Time seems to be flying as we scramble to catch up after our last whirlwind trip! Last month, we had the absolute privilege of spending almost two weeks in beautiful Morocco. This was our first time to Morocco, and actually our first time in Africa, so we were beyond excited and hyper-focused on doing and seeing as much as we could. To that end, we set out on completing a somewhat ambitious loop from Casablanca to Fes to Merzouga (and the desert) to Marrakesh and finally back to Casablanca. Whew, even typing it all out is a bit much! Anyway, here’s a little recap of what we did and what I would recommend to anyone traveling to Morocco for the first time.
Casablanca
We didn’t choose to start and end in Casablanca for any reason other than that’s where the cheapest flights from Québec happened to be. But, of course, once we knew we were heading to Casablanca, we promptly watched the 1942 classic! Spoiler alert: modern-day Casablanca is absolutely nothing like the movie. Since we only had a couple of days planned here, we focused on hitting the highlights: Hassan II Mosque, Central Market, the port, Arab League Park etc.
I feel like Casablanca is the sort of city that would be great to live in, but not so great for tourists. It’s the biggest city in Morocco, and we totally felt that as we trekked from site to site. If you are touristing in Casablanca, however, I would definitely recommend Sky 28 bar. It’s at the top of the Kenzi Tower Hotel and gives you amazing views of the city and the coastline. We went at sunset, and it was such a great way to see all that city sprawl!
Another Casablanca recommendation I would readily give is the restaurant Le Cuistot Traditionnel. It might have been our favorite of the trip, mostly because of the amazing Moroccan food and beautiful décor, but also in part because of the amazing owner and chef. He actually used to work for the king of Morocco and had such an amazing collection of photos, mementos, and stories from that time – really such a cool guy and place!
Fes
The next stop on our itinerary was Fes (or Fez), which is one of the oldest cities in Morocco. I think this was the city I was most looking forward to before our trip because I was so excited to experience the medina. The medina refers to some 9,000 streets and alleyways that make up what I can only compare to a massive hedge maze, except these walls are stone, several stories high, and about 800 years old. “Bustling” just isn’t a strong enough word to describe the medina, which is home to approximately 100,000 people, most of whom must be merchants of some sort given the insane number of markets, shops, and stalls!
Walking around the medina was chaotic in the absolute best way. There are souvenirs, snacks, businesses, and historic sites all crammed into the narrowest of spaces, not to mention all the people shopping, taking photos, transporting goods, etc. Unfortunately, Google Maps is almost no help in navigating since the vast majority of the streets in the medina are too small to be on the map. For that reason and so many others, walking around Fes felt a lot like traveling back in time. Of course, eventually you’d spot some stainless-steel water bottles or personalized power banks and instantly be back in the 2020s.
In my opinion, the absolute best thing to do in Fes is to wander. Just walk around, get lost, find your way back again by recognizing some sign or stall, and ultimately soak up the chaos. I also think staying in a dar (a room in a local house) or a riad (an inn) is essential in Fes. Hearing families eating dinner, buying your water at a little window shop, and feeling the warmth of Moroccan hospitality was such a great part of our stay in one of the most unique places we’ve ever been. Oh, and remember to prepare yourself mentally for bargaining at the markets, you absolutely have to have your head in the game for that!
To/From the Desert
The next part of our trip was a bit out of the ordinary for us. When we were planning everything, we knew we wanted to get out to the dunes, but we weren’t sure the best way to do that. Renting a car our first time on the continent seemed challenging, but doing a multi-day tour had us wary as well. In the end, we decided on a tour that doubled as transportation between two of the cities we wanted to see, and included most meals, tickets to the various sites, and lodging for the two nights. Given how cheap it was and the huge number of different companies and individuals offering something oddly similar, we were a little worried it was all a big scam…
But nope, it was just as amazing as all the reviews said it would be! Of course, I was still very nervous when we hadn’t heard from them by the night before out 7am departure, but once we were put into contact with our driver/guide, Mahmoud, I was completely at ease. He was so skilled at giving us the right amount of time in each place, sharing enough information to keep us interested and entertained, and juggling all the logistical tasks it required to transport 10 foreigners across the country and into the desert for three days and two nights.
It takes 7 hours to get to Merzouga (and the Chebbi dunes) from Fes and another 9 hours to get to Marrakesh, so we covered a lot of ground and a lot of points of interest, including some of my favorite: the monkeys in Ifrane, the Todgha gorge, the random espresso bar van in the middle of nowhere, and the ancient city of Aït Benhaddou. But of course, the highlight of this adventure was our time in the dunes. Riding the camels, watching the sunset and sunrise, sandboarding, a bonfire, drinks shared with new friends, star gazing – it was one of those travel experiences that seems totally unreal, and I can’t recommend it enough.
Marrakesh
Honestly, you’re probably thinking, how could we possibly top what we’d already enjoyed thus far in Morocco, and we were a bit worried about that too, especially since we were told by almost everyone we talked to that Marrakesh was their least favorite city in Morocco. We had heard Marrakesh was noisy and dirty and that the people there were pushy and impatient, etc. Well, I don’t know if we’re just weird, but Marrakesh was our favorite of the cities we visited, pretty much precisely because it was all those things and more! To me, it felt so utterly authentic in its own ancient-trading-center-turned-major-tourist-destination sort of way.
Much like Fes, Marrakesh also has a medina, but it’s actually much larger and thankfully fully mapped on Google Maps (plus one for navigation)! However, the medina in Marrakesh hasn’t banned motorcycles like Fes has, so it was a bit louder and dirtier. Of course, I found that more fun and probably more convenient for locals. We also found the people of Marrakesh to be super likeable! Maybe they seem pushy or impatient to some, but as city-people ourselves, we totally got it. We knew almost instantly that if we ever choose to move to Morocco, Marrakesh is the place for us.
Hopefully, we’ve already done our part in hyping up Marrakesh, but for some more specific recommendations, I’d say first, make sure you walk through Jemaa el-Fnaa (the main square) often and at all times of day. You’ll see so many things you’ve never seen before and might never see anywhere else! But if you don’t like people hawking their goods/services, then I advise you walk with purpose lol. You should also go to a hammam and get scrubbed down. You might feel awkward or unsure, but it won’t last long. Just take it all in and think of the stories you’ll have to tell afterwards. Other highlights for us in Marrakesh were the Marrakesh Museum, MK Rooftop, and basically any supermarket (their Carrefour is *chef’s kiss*).
As is always the case with our trip recap posts, there’s just so much I want to share, but then, I’d really rather you go out there and experience it for yourself! Morocco might seem daunting at first; I know there’s a lot of information online about it (particularly a lot of cautionary tales), but we found it to be a very welcoming place that really puts a lot of effort into making sure tourists are well taken care of! It’s simply marvelous really! Shukran, Maroc – until next time!
You may have noticed over the years that I love writing about food. So far, I’ve covered the best things we’ve ever eaten and lots of things we’ve discovered about the cuisines of the countries we’ve called home (most recently, Canada), but this month, I thought I’d round up a list of the most interesting things we’ve eaten. You know, just in case you were looking to make your next holiday meal a little more adventurous. Bon appétit!
Aiyu jelly
One of the first things that came to mind when compiling this list was a strange little snack we first sampled in a Taiwanese night market. Of course, I had to search my Facebook archives to find its true name because in our house, we usually refer to it as “that weird jelly stuff we had in Taiwan”, which isn’t the most flattering description, but to be honest, aiyu jelly is tough to describe! I actually also had to re-google what exactly it is because somehow “a clear, plant-based jelly made from the seeds of the creeping fig plant” just didn’t stick. Overall, super interesting texture (sort of like melty Jell-O), efficient form (slurped through a straw out of a plastic bag), and surprisingly familiar taste (somewhat like an Arnold Palmer).
Alligator nuggets
The next item on this objectively, alphabetized list is something we tried out of pandemic boredom. For almost a year, we found ourselves trapped in central Florida in various states of lockdown with one of our only forms of entertainment being our weekly take-out order. We made it a point to try as many different cuisines as possible within an hour drive of our apartment/bunker, and one of the most interesting meals we had came from a Cajun restaurant. There were all sorts of things I’d never seen or tasted on the menu there, but the most interesting dish had to be the fried alligator nuggets. A bit chewy and absolutely nothing like chicken, I can’t say these were my favorite, but at least I can say I tried them.
Chapulines
Chapulines are toasted grasshoppers and are a popular snack in Mexico and Central America. They’re very crispy and well-seasoned, making them a great street food snack or sometimes even offered as a topping for tacos or tlayudas. I think there’s now a stadium in the US that even serves chapulines at its concession stands, which makes sense because they’re super high in protein, extremely sustainable, and actually pretty tasty so long as you can get past the whole “I’m eating bugs” thing. Regardless, they’re a pretty interesting treat that isn’t as hard to find as you might imagine!
Cream egg stuffed cookies
Interesting has so many connotations. There’s interesting as in “huh, I didn’t know that existed”, interesting as in “hmm, no thanks”, and interesting as in “wow, that’s so cool”. I think the Cadbury cream egg stuffed cookies we came across in Newfoundland definitely falls into that last category. The conception was very interesting, the cross section was incredible, and the taste, exactly as you’d expect: delicious. But I think the most surprising thing was the fact that this unhealthy fusion was found in northeastern Canada and not a state fair in the southern US next to the deep-fried Oreos where it clearly belongs.
Czarnina
The next interesting dish on my list is one I’ve talked about before. It lives rent free in our (and several others’) minds since we accidently tricked a few people into enjoying it with us back when we were blissfully unaware. Czarnina is a dark, fruity soup that is commonly enjoyed in Poland. Its name clearly refers to the color of the soup as “czarny” means “black” in Polish, but I think we assumed it was beets or something equally pigmented that made the soup that color. Of course, it didn’t take us long to realize czarnina is actually made of duck’s blood. Surprisingly sweet and velvety smooth, this is another dish that is really more of a mental hurdle, at least for me. Definitely interesting though!
Dadinhos de tapioca
The newest addition to our interesting foods list, dadinhos (or cubes) of tapioca is a snack we recently tried in Brazil. Crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside, often made with added cheese and served with a tangy sauce, they were nothing like the only tapioca dish I had for comparison (tapioca pudding, obviously). In fact, without Google, I’d have been really hard-pressed to tell you what exactly was inside the dadinhos we scarfed down with our afternoon coffee. All I knew was that they tasted good, and that was enough for me!
Frog legs
French cuisine is famous for a reason. Their chefs surely know what they’re doing. With enough butter and garlic, anything tastes good. These are the things I told myself as we worked our way through a plate of frog legs, which look strangely similar to chicken wings by the way. The comparison stops there though, because while their flavor was good, the texture was absolutely nothing like chicken (or any meat that I can remember trying). I’m really not a fan of seafood though, and maybe we were just getting a little too close to the water for my tastes. Anyway, another interesting dish checked off my list.
Hairy tofu
Honestly, this one almost has to be seen to be believed, and oddly enough, it looks exactly as it sounds…like a block of tofu covered in hair, but in this case, the “hair” is actually a fungus. Okay, I know that doesn’t sound very appetizing, but I love mushrooms and blue cheese, and maybe you do too. Sometimes I think it’s just branding that decides whether foods lean interesting-good or interesting-bad, and unfortunately, the name “hairy tofu” definitely skews bad. In reality, the taste is pretty mild, a lot like a cheese actually, and so incredibly organic, which has to be a plus, right?
Happy pizza
On our very first night in Cambodia, after a long day of travel, we decided to pick up a pizza on the way to the hotel for a relaxing, dinner-in sort of evening. The place we went to was called Happy Pizza, and as Tucker usually does, he got the dish they were proud enough to put their name on. But then they started asking questions about the amount of “happy” we wanted, which definitely threw us off. Turns out, “happy pizza” is pizza with cannabis added among the various toppings. While I can’t say the taste was everything I wanted and more, it was definitely an interesting pizza experience to say the least!
Hot chocolate with cheese
We had our first hot chocolate served with cheese cubes in Quito, Ecuador, but it’s actually pretty common in Colombia and other South American countries as well. As I deeply love both chocolate and cheese, I was very excited to try this combination; however, my brain just couldn’t compute. Was it sweet or savory? Dessert or salty snack? Drink or food? In the end, we were left saying “that was interesting”, and so it makes the list. I do feel like this one has the potential for a lot of variation though, so we might just need to try again with different chocolates and cheeses.
Huitlacoche
Time for another round of fungi! Huitlacoche is a fungus we encountered regularly while living in Mexico. In fact, it’s so common, they sell it at Walmart! Huitlacoche has a lot of similarities to mushrooms, and you’ll typically find it in the same sorts of dishes: soups, omelets, tacos, etc. Again, I can’t help but think about branding here because a lot of gringos shy away from huitlacoche, but maybe that has less to do with the taste and more to do with the fact that it’s called “corn smut” in English. Or maybe it’s the bulbous-y, blueish-green lobes that turn people off…I guess we’ll never know.
Pastitsio
Two words: Greek lasagna. Already interested, aren’t you? I can tell you I certainly was after reading the description of pastitsio: pasta, cheese, beef, tomato sauce, cinnamon, clove, and a thick top layer of béchamel. It’s everything I love about lasagna plus a few really interesting additions. After having several versions of this homey dish, I’m not really sure why it hasn’t made it to the top of the Greek food pantheon (with the likes of gyros and spanakopita) because I found it to be much more interesting and easily just as tasty!
Uni (sea urchin)
One of the rarer things we’ve eaten would probably be uni (or sea urchin). It’s a little expensive because, I mean, have you seen the creatures? It doesn’t look there’s much “meat” to be harvested there. But that being said, of all the things I’ve ever eaten from the ocean, for me, this was by far the least offensive. There is absolutely no seafood flavor whatsoever. It’s really more like buttery sea water, which really pushes this one beyond interesting and into bizarre. Sometimes I wonder about the person who first discovered that there were tiny, squishy, edible pieces inside those spiky balls at the bottom of the ocean…
Rainbow corndogs
Japan clearly has a lot of fun with food. If I extended this list, I imagine several more entries would be from Japan, often, like this one, purely for their whimsy. And it doesn’t get much more whimsical than cheesy, rainbow corndogs, does it? As a kid of the 90s, I love me some colorful food (purple ketchup, color-changing milk, etc.), and these corndogs were just as fun! Luckily, they were pretty tasty as well – crispy crust, flaky interior, slappy cheese, even the hotdog paired surprisingly well with the colorful condiments. Overall, a playful take on a fast-food classic.
Yak yogurt
And last but not least, a little dessert in the form of yak yogurt. We had a beautiful bowl of this tart, yet creamy concoction out in Qinghai, one of China’s larger, western provinces. I actually think we had just eaten when we came across these, but they looked so pretty, and there was a line of people eating them on the sidewalk, so we had to have a try. I’m so glad we did too, because they were, as you should be expecting by now, very interesting. It was similar to yogurt, but also not. Maybe like a thicker, sweeter kefir? It actually reminded me more of flan than Yoplait, but however it compares, it was definitely still unexpected and delicious.
And that’s my list! So many interesting finds over the years, and I’m sure there will be plenty more to come! Hope you found something to add to your must-try list, even if only for the experience because honestly, that might just be the best part!
Of all the places we’ve been, we probably get the most questions about Mexico, which makes sense because Mexico is such a beautiful country, and anyone would be lucky to spend time there. However, I do sometimes get a little sad when people tell me they only plan to visit (and often re-visit) one of the same three places: Cancún, Cabo, or Puerto Vallarta. I mean, to some extent, I get it. Those are the most well-known beach cities in the country, but imagine if someone wanted to see the US, and then just repeatedly visited LA. What about the Grand Canyon? What about New York? What about Yellowstone? Mexico is every bit as diverse as the US, which is why I wanted to highlight some other amazing destinations for anyone who wants to see more of what Mexico has to offer.
La Paz
First off, we’ll start with my favorite beaches in Mexico. Located on the eastern side of Baja California, La Paz has some of the prettiest seascapes I’ve ever seen (and I’ve seen some stunners). If you’re looking for the most tranquilo place to vacation, this might just be it. La Paz is known for its beautiful sunsets, delicious seafood, and diverse sea life. We swam with the sea lions there, but you can also see whales, rays, and thousands of tropical fish. And if you don’t want to get in the water, there are plenty of catamaran, kayak, and glass-bottom boat options too. There are also nature preserves on either side of the city where you can hike, picnic, sand surf, ride ATVs, and so much more. In short, La Paz deserves more attention.
Chihuahua
When you think of Mexico do you think of steep, red canyons and scenic train rides through the mountains? Well, I do when I think about Chihuahua and its Copper Canyon. This is a part of Mexico that any self-respecting nature-lover would drool over. Chihuahua might be more famous for the dog breed that originated there, but it’s also Mexico’s largest estado and has a vast number of amazing landscapes and exciting activities. Between riding the infamous El Chepe train through the mountains, rappelling down one of the rock faces of the canyon, and standing awestruck at the base of one of Mexico’s tallest waterfalls, I couldn’t believe I had never heard of any of these places prior to living in Mexico!
Monterrey
If sleek cities and big events are more your speed, then Monterrey might be perfect for you! Monterrey is big, modern, and just a short flight away from many major US cities, which is why there’s a lot of international business that takes place here. There’s also one of the coolest stadiums in the world, so if you want to catch a soccer game (or a concert), Monterrey is a great place to do it! And just because it’s a major city doesn’t mean you can’t get your dose of nature while you’re there because the city is surrounded by the beautiful Sierra Madres, giving the city stunning views, but also offering nearby hiking and climbing options. Oh, and be sure to check out the thermal pools while you’re there – simplemente mágico!
San Luis Potosí
Rather than another week at the beach, you could choose to spend your time chasing waterfalls in San Luis Potosí instead. On the eastern side of this state, you’ll find the Huasteca Potosina, which is a region known for its abundance of waterfalls, turquoise rivers, and other unique natural features. There are a ton of itineraries for this part of Mexico because there is so much to see here! I took my parents on a road trip throughout this area, and we had the best time jumping from natural wonder to natural wonder. There aren’t so many large cities out this way, and you’ll definitely feel the jungle vibes, so if you like that kind of adventure, I can’t recommend San Luis Potosí enough.
Guadalajara
Ah, Guadalajara: one of my homes, and easily my favorite place in Mexico. Okay, yes, I’m aware I’m a little biased when it comes to this particular city, but I love it precisely because I know it so well! There’s so much fun to be had in GDL, and the food here is beyond incredible (perhaps only riveled by CDMX). In addition to the amazing city scene, there are several great day trips (less than an hour away) that you can easily fit into your trip as well, namely, Chapala, Tlaquepaque, and Tequila. There might not be a beach, but Chapala lies on a gorgeous lake not so far from the airport. Plus, Mexico’s pueblos mágicos are always fun, and Tlaquepaque and Tequila are two of the best. I mean, who doesn’t want to take a 45-minute all-you-can-drink train tour to the city where tequila was invented?
Querétaro
Another draw of Mexico’s interior is its colonial cities like Querétaro. With its gorgeous architecture, rich history, and cooler temperatures thanks to Central Mexico’s higher elevation – you really can’t go wrong! Querétaro is a picture-perfect city, and it, too, has a plethora of lovely day trip options. One of my favorites was the magic city Bernal, which is home to one of the largest monoliths in the world. Or if you’re a wine-lover, Querétaro is one of Mexico’s most famous wine regions. And if those things don’t draw you in, then maybe the name will because it has got to be the most fun state name to pronounce!
Mexico City (CDMX)
CDMX (or DF if you’re old enough) is La Capital, and rightfully so. Effortlessly cool with more to do than you could ever possibly manage on a vacation, and although I feel a rivalry of sorts due to my love of Guadalajara, even I can’t deny that CDMX is an amazing place to visit. Don’t let the size of the city scare you because that’s what allows you to do and see so much in a single city: massive plazas, gorgeous galleries, and the coolest museums, just to name a few of them. Nearby, you can also see what was the old Aztec capital, Teotihuacan, which will definitely leave an impression as well. Or equally memorable would be a trip out to El Rosario to see where millions of monarch butterflies overwinter every year. Honestly, so many things you can’t see on the beach!
Oaxaca
Or maybe witnessing one of Mexico’s many vibrant festivals like Día de Muertos or Día de la Independencia would be the way to go? Well, for that (and many other reasons) Oaxaca is another excellent choice. Oaxaca is located in southern Mexico, and if you just have to get to a beach (I hope you can hear my eyes roll as I type this) then you’re actually not too far from some of the best in Mexico. But beaches or no beaches, Oaxaca has a lot to offer as well. There’s an amazing mix of indigenous cultures there, which means an abundance of incredible festivals, bustling markets, and traditional food. Oaxaca is also the main producer of mezcal, so you can try just about any variety you can imagine. Definitely a great place for a fiesta!
Mérida
If you just can’t bear to part from your precious Cancún, then maybe you can at least divide your time between Quintana Roo and Yucatán. Mérida is the capital city of Yucatán, and it’s one of the most beautiful cities in the country. Mayan culture abounds here, and the best of all the Mayan ruins are nearby. If you haven’t seen at least Chichen Itza and Uxmal, then those should be your priority. Make sure you also try all the traditional Yucatán dishes like cochinita pibil, poc chuc, and papadzules. I promise, you will fall in love! And if you do choose to go to Mérida, you’ll only be short drive away from Riviera Maya and all the places that made it famous. Just make sure you save some time for the cenotes (they are far superior to the beach in my book).
Bacalar
Last but not least, I recommend beautiful Bacalar, another of the most peaceful places I’ve even been. Located on a crystal-clear lagoon, Bacalar is closer to Belize than it is to Cancún, but it’s still fairly close to the Caribbean coast. In fact, the lagoon looks a lot like the Caribbean and is famous for its shades of blue. To me, Bacalar is what Tulum was 20 years ago. Mass tourism hasn’t spoiled it yet, and I hope it never does because what makes Bacalar so amazing is its tranquility. If you want to relax in a hammock suspended over gorgeous blue water while a gentle breeze ruffles your hair, Bacalar is waiting.
Of course, these ten places only scratch the surface of what all Mexico has to offer, but I do hope that this gave you some idea as to the massive variety there is to be seen South of the Border. Cancún, Cabo, and Puerto Vallarta are nice in their own ways, but there’s truly so much more to discover!
Somehow this month marks ten years since Tucker and I first sold most of our belongings and moved abroad. We really had no idea what we were getting into or how we were going to maintain the kind of life we knew we wanted, and even now, I’m not sure I could tell you how exactly we’ve managed to continue moving abroad again and again. I think it’s mostly been an experiment in just how flexible we can be, which is fitting because that’s one of the first skills you develop when you move abroad!
Over the past ten years, we went from the US to Poland and back to the US (to pay off all our student loans), and then we headed to China for a few years and then back to the US (this time for global lockdown), and then onto Mexico, and now Canada. It’s been a crazy decade to say the least, but the places we’ve lived and the people we’ve met have continued to shape us year after year in innumerable ways. And for this month’s somewhat reflective post, I want to share some of the many ways we’ve changed and grown as a result of our expat ways.
Not so young anymore!
We’ve become flexible to the extreme
As I alluded to earlier, when I think of the many skills we’ve developed as a result of moving abroad, flexibility has to be at the top of the list. Whether it’s little things like using Celsius with some people and Fahrenheit with others or big things like not knowing where we’ll be living next year, we’ve gotten incredibly good at going with the flow. When I look back at my early observations from our first year abroad, it always makes me laugh at how hard it was for me to relinquish control. Now I feel like I struggle when I have too much control! It seems I’ve really grown to love letting the universe decide for me.
We’re totally fine with ambiguity
Another early observation I often made had to do with not always understanding what was going on around me. In unfamiliar places with new languages and customs, the level of ambiguity you experience on a daily basis skyrockets. Are we supposed to do something here? Should we ask about that? What does this mean? Questions like these and general uncertainty used to plague us. Until they didn’t. Until we learned that there’s really no wrong way, only different ways. Eventually, we also learned the difference between being expats as opposed to pioneers. Expats get to rely on the experiences of those who came before them, and we definitely do. But if/when that fails, we’ve also learned to simply accept not knowing.
Blissfully unaware as usual
We’re stoic bureaucracy-handlers
One of the most taxing parts of maintaining legal status as an expat has to be all the paperwork: visas, residencies, IDs, taxes, health cards, driver’s licenses, bank accounts, etc. The list is never-ending. After so many years and so many forms and appointments, I can very confidently say that bureaucracy is messy and incredibly frustrating everywhere. We now just assume every process will take a few attempts and several months (if not years) of our lives, which has really helped set expectations and allowed us to remain stoic and unfeeling while jumping through hoop after hoop after hoop. Government office waiting rooms are great places for mindful meditation, you know.
We’re accidental minimalists
In addition to becoming masters at handling immigration processes, we’ve also become expert movers. We know exactly what we need and want in our homes, and over the years, we’ve shed all the fluff. And whenever we happen to collect additional fluff, we’re systematic and unsentimental in removing it before the next move. People are often surprised that we’ve moved countries so many times with nothing but suitcases. Quite a few suitcases, but still. It’s actually pretty easy to do when I remember all the things we took on our first move that we never used. Or when I remember all the things we’ve used in a particular place that wouldn’t make sense anywhere else. These days we tend to take a lot more art with us and a lot fewer dead appliances.
We’re expert home-makers
Speaking of homes though, we’ve had a lot of them over the years. From country to country or even apartment to apartment, every place we’ve lived has always felt like home. Early on in our expat experience, someone advised me to prioritize setting up our home because we’d be surprised at how quickly “later” becomes “never”. Well, we took that to heart and always make sure our apartment is set up before tackling other tasks. We also work really hard to make sure we feel at home in the community as well, which means joining groups, meeting neighbors, learning names and faces. It can be difficult being the new people in town, but we’ve found the quicker we reach out, the quicker we feel at home.
We’re nothing if not adaptable
Another skill that makes itself known every time someone visits one of our far-flung homes is our adaptability. No dishwasher? No problem. Drinking hot water in summer? Sure, why not? Have to do everything over the phone? Got it. Everywhere we’ve called home has changed us in so many ways. Sometimes we forget what was normal for us before moving abroad because we’ve so strongly adapted to several different lifestyles now. This is how I know it doesn’t really matter where we live or what we do because the skill of adaptability is such a broad and encompassing one, that I know we’ll be just fine anywhere.
We’re always adopting new habits
Likely due to all the adapting we’ve had to do over the years, we’ve also gained quite an assortment of international habits. For example, at some point, we became a strict no-shoes-inside household, and when I think back to all the shoes that walked across our carpeted US apartment floors, I shudder. I also can’t believe we lived 25 years without an electric kettle! You’ll have to pry that out of our cold, dead hands now. Similarly, after living in both tea and coffee cultures, we now find ourselves enjoying both regularly. We also find ourselves checking sunset/sunrise times, the weather, and the air quality index more than most, which are all habits we picked up in different places at different times. It’s interesting to note which things stay behind in the places we leave versus which ones we take with us as the ghosts of homes’ past.
We’re an interesting mix of cultures to say the least
Similar to our eclectic mix of habits picked up from around the world, I would say that we ourselves have ended up a strange mix of all our homes. It’s rare that someone immediately places us as American. Even when hearing us speak, our accents don’t give much away, especially when speaking something other than English (you’re likely to hear a very strange combination of linguistic features depending on the day). We also have very strong inclinations toward European showerheads, the use of chopsticks, and what should and should not go on a taco. We self-identify as Polish-American-Canadian-Tapatío laowais, and we’ll happily talk your ear off about life in Poland, the US, Canada, Mexico, and/or China because each of those places is a part of us and always will be.
We’re excited to make every day an adventure
All these fun little quirks keep us tied to the places we used to call home, but one of the best parts of being a perpetual expat (no matter where we are) is the fact that every day becomes an adventure. The smallest tasks are new and exciting, and we never know what we’re going to learn. This is really why we keep doing it; why we haven’t “settled down” yet. We’ve learned to love the daily micro-adventures and mini-challenges that keep us on our toes and forever entertained. Every time we start over in a new place, we get to experience so many firsts again. We get to find a new set of favorites and develop new habits that only enhance our lives. An adventure a day certainly keeps the boredom away!
Definitely never boring!
We’re constantly learning and reflecting
And last, but not least, all this moving and growing and changing allows us to continually learn and reflect. Before each move, we get to look back at our time in a given place and reflect on everything we did, all the changes we experienced, and what we could or should have done differently if given the chance. And then…we get another chance! I sometimes refer to Poland as our “first pancake” because with hindsight, it’s easy to see how we’ve continually gotten better at being expats. All these skills (and more) have been honed over the years, and we’ve learned how to make the most of our time in the places we call home. Of course, we also realize just how lucky we are, so to all our homes: thank you, dziękuję, xièxie, gracias, and merci for the best decade of our lives!
As we settle into our new home, I’ve been busy reading and learning all I can about Québec City and its history. Honestly, I’ve become a little obsessed because there are just so many interesting stories and details, which I’m very excited to share. And since I learned a lot of this information through various walking tours, I decided to organize this into a sort of virtual walking tour for anyone to enjoy! On y va!
Stop 1: Parc des Gouverneurs
I want to start our little tour at the Parc des Gouverneurs, which sits right next to the famous Château Frontenac and has a beautiful view of the Saint Lawrence River. I think this is a great place to begin because from here you can see both sides of the river and Île d’Olréans, which is the official start of one of the largest estuaries in the world. An estuary is where a river turns into an ocean, and this particular narrowing is precisely why Québec City is where it is, and it’s also how the city (and the province) got its name. Québec means “where the river narrows” in Algonquin.
Partly due to its location, Québec City has played an important role in the history of North America. Founded in 1608, it was the first permanent settlement of what was then New France, and like many of Canada’s first cities, it started as a trading center. However, its strategic position and striking natural features are what prompted early explorers and settlers (first Cartier and then Champlain) to develop the area. Cartier couldn’t quite handle the harsh winters here, so he came and went a few times, but it was Samuel de Champlain who decided to buckle down and make Québec City a home.
Along with a small group of initial settlers, Champlain built the first habitation in Québec and quickly became known as the Father of New France, which is why his face is everywhere around the city. Well, not his face exactly. Apparently, Champlain never actually had a portrait done, so we don’t know what he looked like, and when the city started putting up statues of him, they had to just go with another noble-looking French guy instead. So, in all the artwork, statues, and history books, the man you’re looking at is not Champlain, but at least they stayed consistent with the image.
Stop 2: École des Ursulines
Our next stop is the École des Ursulines, which began as a monastery that was founded in 1639, making it the oldest educational institution for women in North America. One of the founders was Marie Guyart (aka Marie de I’Incarnation), a French widow turned nun, who came to Québec to educate young girls in the new colony. Because she had been married before and still had a son in France, she wrote thousands of letters about daily life in New France, the indigenous people of the region, and many other events that historians are still pouring over. For her contributions, she has been memorialized across the city and beyond.
Québec City (and all of its early inhabitants) really saw a lot of important events unfold in what was a fairly turbulent time for North America. Québec City sits on a 300ft cape situated at the narrowest point of a difficult-to-navigate river, meaning it was pretty intimidating even before all the fortifications, which is likely why there have only been a handful of battles fought here. The first battle is one of the most famous (and interesting) because it was won with a bit of psychological warfare. Louis de Baude de Frontenac, the Governor General at the time (1690), gave the iconic “I’ll answer the with the mouths of my cannons” line after blind-folding and tricking a scout into thinking Québec was much more battle-ready than it actually was.
Another famous battle took place here in 1759: the Battle of the Plains of Abraham, which is essentially how the British ended up with all of Canada. Interestingly, although the British won the battle, the generals on both sides, Wolfe (EN) and Montcalm (FR) are still well-represented throughout the city. Also, of interest is the fact that Montcalm’s remains were actually found beneath the floors of the École des Ursulines somewhat recently (2001) because one of the nuns ended up sharing that little piece of history on her deathbed. What a way to go out!
Stop 3: St-Louis Gate
Next, we’ll take a stroll over to the St-Louis Gate, one of the oldest gates in the city. The St-Louis Gate stretches over rue St-Louis, which was one of the first roads in Québec City as it led directly to Fort St-Louis, Champlain’s (and later several other Québec leaders’) official residence. The fortifications around all the city gates weren’t actually completed until a bit later, and the city wasn’t 100% walled-in until after 1820 when British troops finished the job. It was quite a job, too, because the walls stretch over 4.6kms (2.9mi). At one point, there were over 300 cannons lining the walls, which definitely added to Québec’s image as a hard-to-conquer city.
Of course, eventually, the wars ended and things settled down in North America, and Quebecers had to decide what they wanted to do with their fort of a city. Many wanted to tear down the walls and start over with more of an open-concept. However, another Governor General, Lord Dufferin, had a different idea. He had traveled extensively and knew that Québec’s walls were an architectural jewel that needed to be preserved, and thankfully, he was able to persuade everyone else. By preserving the fortifications, enlarging the city gates, and building a massive public boardwalk, Lord Dufferin ensured Québec City would be welcoming tourists long after he was gone.
The city’s infamous walls encircle what is now known as Vieux Québec (Old Québec), and in 1985, this section of the city became a UNESCO World Heritage site, meaning it’s now protected by international law. Lord Dufferin would be happy. However, life goes on and cities grow; therefore, there are a lot of important places outside the walls now too, including the Parliament Building of Québec, which was built in the late 1800s and was inspired by the Louvre – a somewhat obvious nod to France as opposed to Britain. Old habits die hard it seems.
Stop 4: Overlook at St-Jean
Another important part of the city that technically lies outside the fortifications is Basse-Ville (or Lowertown). This part of the city is important for many reasons, one of which is the fact that I live here. 😊 But I’m not the only one! La Basse-Ville was, historically, where the average Quebecers lived, the working-class people, and Haute-Ville (or Uppertown), which is now known as Vieux Québec, was where the upper classes lived: governors, doctors, lawyers, etc. Funny how it still sort of works like that, non? I can attest Basse-Ville is definitely cheaper than Haute-Ville.
And nothing makes me feel the socio-economical difference more than when I have to make the trek up to Vieux Québec. Cape Diamant was great for battles and enemy intimidation, but it’s also tough on the knees! There are approximately 30 staircases throughout the city connecting Basse-Ville to Haute-Ville. Our closest staircase is Lépine, which has 118 stairs going straight up the cliff. Perhaps the most famous staircase though would be Casse-Cou (or “Breakneck”). It’s located in the oldest part of Basse-Ville, and has a bit of a rough history. The stairs, much like the neighborhood itself, were often in disrepair and led to many accidents, thus the name.
Interestingly, you’ll see a lot of buildings high-up on the cape, but you won’t see so many high buildings in general in Québec City. That’s because the two skyscrapers that were built in the Old Town really ticked off the locals at the time, forcing them to enact a law banning any buildings over 7 stories tall. The two buildings in question were allowed to stay, however. One is the Price Building (1929) which was originally a lumber firm’s headquarters, but now houses the Premier of Québec, and the other is an addition to Hôtel-Dieu de Québec (a teaching hospital), which obviously had good intentions, but was really quite ugly.
Stop 5: Morrin Centre
Now onto a few buildings that are anything but ugly, starting with the Morrin Centre. This building has quite a varied history and is so well-hidden in the heart of the city that I might never have known about it if not for the walking tours. It was originally the city’s prison, and despite its stately appearance, you can still pretty easily see where the bars were attached to the windows. Unfortunately, it wasn’t long before the city needed a larger prison (which was built on the Plains of Abraham and is now an art gallery), so the Morrin Centre became an English college. Today, it still functions as an English library and cultural center that has fun events like Victorian-style teatimes and summer reading clubs.
Right next to the Morrin Centre/English library is an old church turned French library, Maison de la Littérature. I absolutely love the relationship between English and French here in Canada, but particularly in Québec, it never ceases to amaze me! Early on in my studies of Canadian history I wondered how Québec remained so French given the fact that the English took over in the 1700s. Surprisingly, it’s because of the US. The British during that time were so afraid the French would swap sides and join the Americans that they signed the Québec Act ensuring Québec could keep their language and local laws as long as they wouldn’t fight against them. Well, they never did and have kept their French-ness ever since.
The Morrin Centre and Maison de la Littérature are great examples of something Québec City has done amazingly well time and time again: historical site conversion. It seems there’s not a building around that doesn’t have an extensive and diverse history, which is why I keep reading every sign and every plaque I come across. There’s a museum that used to be the old city vault, a private club that was once a military barracks, and pretty much every restaurant downtown was someone’s house at some point. 400+ years is a long time for social institutions, but not so long for buildings.
Stop 6: Notre-Dame
Next stop: church. La Notre-Dame de Québec to be exact. While not the oldest church in the city (we’ll get there soon), Notre-Dame de Québec has its fair share of interesting stories and facts as well. First, it has burned down and been rebuilt three times since its original 1647 construction date, which is pretty impressive in and of itself. You might also notice that there’s only one completed bell tower giving the church a unique, asymmetrical look. Well, that was actually due to a miscalculation on the architect’s part, which resulted in it being deemed unsafe to finish. Oopsies!
And while it might not have all its intended bell towers, it does have something super rare: a Holy Door. There are only a handful of Holy Doors in the world, the vast majority of which being in Italy, so this one (the only one in the Americas) is quite special. What is a Holy Door you ask? Well, I’m not quite sure. It’s only opened on jubilees, so I’ll have to wait a number of years for the chance to walk through it and experience its power myself. What I can say is that, currently, it’s sealed very much like the Pope’s door during the Conclave, which is still pretty cool to see.
While we’re on the topic of the city’s religious history, we should also take a look at the Séminaire de Québec, which is right next door to Notre-Dame. The Seminary of Québec is often touted as the oldest educational institution in Canada, and its buildings still house several schools today, including many departments of L’Université de Laval, the first French-language university in North America and the oldest university in Canada. You’ll see and hear the name Laval quite often in Québec because he was New France’s first bishop.
Stop 7: Château Frontenac
It’s finally time for the structure that dominates pretty much any photo of Québec City, Le Château Frontenac! Earlier, I mentioned Fort St-Louis as one of the first buildings in the city (aka Champlain’s home). Well, the Château Frontenac and Lord Dufferin’s boardwalk are actually sitting on top of the ruins of Fort St-Louis. In fact, you can see quite a bit of them on display beneath the boardwalk. Also, on the boardwalk is a massive statue of Champlain (but not his face, remember). Two other interesting facts about this statue: one, it was actually designed by an architect who survived the Titanic, and two, the base is made of the same stone as that of the Arc de Triomphe – connections to France abound!
The Château Frontenac itself wasn’t built until 1893, and despite the name, it isn’t actually a castle. It was built as a hotel, and that’s what it’s always been. Like the Château Laurier in Ottawa, it’s one of the Pacific Railway Hotels, which are all incredible pieces of architecture spread across the whole of Canada. Another interesting fact about the Château Frontenac is that the main tower, arguably its most distinguishing feature, was an afterthought, added in 1924. The hotel has actually had a lot of work done over the years, including the addition of a pool and fitness center, which was done solely to maintain its coveted 5-Star status.
As you can imagine, many famous people have graced the halls of this amazing building: Queen Elizabeth, Winston Churchill, FDR, Princess Grace of Monaco, Charlie Chaplin, Céline Dion, Paul McCartney, and Leonardo DiCaprio, just to name a few. There are 610 rooms/suites in the hotel, and thanks to some progressively-minded designers, there is no hierarchy to the placement of the various rooms and suites. You could book their cheapest room and end up on the top floor with a view of the St-Lawrence. Of course, even the cheapest room is still around $300, but still.
Stop 8: Montmorency Park
Walking down one of the many staircases in the city, we cross Prescott Gate and come to a stop in Montmorency Park. Now a beautiful park somewhat between Basse-Ville and Haute-Ville, Montmorency was first a farm. Actually, the first farm in New France, created by two of the early settlers: Louis Hébert and Marie Rollet. They were one of the first pioneer families in Canada and have come to represent a lot of the early values of the region: perseverance, adaptability, amity, etc. Across from the park, you can see (and smell) Mary’s popcorn, which I think is a lovely connection between the region’s entrepreneurs, both past and present.
As the farm gave way to modern building projects, Montmorency later became the site of one of the first parliament buildings of the United Provinces of Canada. In 1864, the British North America Act, a founding document of modern-day Canada, was actually drafted there. Unfortunately, a fire destroyed the building in 1883, which is when the city decided to move Parliament outside the Old Town (for safety reasons, of course).
From Montmorency Park, you can also see the Casse-Cou stairs, which take you down into Quartier Petit-Champlain. This is the neighborhood I mentioned earlier that has a bit of a rough history. Basse-Ville was where the working class lived, and so there was never a lot of money there. But there has always been an entrepreneurial spirit! Petit-Champlain is often sited as the continent’s first commercial district, and when you look down its bustling streets lined with business after business, that’s really easy to believe.
Stop 9: Place Royale
But the heart of Basse-Ville has to be Place Royale (or Royal Plaza). This was where the first settlers stepped off the boat and began their lives as a new colony. The first permanent buildings were built on this square along with the first church. You can still see the foundation stones for the second habitation among the cobblestones of the square. Also in the square, stands a bust of King Louis XIV, and although it isn’t the same bust from the 1600s, there has almost always been a bust in that exact spot, forever linking the histories of Québec and France.
Interestingly, the king never actually stepped foot in Québec even though he was the lawful ruler, but he did manage to help the colony from afar. In the early days, the colony struggled with population issues. In particular, not enough women were there to ensure the desired population growth, so King Louis started a program where he would give a dowry and land to any females willing to journey to New France and start a family. Usually, these were orphans or widows who felt that this was their best option for a stable future, and so they became known as the King’s Daughters.
The King’s Daughters made up such a large percentage of the early population in Québec that many North American celebrities have been able to trace their lineage back to one of the daughters: Hilary Clinton, Madonna, Angelina Jolie, and Tom Bergeron being among them. Honestly, Québec City has a lot of ties to various celebrities. Since the city basically looks like a movie set and also has the practical, money-saving advantage of being on the same continent as Hollywood, many movies that take place in Europe are actually filmed here. Alfred Hitchcock’s “I Confess!” and Steven Spielberg’s “Catch Me If You Can”, for example.
Stop 10: Royal Battery
And now we’ve come to the last stop on this (maybe not-so-little) tour. The Royal Battery is the end of the line so to say. It’s where the city meets the river. Here you can see the ferry that travels across the St-Lawrence to Lévis, the often-forgotten little brother of Québec City. You can also find fishing expeditions or whale watching tours departing from these quays; this is where the river turns to ocean after all. When there’s no ice in the water, you might also see cruise ships and yachts docking at the Old Port, which I like to imagine is just as exciting as when Champlain and other early explorers rolled up in their ships.
From the Royal Battery, it’s easy to imagine how tough it would have been to take Québec City by sea. The British only managed a win because they fought on the Plains of Abraham (flat ground beyond the walls of the city). During the Revolutionary War, Generals Benedict Arnold and Richard Montgomery thought they’d give it a shot with the Siege of Québec, but it went very badly for them, and no one has tried since. Thus, Québec City gets to keep its impressive win/loss record.
Near the battery, you’ll also find the funicular, which leads back up to Haute-Ville, where we started this adventure. The funicular entrance is located in a house that dates back to 1682 and used to belong to Louis Jolliet, another famous North American explorer you might have heard of. Really everywhere you look in Québec City there’s another piece of the gigantic puzzle that is our history just waiting to fit into place. One of Québec City’s nicknames is The Old Capital, but I see it more as an entryway. Here you can enter North America, but you can also enter the annals of history. Hope you enjoyed the journey!
We’re almost halfway through April, and we’ve now officially been living in Québec for six weeks, which is crazy since it feels like the move was just last weekend, but that’s how the first few months always go. We get caught up in a daze of setting things up, collecting documents, making appointments, etc. But luckily, this isn’t our first rodeo! Not only are we completely on top of all our paperwork and logistical tasks, but we’ve also made good progress on our observations list. So how different is Québec from Ottawa? Well, here are the first few things that have caught our attention:
The French
Of course, the absolute first thing on the list has to be the use of French. While Ottawa is fairly bilingual, and we definitely got quite a bit of French exposure there, English was still absolutely the reigning language, sometimes even in Gatineau (which is technically in the province of Quebec). In Québec City, however, we’re not only expected to use French 100% of the time, we’re actually legally required to after six months of living here, which is honestly really great motivation!
The Salutations
Living in multi-story apartment buildings means we tend to have a lot of neighbors, so we’re usually pretty quick to notice how (and how often) acquaintances interact, like in an elevator, the lobby, the parking garage, etc. In Ottawa, most people kept to themselves or smiled politely in passing, but here in Québec, it’s a steady stream of “bonne journées” and “bonne soirées” no matter how brief your interaction is. It reminds me so much of all the “buenos días” and “buenas tardes” we got in Mexico, and it immediately feels so welcoming!
We’re in a Port City
Ottawa is definitely a water city of sorts with two major rivers and a canal running through it, but Québec is even more water-forward. The Québec City icon is fittingly a ship, and with ferries being a common means of transport, international cruise ships docking nearby, and whale watching tours every weekend, we’re not just between rivers anymore, we’re practically seafaring. At least the seagulls make more sense here.
Bizarre Hours
I have no idea if this is a French thing or a Quebec thing or a Québec City thing, but we have noticed that stores, restaurants, and pretty much every kind of business here has bizarre hours. Monday 8:30-4, Tuesday 9-6, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday 10-2…I mean, what? Do they just like to keep us guessing or is there some hidden meaning behind these choices? We definitely need more time to investigate.
Definitely not easy to remember…
Laidback Vibes
This might have more to do with Ottawa being the nation’s capital and less to do with Québec, but we’ve definitely noticed things are a little less official here. Our car registration (ou immatriculation) is printed on regular printer paper rather than fancy cardstock, our lease paperwork was submitted while we were still missing a few things, and we’ve gotten several messages along the lines of “X will be sent to you at a later date”. Definitely feels like a slower pace here in general.
Flashing Green Lights
Another thing we immediately noticed (and subsequently had to google) are the flashing green lights or “advanced greens”. Very often in Québec, you’ll come to a stop light and the green light will be flashing, which we learned means it’s basically both a green light and a green arrow. Apparently, this is common in a lot of Canadian provinces (including Ontario), but we had never seen it or at least not regularly enough to really register a difference.
Pedestrian-friendly
Ottawa is pretty pedestrian-friendly as well, but in Québec (at least downtown) the crosswalks are set up to allow for regular double crossing. Instead of waiting for the lights to change and basically taking your turn to cross when the flow of traffic changes direction, cars will be stopped in all directions allowing people to cross diagonally if they want/need. This and the no-touch crossing sensors make this particular pedestrian so happy!
Vestiges from France
I didn’t know how else to label this one, but smoking is much more common here. And by smoking, I mean cigarettes. We went from smelling a lot of marijuana in Ottawa to smelling a lot of cigarettes in Québec, and I can’t help but feel the cultural influences in that.
Drinking Culture
In a similar vein, Ontario seemed pretty strict when it came to alcohol sales/consumption. It was rare to see alcohol (even beer and wine) sold in stores, but in Quebec, that’s the norm. BYOB is also more frequent here, and it’s custom to bring wine to a park for a picnic.
Food Culture
We’ve also noticed a lot differences when it comes to food. The groceries here are overall cheaper, yet the selection of “fancy” food is definitely wider. There are like three types of caviar sold at the grocery store right next to our building, and if you wanted to try each type of cheese sold there, you’d need a few years. Restaurants here also seem to be a bit fancier – for example, there are fewer fast-casual options than in Ottawa, but way more multi-course menus.
Still a hard “no” from me though.
Louder
We lived downtown in both cities, and we’re used to hearing a fair amount of shouting, singing, and laughing (especially on the weekends), but I think Québécois voices are literally just louder. Now we can hear the actual words being said, and even the volume of regular conversations here seems to be louder than what we grew accustomed to in Ottawa. Probably still not as loud as our country of origin, but a noticeable difference from the last two years nonetheless.
Colder, Windier, & More Humid
We had our suspicions about the weather being more extreme in Québec. I mean, we are further north and east, both of which usually get hit pretty hard, but we kind of thought we’d need a few months before we noticed if it was really much different. Turns out, we didn’t need long at all. The added humidity and constant wind means that the same temperature feels quite a bit colder. We keep seeing temperatures slightly above freezing, and then step outside only to realize that the real feel is significantly lower. Damp, windy cold is definitely tougher.
Snow-ready
Of course, both Ottawa and Québec are great at handling large amounts of snow, but it seems that they tackle the problem in different ways. Ottawa LOVES salt. The city and its inhabitants go hard on salting everything. Québec uses a mix of salt and sand, meaning that things are a bit slushier here. And maybe for that reason, it’s really common for buildings and houses here to put up tents in their driveways/entryways to keep the slush (and additional shoveling) at bay.
So that’s what we have on our list so far, but as usual, we plan to keep learning and sharing as we go. I’m sure by now it’s pretty apparent that these little differences are one of our favorite things about moving to a new place. Even one province over, there are just so many things to observe! How cool is that?
We did it! We took a 4-day trip to Yellowknife, Northwest Territories in February with only a backpack each and the clothes on our backs. Did people question our decision? Yes. Did our friends and family worry about us when checking the weather? Yes. Would we do it all again? Gladly! Yellowknife exceeded every expectation we had for it, and in this month’s post, I’m going to share some of what surprised us so much about this city in the far north of Canada.
The Remoteness
The first surprise actually came when we took a closer look at our flight times. Of course, we know Canada is huge, but we weren’t flying from end to end, more like from east middle to north middle. Regardless, we were in the air for over 7 hours to get from Ottawa to Yellowknife. It would have been faster to fly to Europe! We also flew in on a prop plane, which was another indication that we weren’t headed to a super populous place. And when we looked out the windows of that prop plane and saw literally nothing from Edmonton to Yellowknife (roughly 1,500 km), the message really sank in: we were in the middle of a vastness I’m not sure we’ve ever experienced before.
While we did end up feeling very isolated at first, the longer we were in Yellowknife, the more it felt like, well, Canada. We stopped by a Shopper’s Drug Mart, we got President’s Choice brand snacks, and we still had français to read on all the signage. We were also surprised that the prices of things weren’t as high as we had thought. We had been sure we’d see a crazy increase on all the groceries and food stuffs that had to be shipped in from beyond far away, but it really wasn’t too bad. There were definitely limited options, but overall, not too different from a similar sized city in Ontario or Quebec. The only thing that really stuck out as being outrageously priced was any beer outside of NWT Brewing Co. At one restaurant, we saw $14 Heinekens! Talk about not worth it…
The Cold
We specifically chose to go to Yellowknife in winter because we like the cold, and we wanted to experience the extreme cold of the Canadian hinterland. For weeks ahead of our trip, we tracked Yellowknife’s weather, so we could be as prepared as possible. We had already been to places like Bergen, Norway and Ushuaia, Argentina in their respective cold seasons, and we took those trips without boots or proper winter coats, so all things considered, we were absolutely better equipped for this trip than any that came before it. But did that really matter when we were standing outside in “feels like” -50°F? Not so much lol. We had actually heard several times, from several different people that after you get below -30 or so, it all just feels cold. However, I very much beg to differ; -40 definitely felt much colder than -30.
FahrenheitCelcius
Fortunately, some things did come back to us when dealing with the extreme cold. We remembered the feeling of our eyelashes and nose hairs freezing. We quickly remembered the importance of breathing through your nose only. And once again, we fell back on the age-old lesson: you get what you pay for. Our $30 thermal socks have probably saved a few toes at this point. If I could give any advice to future Canadians or fellow cold weather travelers, you’re absolutely better off buying the expensive gear from the start – it’s expensive because it’s truly the only thing that works.
We learned some new things during our time in Yellowknife as well though. It seems we do, in fact, fear the cold a lot more than the average NWT visitor (let alone resident/native). We opted to take the car pretty much any time we left after dark, mostly because that scene in “To Build a Fire” constantly replayed in our heads every time we took off our gloves! Also, you absolutely cannot function with glasses outdoors in Yellowknife, and even if you don’t need glasses, the cold weather can still really mess with your eyes. Our eyes struggled big time with the cold, the dryness, the ice crystals, the snow blindness, etc. It really felt like everything was out to hurt our eyes in Yellowknife!
The Lights
We have been super lucky with our northern lights sightings in Canada so far. Last May there was a big solar storm, and we actually saw them just about an hour north of Ottawa, so for this trip, we had our fingers crossed, but there wasn’t much pressure on the situation. And maybe that was key, because three of our four nights were full of gorgeous light shows. The colors were so much more vibrant and watching the lights spread out across such an expansive sky was absolutely incredible. Something we didn’t even know to account for in Ottawa were all the mountains and trees that would occasionally block our view of the lights, but we didn’t have that problem when standing on a massive frozen lake!
And just in case I never get around to writing anything about northern lights viewings in general, there are a few things I would have liked to know beforehand. 1) You must let your eyes adjust to the lights. They seem faint at first, but the more you watch, the clearer they become. 2) They move really quickly across the sky and make all sorts of crazy shapes. 3) There is no “peak time” so to say. They’re somewhat like storm clouds; they appear and disappear based on solar activity, so any forecasts are bound to be unreliable at best. 4) The darker it is, the brighter the lights appear, but neither the darkness nor the intensity matter if it’s cloudy, so if you’re hunting northern lights, pick a place known for having an abundance of clear nights. 5) Pictures simply can’t do the lights justice, not even those that have clearly been altered.
The Dettah Ice Road
One of the most surprising experiences of this trip was our time on the Dettah Ice Road. When doing some research on Yellowknife, I came across the Dettah Ice Road listed as a tourist attraction and thought it sounded cool, but actually experiencing it and realizing that it’s not really a tourist attraction at all put it at the top of my list of reasons to visit Yellowknife in winter. The Dettah ice road is exactly what it sounds like: a road made of ice that leads to Dettah, a village southeast of Yellowknife. Usually, you have to drive about 27 km (17 miles) around Yellowknife Bay to get to Dettah, but in winter, since the Great Slave Lake completely freezes over, you can cut right across the bay and drive straight there (only 6.5 km/4 miles). The road itself is amazing! It looks like it’d be slippery or somehow feel different from a normal road, but no, it was business as usual driving across. Well, except for the blinding sun reflecting off the ice and all the cool photo ops along the way. Another incredible thing to experience!
The Yellowknives Dene
As part of our on-going comparison between Canada’s provinces and territories, we were excited to see the influence of the various indigenous groups of Yellowknife as well. Like a lot of Canadian cities, the name Yellowknife comes from a name given to a specific First Nations group, but unlike other Canadian cities, that First Nations group still makes up a considerable portion of the city’s population. Interestingly, the “city” of Yellowknife didn’t really exist until the gold rush of 1934, but the Yellowknives Dene had been settled there for hundreds of years; therefore, the majority of the region’s history revolves around these indigenous groups and how they helped outsiders acclimate to the extremes of the Northwest Territories. Today, their influence can easily be seen in the government, language, and culture of the region.
The Variety
When I shared our Yellowknife photos on social media, there were so many people who said things like “better you than me” or “too cold for me”, but I think the extremes are part of what makes Yellowknife such an intriguing destination. It was perfect for us, cold-loving freaks, but if you visit in August, you could be swimming in the lake rather than driving across it. The variety of activities Yellowknife has to offer is absolutely amazing, and that’s in each and every season. It’s not too often that Tucker and I make it back to a destination (at least not without many years in between), but Yellowknife might just be one we HAVE to see in another season. It also compelled me to move Whitehorse and Iqaluit (the capitals of the other two Canadian territories) up on our to-visit list, so stay tuned!
This was definitely a trip to remember, and for that, all I can say is a huge thank you to Yellowknife for treating us so well and an additional shoutout to all the winter gear we’ve been collecting over the last two years – it really came in clutch here!
Happy 2025! How strange to think we’re already a quarter of a century into this millennium. As I’ve shared before, I absolutely love this time of year, not only because I love winter, but also because I love beginnings. I find it really exciting to think about the year ahead and all the things we’ll do and see, and since we’ve got a few bigger changes on the horizon (as well as exciting travel plans, as usual), I thought I’d share a little life update for those who are trying to keep track of us, especially if you want to keep your address book current…which, honestly, good luck! 😆
Our Next Move
So, as you might have deduced, we are in fact moving again! We’ve been in Ottawa for just about two years now, so my feet are definitely starting to itch. Plus, I’ve been feeling extremely lazy as far as my language use is concerned. I mean, I could use French in Ottawa, but English is more common and obviously much less work for me; therefore, in addition to having a new home base to explore, I’m also looking forward to being forced out of my linguistic comfort zone much more frequently. So, with those things in mind, we have chosen to move to…drumroll, please…Québec City!
Look how pretty!
The good news is this move doesn’t feel quite as tricky as past moves because we’re only crossing provincial borders, not international borders, so there’s infinitely less paperwork! Hooray! The bad news is we decided on March 1st as our move-in day, so we only have 50-odd days to make this happen. Oh, and it’s the dead of winter. Good thing I like a challenge!
You might be wondering why we chose Québec City instead of Montreal or pretty much any another city in Quebec since they’d all meet our very basic requirements of A) somewhere we’ve never lived before and B) French-speaking, and, honestly, you wouldn’t be alone in that. Just like when we chose Ottawa over Montreal or Toronto, people were a little confused, and well, I guess we’re doing it again. What can we say other than I think we must just be drawn to over-shadowed cities. Also, Québec City is even further north, so I’m hoping for even more snow and longer, colder winters! Who’s with me?!
On the Job Front
The next most common question we get after “Why QC?” is “What about your jobs?” Well, Tucker will be keeping his current job, just as a fully remote employee (again). He was actually hired as a remote employee back in 2023, but it just so happened that the umbrella company of the team that hired him had an office in Ottawa, which is how he became a “hybrid” employee in the first place. Anyway, since his entire team is remote (and spread quite far across the US and Canada), he doesn’t expect much of a difference for him aside from no more snowy commutes.
My job situation is a little less obvious at the moment. Duolingo is…going through…some…things right now, and they have not opted to renew my contract (at least not yet…but also, maybe never…?), so I’m in somewhat of a transitional phase. I’m not sure if I want to continue freelancing/working remotely or if when we move, I might want to teach in-person again. Honestly, I’m also playing around with the idea of applying for literally anything bilingual in an effort to improve my workplace French, so really, who knows what I’ll be doing this spring, but if you happen to know someone who needs a Quebec-based linguist/teacher/writer, do let me know!
Guess it’s time to update all the things…
What about Jenn?
Obviously, Jenn will be coming with us to Québec City, and I doubt the slight change in climate and scenery will matter much to her. She’s definitely got her snow legs now, and her much-loved heating pad will be making the journey with us as well, so no worries there. We’re also only looking at apartments that have balconies, entirely so she can sunbathe in the summer months. Plus, we have promised her that we’ll choose somewhere nearer the equator after Canada, so she can officially start her retirement somewhere warm and sunny (as she should).
Looking Ahead
Of course, where that next place might be is still a bit of a mystery, even for us. We’re planning on spending at least another two years in Canada, which will hopefully allow us to gain citizenship, enabling us to come and go as we please (without having to keep up with the paperwork). However, to complete this process, we’ll have to reside in the country for over three years, apply, take, and pass an exam and interview, and then wait a bit longer for everything to process. So, for now, we’re keeping track of the various deadlines, continuing to learn what it means to be Canadian-American, and just enjoying our time in the Great White North.
Actually, with all this time on our hands, we’re now toying around with the idea of buying property here, fixing it up, and then renting it out when we leave. Unfortunately, I have such a fear of commitment and strings that I’m really not sure we’ll go through with it, but we do love a good project and doing anything new, so stay tuned! We’ll most likely rent for at least six months to a year before we’d take that particular step, but if we do, I’m sure I’ll have a lot to share about the process!
Other Fun Things
We have plenty of other fun plans for 2025 as well! Tucker is going to be putting in more effort on his French now (he basically has no choice); we both dabbled in running a bit more last summer and are eager to start that up again when the temperatures rise a bit; and as a surprise to no one, we’ve got a plethora of trips planned for this year. Next month, we’re off to Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories to hopefully see some more aurora and find out how much colder -40 feels. Then we’re looking at Newfoundland in the spring, Peru in July, Maine after that, and a family trip to Central America in the fall if we can swing it! And as always, our offer of hosting anyone who’s interested in visiting our home city is still good, so maybe we’ll see some of you in Québec City later this year!
Honestly, 2025 has a lot to live up to, but it’s off to a great start, and I can’t wait to see how it all shakes out! Happy New Year everyone!
Ah, December. The pinnacle of the holiday season, the last month of the year, and the official start of winter – yay! Last winter was our first in Canada, and we gleaned so much information. For example, we know that the first snow Ottawa had last year was on October 30th, and the last snow of the season was on April 24th. The coldest day was January 19th at -20°C (approximately -5°F), but overall, it was really a very mild winter. I, personally, hope this year we get a lot more snow and a much longer stretch of extremely low temperatures. How else will I put all our new northern climate knowledge to the test? Knowledge like:
Preparation is Key
One of the first surprises we encountered last winter was just how much preparation both the city and its inhabitants have to do before winter. Everyone started putting out salt chests and snow markers well before the first snowstorm. Businesses added tents and flaps to entranceways; boot trays and coat racks were everywhere, and we even saw insulated porta-potties at nearby construction sites. For our part, we were focused on acquiring all the right winter clothing, which I’m happy to say was well worth whatever we paid for it all! We also had to buy quite a few car accessories, such as shovels, scrapers, sand, winter tires, and non-freezing windshield wiper fluid. This time around, it has been less buying and more restocking, but still, the preparation really makes for a smoother transition.
Probably still quite cold…These things are everywhere!Time for the seasonal tire switchNow we have quite the collectionGreat for keeping the salt and any Amazon packages dry lol
Everything Takes a Little Longer
So many layers!
Even after all the preparation was taken care of, we were still surprised by how much longer literally everything takes in winter! Getting dressed, lacing up boots multiple times a day, warming up the car, walking carefully on the ice – it all adds up like we couldn’t believe! Maybe this year I’ll time how long it takes to get the three of us dressed and ready to go outside because I’d guess it’s an extra 10-15 minutes every time. The other time-suck that I didn’t even think about prior to having such long winters was how much more laundry we have. When you’re wearing so many more layers every day, it really turns into a mountain of laundry after just a couple of days.
Winter is Kinda Messy
This is why Canada is shoes off.
Having only lived in northern climates as a child (and/or for short periods of time), I was completely unaware of just how messy snowy winters can be. Everyone walks inside constantly dripping on the floor – the floors of restaurants, our building’s lobby, and worst of all, the entryway of our apartment. It didn’t take long for me to put an extra mat and towels by the door (yay, more laundry), but it doesn’t matter because there’s no containing it all. And you might be thinking, “hey, no big deal, water dries”, which is true, except this isn’t just water. It’s salted, which means everything gets a nice crusty white layer of salt even after it’s dry. The salt and sludge obviously got to the car as well, and we ended up having to get a carwash halfway through last winter because we literally couldn’t see out of the windows. I’m pretty sure I could count on one hand the number of times we’ve ever washed our car, and I would have never thought we’d have to wash it in the dead of winter!
There’s Quite a Bit of Extra Work
Okay, so we learned you have to prepare in advance, spend more time than usual, and always expect a mess, which, of course, requires some extra work, but the amount of extra work really kept surprising us! Scrape this, shovel that, clear a path for the dog to get to the “grass” because the snow walls are taller than she is! On and on it goes! Jenn, too, has to put a bit more effort into her daily tasks. She has to endure the multiple layers of clothing, scale snowdrifts when looking for a place to pee, and get wiped down whenever she comes back inside – all to her chagrin. On the bright side, I do feel like we still meet our exercise quotas because walking in the snow and scraping ice are definitely high calorie-burning activities!
So much fun!Good thing she’s adaptable!
So Many New Tricks to Learn
Another huge positive is that we developed a whole new set of skills. The best way to stomp excess snow off your boots? We know it. The best way to layer for easy transitioning between indoors and out? We’ve got it down. We’re also now very attuned to the sounds of the snow plows, which comes in handy, and I’m very happy to report that I didn’t fall on the ice even once last year (which I cannot say about our first Polish winter). I’d also add that we’re now very good at switching between Fahrenheit and Celsius, and we’re pretty much experts in interpreting the various weather alerts and winter vocabulary, regardless of the source. If you want to know more about the difference between hail, freezing rain, and sleet, I got you fam.
Lots of Surprises
All in all, I think we took everything pretty well in stride last year, but there were still a few things that we just didn’t believe until we experienced them ourselves. For example, our neighbors told us to watch out for the sunny days because they’re often the coldest, and wow, they were absolutely right! Apparently, clouds signal warmer temperatures – who knew?! We were also extremely surprised by how quick and easy it was to do some of the winter challenges, like freezing ramen noodles in mid-air. It took less than ten minutes! Another thing we didn’t think much about was how gas mileage would be affected, nor did we think we’d even notice if it was. Spoiler, we absolutely did. And perhaps most surprisingly, it didn’t take long at all for 0°C (32°F) to not really feel all that cold. After a week at -10°C (15°F), hovering right around freezing felt downright balmy.
Luckily, It’s Incredibly Fun and Beautiful!
I know most people reading this will say things like “that’s why I hate winter” or “I never want to live somewhere like that”, but even with these added challenges, we had an absolute blast last winter and are so eager to do it all again (hopefully just a little more efficiently this time). Winter is definitely still my favorite season even if it does require a bit more effort up here. In fact, I’d say we actually enjoyed it more because of those extra efforts. Ultimately, it was fun to slow down, get a little messy, and learn a plethora of new things. For me, winters like these are so fun and so beautiful that I quickly forget about any negatives. So, who wants to come visit us in January and see for yourselves? Our winter wonderland will be waiting!
It’s officially November, which means we’re situated about halfway between the two Thanksgivings, and I think that calls for another food-related post! About this time last year, I wrote about some of our most memorable meals, which was fun and nostalgic, but this year, I wanted a challenge. For this month’s post, Tucker and I debated long and hard to come up with a list of the top ten best things we’ve ever eaten (in no particular order).
Sounds easy, doesn’t it? It was NOT. We struggled with remembering, with choosing, and ultimately with agreeing on a mere ten dishes out of the thousands of meals we’ve enjoyed over the years. But the hardest part, by far, was realizing it’ll be years and years before we can taste all these things again! Ugh! Oh well, let’s all make ourselves hungry, starting with…
Chongqing noodles from pretty much any noodle shop in Chongqing, China
I am borderline obsessed with noodles. I eat them several times a week in one form or another, so of course, a noodle dish had to be on this list. Surprisingly, I didn’t have too much trouble in choosing my absolute favorite noodles I’ve ever had. Probably because I had them every day for about a week while visiting Western China. What makes them so special? If I had to guess, I’d say it’s a few thousand years of practice. But it might also just be the perfect combination of thick noodles, spicy sauce, and crunchy toppings.
La Sauvagine Fondant from St Hubert in Gatineau, Québec
A somewhat surprising and recent addition to our list is an appetizer we ordered on a whim just last month. We were at one of our favorite restaurants here in Canada and happened to see a melted cheese dish that looked intriguing. Well, not only was it intriguing, it was absolutely addictive! We actually went back and had it again the very next week, which if you know Tucker, you know how big a deal that is. La Sauvagine, the main component, is a soft cheese from Québec to which they add dried cranberries, bacon, pumpkin seeds, green onions, and maple syrup all melted together in a skillet and served with grilled ciabatta. Oh mon dieu!
Sonoran specialties from Mochomos in Aguascalientes, México
Next up is really more of the entire menu than one specific dish, but if we had to choose just one, we could and it would still be on this list. Mochomos is a Sonoran-style restaurant with several branches in North and Central Mexico. Their concept is “Requeza Sonorense” or Sonoran Wealth, which means they highlight the best ingredients from the region in a simple but elegant way. The cortes, or cuts of meat, are the biggest draw, and they are done to perfection, but the sweet and spicy sesame panela is the dish we found ourselves going back for.
Zupy i kotlety from Gospoda Koko in Kraków, Poland
This was one dish we had a little trouble naming, but it stood out so clearly in our minds that we had to put it on the list. Tucked away on one of the many side streets of Kraków’s Old Town, there’s a rustic-looking restaurant (think hay and chickens) that’s still using handwritten menus, and they make the most delicious, homey Polish dishes that we’ve ever had outside of a Polish home. Both times we were there we shared a bowl of rosół (chicken noodle soup) and a plate of meat, sauce, and potatoes, which we’re still trying to recreate at home…to no avail, of course.
Brisket on weck sandwich from Fat Bob’s Smokehouse in Buffalo, New York
Beef on weck is a Buffalo staple made up of thinly sliced roast beef served on a kummelweck bread roll topped with salt and caraway seeds, and it’s really good! But when a place takes an already delicious traditional dish like that and adds slow-cooked brisket to the mix, well clearly, they make our list of best things we’ve ever eaten! In fact, we’re planning on driving quite a bit out of our way just to get this sandwich the next time we have to go south. And if you’re ever there, don’t forget the extra jus and horseradish! So good!
Cuban plates from Old’s Havana in Miami, Florida
Cuban food, in general, is one of our favorites, so we have it fairly often (definitely every time we’re in Florida), and when thinking of the best plate of Cuban cuisine we’ve ever had, Old’s Havana is what comes to mind! It’s there that we had our favorite vaca frita, which is the most incredible mezcla of shredded and fried flank steak topped with sauteed onions and lime, and, of course, everything there is served with the equally delicious Cuban trifecta: rice, beans, and plantains. Also, I’d be remiss if I didn’t admit that the atmosphere of a place can totally affect how much we enjoy it, and Old’s is truly such a fun place that even if you didn’t like the food, you’d still love the experience!
Katsu from Katsukura in Kyoto, Japan
Japan takes their food seriously, and it definitely shows in their restaurant scene. Just like in Japanese architecture, there seems to be a focus on subtlety and presentation, which we absolutely fell in love with at Katsukura. The first thing we did upon sitting down at this gorgeous restaurant was grind a variety of sesame seeds by hand to make our own individualized dipping sauces. That freshness and attention to detail was also evident in each and every bite of our katsu (a panko-encrusted fried pork cutlet served with shredded cabbage). My mouth is literally watering as I write this…
Khao soi (made by Tucker) at Asia Scenic Thai Cooking School in Chiang Mai, Thailand
Next up is a dish made by Tucker with the help of Asia Scenic Thai Cooking School. For this one, we procured our own ingredients at a local market and followed along as a master Thai chef showed us how it’s done, and by the end of the class, we had one of our favorite dishes in the world made exactly how we like it. Khao soi is a coconut curry-based soup usually made with egg noodles (both boiled and fried), chicken, chilis, and lime. It is an incredibly unique and delicious dish that Tucker, to this day, has never been able to turn down.
Fugazetta from Lunático in Buenos Aires, Argentina
Another somewhat surprising addition to our list is fugazetta. This seemingly simple dish is an Argentine specialty made up of two pizza crusts stuffed with cheese and topped with caramelized onions. I know what you’re thinking, “How can that be special enough to make it onto our top-ten-of-all-time list?” Well, I don’t know what to tell you other than it’s absolutely delicious. The ratio of bread, cheese, and onion is sheer perfection, and the fact that it’s usually made in a woodfire oven, gives it an amazing charred quality as well. ¡Absolutamente delicioso!
Shopska salad from Restaurant Skopski Merak in Skopje, North Macedonia
And last but not least, my beloved shopska salad. I feel like I talk about this salad quite a bit, and I make a North American version of it just about every month, but the original just can’t be beat. The shopska salad originates from Southeastern Europe. We first had it in North Macedonia, and as soon as we did, we were hooked. It’s a mix of fresh cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, and sirene cheese (which is kind of like feta) dressed with sunflower oil, vinegar, and salt. It’s incredibly refreshing and is often served with a shot of fruit brandy, so really how could you go wrong?
And that’s it! Our official list of the top ten best things we’ve ever eaten as of November 2024! I really should start keeping a list of all future contenders, so this won’t be quite so hard next time. But honestly, who knows when that’ll be, so until then, bon appétit!
Dani Francuz Rose 