Our new favorite store

We had been introduced to Quebec Smoked Meat by friends of ours over the Christmas holidays - they had just picked some up, and it was melt-in-your-mouth tender, and oh so tasty! This weekend, we stopped by for some ourselves, and came away with a bunch of smoked meat and a couple of sandwiches, as planned, but also some sausages, a bunch of bacon, and a very entertaining and informative chat with the store-keeper! He kept on throwing in samples of this & that (the bacon and sausages were on the house), to the point where we wondered how they ever make a profit. Well let me tell you, I think their product will keep us coming back regularly!!! THAT's how they turn profit.

This afternoon we went to one of the islands in the St Lawrence, where there's a National Park, for a long walk along and on the river. It was gorgeous, bright sunshine, some nice powdery fresh snow, and suitable cold and wind for us to wear our parkas. Boy!! were they nice and cozy!
The trip there took us through a nearly mile long tunnel underneath the St Lawrence (sorry, no pictures - I was too busy driving).

The island is enjoyed by cross-country skiers and snowshoers, and the river and channels between islands see a lot of ice-fishing.
On the way back, we crossed the 2 mile long Victoria Bridge, built in 1859, the first bridge to cross the St Lawrence. When completed, it was the longest bridge in the world. Originally built just for trains, it went through a major renovation in 1897 to accomodate those new-fangled car thingys. But the original stone piers needed very little work, and are still holding strong today.