La Belle Ville

Québec City is beautiful! La belle ville! Especially Vieux-Québec, the Old City. This is inside a fortress wall that the British built to defend against the Americans and Indians during the Seven Year's War.  Québec City is the only fortified city in North America, outside of México City. The city was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985. It has a very European feel to it.

Inside the wall, one of the gatehouses

Outside the wall

Québec City was founded by French explorer Samuel de Champlain in 1608. During the Seven Year's War, in 1759, Québec City was captured by the British. In 1763, the French handed the city over to the British, thus starting the long history of resentment between the French and English in Québec that continues to today.

The name "Québec" is derived from the Algonquin Indian word Kébec, meaning "where the river narrows". This is because the St. Lawrence River narrows where Québec City sits across the river from Lévis.

After Canada was founded in 1867, the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) was created to take people West. The CPR built luxury hotels beside the railway stations in various cities across Canada. These hotels include: the Empress Hotel in Victoria, BC; the Banff Springs Hotel in Banff National Park, Alberta; the Château Laurier in Ottawa, ON; and the Château Frontenac in Québec City. These hotels were merged with the Fairmont Hotel chain in 2006, so now carry the name Fairmont instead of CP.

The Fairmont Château Frontenac

Vieux-Québec is as beautiful city to walk around. There is a lot of history there. Bon voyage!

~Angie