Ottawa and Quebec

Maurice National Park - Quebec

We finished driving across Ontario and visited the city we hope to settle in, Ottawa. Both Dave and Mel really liked the city, despite its strange parking laws (apparently they don't need to tell you that there is a parking limit to be able to issue you with a fine). We carefully parked in one of the few streets without parking limitations only to discover the Kafkaesque situation where streets without any parking signs are designated three hour parking only. Of course a non-local doesn't know this, but that doesn't stop the parking officers. Luckily, a visit to the service centre afforded us a tourist exemption. We will be much more careful in the future!
Ottawa was incredibly lively when we were there, with a large restaurant district that meant we were spoilt for choice in terms of eating. We wandered through most of the city area, discovering a great used bookstore that we will be visiting again. We saw the government buildings, the CBD and the university area. We are both looking forward to returning there to live for a while.
Our next stop was Quebec. We visited a lovely national park for a couple of nights and experienced the biggest storm we've encountered. The thunder was so fierce the campervan actually shook! After our rest days in the bush, Quebec city beckoned.



An entirely non-phallic photo of Dave with a cannon in Quebec city.

The tourist section of the city is very quaint and is surrounded by a wall. It's like a mini version of a French town. It is also a very busy place, with tourists crawling out of every doorway. Thumbs up to the maple syrup museum for providing us with free candy. We appreciated that.Tourist zone - Quebec city

Our road trip continues and we are heading towards the eastern-most part of our journey - PEI. We hope to arrive there in the next few days.