At this time last year my husband and I embarked on what would be a life changing vacation. Nothing earth shattering, but rather a pivotal moment in our health journey. Last year we “ate” our way through Maine (USA), Quebec and Ontario. Lots of deep fried food, sugary car snacks and of course poutine. I’d like to say that this year was different, and maybe it was but that didn’t stop us from enjoying our vacation, especially if that meant trying food from the different regions of Quebec or enjoying corn on the cob prepared by by son’s girlfriend đ. This year it was a healthy journey!
Our progress
As you can see by the photo, it’s been 1 year and -100lb for Martin and I (combined). WOW. You can imagine how excited we were to end up in the same spot that last years picture was taken. If you remember, last year, we were not mindful of our eating and my physical activity was almost non-existent. Making it up these stairs last year left both my husband and I out of breath. Not this year!
Destination
Due to Covid-19 our plans to visit Paris where squashed. OK, well not really “plans” because if you’ve gathered, my husband and I are rather spontaneous. While we had always wanted to visit the City of Love, it was only when we realized that this year we would celebrate 20 years of marriage and figured, “hey, it would be cool to hop on a plane and go to Paris to commemorate this” Oh, and maybe we hold a small “renew our vows” ceremony too (mostly because I can’t find our marriage certificate from Jamaica (we eloped). But alas, Paris was not going to happen for 2020. Next best thing? Quebec!
It also happens to be where our oldest son is based out of CFB Valcartier and lives with his girlfriend Carolanne (Caro), in a beautiful ski resort town near the base. Since we haven’t been to their new place, we decided to travel there first and begin our healthy journey.
Tour de quebec
The kids were fantastic! They planned for our short visit with several excursions/dinners out. We had the opportunity to meet Caro’s mom, uncle and aunt while enjoying an afternoon at the pool. While there, were spoke to her uncle about an Old Quebec tour, he loves the history of Quebec and graciously accepted our request. We also spent the day at a Nordic Spa, this was a first for Martin and I. I’ve always wanted to go, this was the perfect way to spend a light rainy day. We visited several restaurants (and even an ice cream parlor “Bar Laitier”), most remarkable was the Korean BBQ, the food was excellent! Unfortunately our visit had to end, but with lots of hugs and plans to see each other at the end of the month.
Next stop: Gaspésie
Over coffee, my husband and I plotted what we would do next.
We had 10 days left of our vacation. We decided on GaspĂ©sie. GaspĂ©sie, or GaspĂ© Peninsula, is a peninsula along the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River to the east of the Matapedia Valley in Quebec, Canada, that extends into the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. Â
Day 1
Our first day started with a stop at an RV store to check out camper trailers (next years dream) and then on to explore the Fleuve Saint – Laurent. In English we call it the Saint Lawrence a River, but in french it’s called a Fleuve. We also stopped to see the Fraser Manor and discovered a photographer by the name of Antonio Pelletier (1900-1958), his pictures were displayed upstairs in the Manor. Relation? Maybe.
Day 2
More lighthouses, plus stops in GaspĂ© and PercĂ© (for ice cream). We saw the famous PercĂ© Rock. Did you know It is one of the world’s largest natural arches located in water and is considered a geologically and historically rich natural icon of Quebec. (thanks Wiki). To support our healthy journey, we took many opportunities to hike or walk.
Day 3
We stayed at an old hotel, Hotel Auberge Du Parc Inn in PaspĂ©biac, that actually wrote out our receipt for our stay on a piece of paper. Waking up we decided to check out some natural and art sites on the way back to Josh & Caro’s.
Day 4a
We decided to stop and see some falls on our way to Petawawa. We were unable to tour the falls completely, some of the walkways were closed (Covid) but we plan to come back again (maybe with our trailer, hint-hint).
Day 4b
Best way to end our little vacation, seeing friends and family. Well, these friends are like family! Getting to see our nephew, Alex who is based out of CFB Petawawa, was extra special! We enjoyed a fabulous dinner prepared by Bryan, Jeannette, Barb and Wayne. Thanks everyone.
Next
Well, we did gain a few pounds, about 3-5lbs. I think that we did well. Very well. We have been home for a week now and guess what? We are back to our pre-vacation weight. How? Eating low carb of course. No drastic changes, just eating the food that we know will help us progress on this journey. Next post will include some great new recipes I’ve been trying out. See you next week! Hope you enjoyed reading about our healthy journey!
Karenlee
âPlan for tomorrow, because tomorrow you wonât have timeâ
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