Day 14

Today we head for the new world leaving behind the pound the Euro and driving on the left hand side of the road. We also part company with Billy.
Well not quite.
He has to get us to the Dublin Airport, then his job is done.
The plane leaves at 1055 so we decide to get there early, head off from the YHA at 8.30 and find ourselves with Billy’s help there at 8.20. Well not quite, as we have to return the car, in the process of that we miss the entrance to the drop-off area and have to circuit around again. Hand over the car, get the shuttle to the airport proper and run through the check-in. There is a very helpful Irish lady doing the check-in for Continental Airlines, so helpful she books us right through to Quebec.
So helpful, in fact, that both flights she books us to be seated in different parts on both flights.
We only paid our fare last February, yet can’t be seated together. Off course our seating companions are friends or couples so no-one wants to swap.
Continental Airlines have the ugliest, surliest flight attendants imaginable. I think they must have received their retrenchment notices this morning. No smiles or niceties of any sort. They were really terrible. They can’t have all be having a bad day!
There was no “Would you like some water?”, it was “Water” , take a few steps up the aisle “Water” and so it went on for every single row of cattle class. Just terrible.
I did manage to finish my book, Bill Bryson’s new one called “At Home – A Short History of Private Life”. He is a very good write and so interesting I would recommend it.
I also listen to quite a lot of Classic music.
The flight is 7 hours and drags, however after flying over Quebec our destination for the day, we arrive at Newark, New York. I manage to see Manhattan, the Empire State building until a fat head obstructs my view. No it wasn’t Sue, she was 4 rows back and did get a better look, including the Statue of Liberty.
We seem to taxi almost as far as we have flown, however eventually disembark.
We run the gamut of Homeland Security, which includes now finger prints of all fingers and thumbs and a photo.
The flight to Quebec is in another terminal so we need the Airtrain from Terminal C to Terminal A.
At Terminal A we find the Gate for our flight has changed, though it turns out what we need is a bus to take us to some outlying terminal.
Consequently, out 90 minute lay-over is now down to minutes and they call our flight almost straight away. The flight is overbooked and they are asking for volunteers to fly latter, offering $400. It turns out the $400 is actually in Continental dollars, or use with other flights, not real in your hand money.
It turns out we are in a small jet, and our seats are one behind the other. Well they were until Sue volunteers to change and take the seat at the Emergency Exit, as the person allocated that seat didn’t speak English.
The flight attendant on this flight was much happier I should add.
We fly over New York State, Maine, etc and the country is quite lovely already in autumnal colours. There is lots of water, long freeways, and many villages. The flight takes us right over Quebec so we get an idea of its layout, and finally we land for the final time today.
Canadian Customs are brief, friendly and to the point. The terminal is empty. There are no shuttle buses to the city, only cabs, though the price is fixed.
He’s a surly bastard, talks on his phone most of the way, until the end when he realises Sue is Canadian and suddenly he can speak.
The YHA is at 19 Rue St Ursule, in the old city. It is nice to find we are expected. It’s also nice to be able to upgrade our room, to an ensuite, and somehow save about $250. It’s also nice to find that we are at parity with the Canadian dollar.
Of course in Canada there is tipping, so as the taxi pulls I expect Sue, who is the Canadian after all to pay and sort out the tip. He stops and Sue hands me $40 so I have to sort out the tip. He didn’t do that much and was surly so I give him about $3.00 which is about right as it turns out anyway.
It’s doubly nice to find that the Quebecois can actually speak English, and will do so. My schooly boy French very quickly runs out!
Our room is quite commodious and the bathroom is a veritable ballroom, compared with UK and Ireland bathrooms that were taken from submarines I would think.
They have funny toilets that are half filled with water, so they look like they are blocked. Not sure why. Have to be careful wiping your ass, or you dip your hand in the bowl.
Having settled in, we wander off for dinner and just down the street in Rue de St Jean, we lob into an Italian place that is so popular, that soon after we get a table people are waiting at the door for table to be free.
It’s quite odd to be sitting in a restaurant, and not understanding anything of the conversations at tables around you.
The pizza is good and the Italian Cab Sav is OK especially as Sue was paying.
We get back to the hostel and collapse into bed. It is 8.10PM, yet we have been awake for nearly 20 hours. We are buggered.
Just before I go to bed I pack Billy into the bottom of my bag as we won’t be needing him again.
A second or two later, from the bag comes “At the roundabout take the second exit!!”