Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu, but we had to leave early the next day.  I would highly recommend a stay here for you, your family and/or … a GIRLFRIEND trip!  … wait ’til you see the pool! 

On our last day, we drove the roughly 36 miles of pure beauty along the St Lawrence river (considered one of North America’s most beautiful panoramic drives) to visit a few of the well-known art galleries in Baie-Saint-Paul. We first went to the oldest art gallery in the region, Galerie Art et Style which represents over reputable 50 artists and sculptors, as well as a collectors’ section with renowned Canadian artists such as: Marcelle Ferron, Jean-Paul Riopelle, Alfred Pellan, Marcel Barbeau and  Paul-Émile Borduas. 

Next we strolled through the Galerie l’Harmattan which offers creations by current contemporary artists. Both galleries have the same owner. 

Working up an appetite, we met our Charlevoix contact, Camille, for a warm lunch at Café Arômes et Saveurs. BUTTER brings this kitchen joy and the BEST candy shop is also under the same roof.  

After lunch, we were super excited to take a scenic helicopter flight over the Saint Lawrence river with Heli-Charlevoix and enjoy a cider tasting at Cidrerie des Vergers Pedneault, HOWEVER the weather quickly turned bad (like, really kind of scary bad!) and our pilot made the sound decision to cancel our flight.

I still posted this on social media, though, because I wanted all to know about another fun thing you can do here. 

After the cancelation of the helicopter ride, we had one last place to visit.  We headed to the Le Gemain Charlevoix Hotel & Spa  to take in all its rustic charm and inviting spa.  FUN FACT: the hotel & spa has been honored with Top Design in the World Retail & Leisure Interior Award. 

Now I love a great award just as much as the next guy, but I’ve gotta be honest … I was here for the Nordic SPA! 

The spa is located adjacent to the hotel and we walked over to it that night.  The spa offers a range of different massages, beauty treatments, a Finnish sauna, eucalyptus steam bath AND hot and cold outdoor pools!  We chose to jump from hot to cold pools multiple times and it was beyond invigorating!!!  I learned that hot water causes vasodilation (relaxation of blood vessels) and coldwater causes vasoconstriction (narrowing of blood vessels), which is extremely beneficial to your overall blood circulation. *No pictures were allowed at the spa, which was fine with me because, you know … swimsuits were involved.  

We ended the evening, and our trip, with dinner at Les Labours restaurant located on site where the chef, and team, select the best regional products and create a new, fresh menu daily. 

I, of course, had veggies.  They always make me very happy. 

Now, ok … I know this was a lot of trip.   But I also know it was a whole lot of exciting, winter wonderfulness! Canada, friends, is GOOD. 

So Bye-Bye for now, Canada!  I/We WILL be back.  Is it true that your spring and summer are equally as FAB??!

*** Thank you to Québec City Tourism, QuébecOriginal and all of their regional partners for sponsoring our trip and this post.  To learn more about Québec and Charlevoix, follow them both on Instagram at @tourismequebec & @charlevoixatr. All images are my own and/or courtesy of each Brand’s website.