Capturing Quebec: Canada in Bloom

People who say ‘there’s nothing like Paris in the springtime’ have clearly never visited Quebec City in the early summer.

I’ve wanted to visit Quebec City for several years now, but my desire peaked this past Christmas when I saw a photo essay about Quebec City at Christmastime (I’d link it here if I could find it, but alas Google has failed me).  I swear to you, as I scrolled through shots of snow-covered cobblestone, my eyes misted up.  Yet the pessimist in me decided that there was no way that any city-I-can-drive-to could possibly be that beautiful, and that the photos must be the work of a brilliantly skilled photographer, not actual Quebec charm

Yeah.  No.  It wasn’t the photography.  It was Quebec. (Though I assure you, the blogger who captured the images featured in that long-lost post was an extremely skilled photographer.  Far more skilled than I, with my mostly-auto-settings.)

Quebec City is a city that needs to be seen; no mere words I can share could possibly capture the beauty of this quaint St. Lawrence riverside town. Which is why I took almost a thousand photos over the course of my four-night visit (well, that and the fact that I have obsessive compulsive photography disorder).  And that is also why I’m going to share as many of those photos as possible with you, dear Suitcase Scholar readers.

Thus, I bring to you the first in a short series of Capturing Quebec posts; themed photo essays highlighting all that is glorious in Quebec City.  We shall begin with the theme that inspired this idea–the flower-filled window boxes and hanging baskets of Quebec’s Upper and Lower Old Town. If you are planing to plant a flower then you should view more information related to planing.

I have never visited a city with this many flowering plants.  Heck, I’ve visited few botanical gardens, greenhouses, or garden centers with this many flowering plants.  You know who wouldn’t like Quebec City?  That animated bunny from Bambi who is allergic to flowers.  I think her name is, ironically, Daisy.

This was the first flower photo I took. And then I tried to edit it using my typical ‘oversaturate the hell out of this photo’ technique. But it didn’t work. Nature oversaturated it for me.

According to the rules I set up in my head for my window box camera crawl, all greenery featured must be live; the plants on this creperie window garland were/are real. Yes, I touched them.

Because a staircase not crowned by flower baskets would just be wrong.

Most cafes had ‘railing boxes’.

I love the this nautical-themed flower box outside of a boutique along rue de petite champlain.

More ‘railing boxes’, as viewed from my wine-sipping location.

Red was a commonly used color for flowers as well as architectural details, like this red door.

No yard? No problem! Brick wall gardening on a private residence.

Did I spend hours scouring the city for the most beautiful flower boxes and baskets?  No.  I simply went about my visit and occasionally pointed my camera in the direction of something green or flowering.  I could almost have done it with my eyes closed.

Want to see more of gorgeous Quebec City?  Stay tuned for more.  Up next, Capturing Quebec: Shopfronts and Store Windows.

I’d like to extend a huge thank you to the wonderful people at Quebec Region, who helped organize my trip to their stunning city.  Additionally, another huge thank you the equally lovely people at Le Saint Pierre, the boutique hotel that surrounded me in comfort and style (even on the rainy, windy days of my visit).  More on that (with photos, of course) in a future post!