'Autumn Escape'....

that is once we finally got there!

There is no introductory photo for this edition of the blog. By the time we finally started packing the day before we left, we had no time to take one. And it turned out that 'nothing' was what we saw on the first day anyway.

For those of you who see our Facebook posts, you would have been able to follow our 10 1/2 hour journey to Quebec City - it actually would have taken us less time to drive than it did to fly, because of the heavy fog that delayed flights in and out of Billy Bishop Airport and Pearson.  We finally got to Quebec at 8:00 rather than the expected 2:00 in the afternoon, so there wasn't much to see until we got to our hotel, the Auberge St. Antoine in Vieux Quebec, the old town. As it turned out, it was directly across from the cruise port, and Crystal Serenity which had an overnight here to end the previous cruise.

On Tuesday morning it was cold and rainy, the weather having followed us from Toronto, so we didn't go out to explore the old streets around us. Our transfer to the ship was set for just before noon anyway, so once we were on board we wandered around to see who we might know. We weren't surprised to find familiar faces in the bar staff, but our Lifeboat Officer turned out to be Yvonne, the Chief Accountant who has been our officer table host in the dining room on at least 3 previous occasions. This time we have the Chief Engineer (again...is there a pattern developing here?) but there is only one evening where the officers are hosting on this cruise.

Our Penthouse stateroom

from another angle

The Chateau Frontenac at about 5:00

Sailaway was just before 6:00, and it is substantially darker here than at home for the same time because we are close to the eastern edge of the time zone. We could be moving into, and then back out of, the Atlantic Time Zone, but it would be during our sea day between Gaspé and Bar Harbour, so we wouldn't have to change the clocks.

Today we made our first port stop at Baie-Comeau. We didn't plan any excursion here, so after breakfast served by our butler, Didi (we have to give her something to do, after all) we walked the 2 km from the port into town and wandered around a little. Baie-Comeau was originally established for a paper mill, which is still in operation, and expanded industry with the Alcoa aluminum plant beyond the far side of the port, but it is still a small town, struggling to keep its population now that there are not so many employment opportunities in the area.  Here are a few photos from our walk:

The bay at low tide. At least there was still some colour
in the leaves

Looking back toward the port and Crystal Serenity

We visited two churches, the Anglican Church of St. Andrew and St. George and the Catholic Church of St. Amelie. It was easy to see which was the dominant one as St. Amelie is about ten times the size of the other, but their recent histories are quite different. St. Andrew and St. George is still humming along with its small congregation, but St. Amelie was actually closed by the church in 2000, since the congregation had become too small to maintain it. The town of Baie-Comeau purchased the church for $1 and it is now a corporation. They raise money to maintain and refurbish the building and the bishop comes to preside over one mass every year, which allows them to still get some funding from the Catholic church. They have been putting these donations to good use, as the inside of the church is quite beautiful.

The Anglican Church of St. Andrew and St. George

and the very sparse interior

The Church of Ste. Amelie

the Main Altar and Side Altar

the ceiling artwork was quite lovely

a sample of the stained glass windows

 

At the edge of the Parque des Pioniers, even this small garden was
showing signs of the end of the season

Boats already out of the water for the season.

We are the last cruise ship visiting Baie Comeau this year, so it seems that tourism can join the boats in drydock until next year.

Later in the afternoon, Jim was presenting his first lecture, this one about Lucille Ball, with whom he was close friends for the last year of her life. Jim has a wonderful way of relating his relationships with people, and Lucy was no exception. He first saw her on Broadway in 'Wildcat' when he was 13 years old. It took another 30 years before he finally got her autograph, and he spent much of her last year visiting with her at her home in L.A.  As it turns out, one of the photos she signed to him was the last autograph she ever signed. As usual, Jim got both of us teary-eyed by the end of his talk, ending with 'and this isn't just the title of a show...l love Lucy'.

After Jim's lecture we got back to our stateroom just in
time to grab this photo

We had dinner at Tastes tonight, where the specialty is small-plate global cuisine. Yummy as usual, with such items as Ahi Tuna Poke from Hawai'i, California Street Tacos, Chimichurri Steak and Alaskan King Crab Dip. Pictures, of course:

Tuna Poke, Arctic Black Cod in Chowder, and Crab Dip

The chefs of Tastes hard at work in the open kitchen

California Taco with Chimichurri Steak and Sweet Potato Fries

Larry has gone off to watch the people who are watching the final U.S. presidential debate - and you have to understand that the guests onboard Crystal are usually, in our experience, more on the Republican side - and hoping that it doesn't come to fisticuffs. We'll let you know tomorrow....