Quebec Chronicles: Quebec City
I have to admit, we might not even have thought of traveling to Quebec had it not been because of another Korean drama. If you are a fan of K-anything, you would probably have heard of Goblin: The Lonely and Great God. It was released in the winter of 2016 and became one of the highest rated dramas on Korean Cable TV (second to one of my all time favorites, Reply 1988). The story was set partly in Quebec City, where key moments of the show was filmed.
So in the summer of 2017, I somehow convinced J that we should go to Quebec. It's like Europe, but closer! You can practice your French there! So off we went. We split our time between two cities: Charlevoix and Quebec City. We spent our first couple of days in the countryside to relax and recharge and then the rest of the trip in the city.
Charlevoix was so amazing and the vibe is so different, so I think it deserves its own post. You can read about it here, or click on the photo below for more.
In Quebec City we stayed at Le Germain Hotel and from there everything was pretty much walkable. The reception staff were exceptional, so hospitable and sincere. We got a few recommendations from them and after resting a bit in our room, off we went to discover the city.
We ate dinner at LàLà upon the recommendation of our affable concierge. It serves traditional Quebec cuisine and we were not disappointed. I should have taken photos of our meals, but I always tend to forget to take photos when I’m hungry.
We walked around Quartier Petit Champlain, so beautiful and well-lit at night.
The following day, we went to the Brooklyn of Quebec City (according to our fave front desk person): Rue Saint-Joseph in Quartier Saint-Roch.
It was hipster town, lined with cool cafes, coiffeur salons, tattoo shops, and other curiosities. After we walked and gawked at the shops along the strip end to end, stopping for a bit to watch a mid-day event at the square, we settle into the cafe that we first saw walking into the street. Saint-Henri.
We got a latte glace and people-watched.
After hipster town, we walked around Old Quebec. It was like being in a period set, so picture perfect.
The McDonald’s was so pretty we had to check it out. Of course, we had poutine.
Quebec is lovely. It’s on a much differenct pace than the Bay Area but not too different that you’ll feel out of place. There’s a lot of tourists in the city, but the people are still mostly warm and courteous. I really liked it here.
As for my Goblin bucket list, I’m proud to say that we were able to go to most of the filming spots. I saved the photos for another post: The Goblin Pilgrimage Tour.