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Get
an appetite for Travel
with
Gael Arthur
Let's face
it, on the surface, the idea of celebrating winter seems a bit bizarre.
After all, winter is a time when sane people look for warm weather
escapes to soak up a bit of sunshine and enjoy that laid-back approach
to life. Then again, when the routine of a couple of weeks of sun seems
just that - routine - maybe the solution is something completely
different. Last year I joined more than 1.2 million tourists from
outside the province to one of North America's most beautiful cities,
Quebec City, for Winter Carnaval.
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CARNAVAL IN
QUEBEC CITY
Bring Your Long Johns and
Your Appetite!
 What started as a small
festival in the 1950s to stimulate business has become one of the
major attraction of this charming 400-year-old city perched on the
St. Lawrence River. The end of January guarantees a frozen river,
lots of snow and an ice palace that will stay frozen for the
two-week duration of the festival.
The Carnaval has become a major
tourist attraction and local businesses are active participants -
stunning ice sculptures adorn the front steps of stores in the old
town.
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A bright blue sky and constant activities from
the
Plains of Abraham all the way to the river
serve to distract us
all from the fact that it is
really VERY COLD.
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The
activities are almost all outdoors, with dog sled races through
the cobbled streets, a soapbox derby race for the kids, a
skating performance every afternoon and evening on a great
outdoor rink in the centre of the old town. The mostly frozen
St. Lawrence is the site of one of the weirdest competitions
imaginable - the ice canoe race, where the truly insane paddle
the river and portage across ice floes. The tradition of the
voyageur is upheld, with small updates, like kevlar instead of
birchbark and polypropylene instead of fur. It makes the Iron
Man Triathlon look like a walk in the park
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Of course, the first thing you realize about Carnaval is that to
withstand the cold, you have to eat a big breakfast. Just
getting all the clothes on can burn a couple of hundred calories
and the extra weight of mukluks and assorted paraphernalia will
keep your metabolic rate up throughout the day. The pancake
breakfast hosted by Sister City Calgary is tempting, but if you
can, hold out for the unbelievable brunch at the Chateau
Frontenac. This CP Hotel feels like all the others in its
majesty, but really excels "à la table." The brunch
buffet is overwhelming. While you may be seduced by the
exquisite chafing dish laden with crêpes adorned with maple
syrup, take the time to properly survey the room before filling
your plate. The seafood table will make you wish you could
pretend to be filling a second plate for a friend who has fallen
on the ice and needs you to fetch his food. Of course, second,
third and even fourth helpings are not frowned upon - servers
unobtrusively remove evidence of dining excess as they refill
champagne flutes.
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The
litany of dishes overwhelms the palate, with huge bowls of giant
prawns flanked by platters of different types of smoked salmon,
each unique and beautiful. Although they may well be among the
best in North America, I resist the eggs with hollandaise -
having spied the cheese, I immediately know where to allocate
major calories. I knew about Oka cheese from Quebec, but that is
just the beginning. The man at the cheese table (no, not a
board, a whole table) is happy to explain the provenance of each
cheese, making me want to visit the various villages and meet
the cows and goats. Not right now, mind you, perhaps the weather
is warmer and they are up in some meadow near Mont Sainte-Anne.
Or maybe when the fall colours are at their finest.
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While
the first things that come to mind for Quebec
cuisine are usually tourtière and maple sugar,
that generalization is a bit like saying all
Boston can offer is clam chowder, Belgium waffles,
and Bologna meatballs and spaghetti.
The historical framework of an agricultural
community with big families guarantees an
assortment of hearty meals, but not without the
refinement of the French heritage.
At Les Frères de la Côte or Le Café du
Monde, you’ll have a table d’hôte menu to
rival any Parisian brasserie, with décor and
ambiance that make you feel like you’ve crossed
the Atlantic without the jet lag.
For a romantic evening, Restaurant La Crémaillère
has the soft lighting and classic French cuisine
with a few twists (sweetbreads with apple cider
vinegar and ginger, or salmon with grapefruit and
saffron).
For
that hearty “en famille” dining experience,
spend a day in the country.
Start with a tour of the Aventure Nord-Bec
outdoor dog kennels – 130 malamutes and huskies
all yowling, hoping to be chosen to go for a run.
A dogsled tour through the woods, with snow
glistening on huge evergreens, the dogs fully
aware of who is really in charge – the cold air
combined with the adrenalin rush will leave you
more than ready for a midday meal of rabbit stew.
Nothing fancy, just great ingredients,
properly cooked and perfectly seasoned.
Huge hunks of fresh bread to soak up the
juices. And,
to wear off the calories, spend a couple of hours
on the “raquettes” – snowshoes – enjoying
the calm and the beauty of the forest before
heading back to the city.
And
finally, although not exactly a culinary
experience, one cannot go to Carnaval without
experiencing “Caribou”, a drink served
everywhere in town and transported by most
Carnaval goers in hollow canes which also help
negotiate the slippery streets.
Made from red wine, maple syrup, cinnamon
and alcohol, (the latter being anything from vodka
to raw spirits), on paper it sounds like something
you would normally have to pay me to try.
However, after standing outside for a
couple of hours watching the big parade, waiting
for the Michelin Man’s brother, Bonhomme, it
serves the purpose – first it numbs the taste
buds and clears the sinuses, then it numbs the
sensation of cold, and finally, it numbs the
brain. My
Scottish colleague explains it best:
“It is called ‘Caribou’ because you
wake up the next morning feeling as though you
have antlers on your head and fur on your
tongue.”
www.quebecregion.com
Carnaval
is January 27 to February 12, 2006.
http://www.carnaval.qc.ca
Château Frontenac:
http://www.cphotels.com/cp.asp?loc=fronten
Restaurant La Crémaillère:
http://www.cremaillere.qc.ca
Le Café du Monde: http://www.lecafedumonde.com
For dogsledding & snowshoeing:
www.novanor.qc.ca/nord-bec
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