Down the river from Quebec City is Montreal.
Montreal is Canada's second largest city (after Toronto), so we decided to take a little different approach and waited until dusk to explore the city rather than try to navigate it during the work day. We found a KOA to camp at for the night, relaxed for a few hours, and drove into town after traffic had subsided.
Across the St. Lawrence again, via the Pont Champlain.
And into the old section of the city.
We managed to park for free next to a nearby construction site, confirmed with a resident out walking his dog that it was ok to park there, and brought Kipper along to look around.
This is the Place Jacques-Cartier...
...a pedestrian walkway with lots of patio cafes.
Again, another clean, well-planned city with lots of green space.
The Marche' Bonsecours, built in 1847, is still a bustling marketplace. But it was already closed for the day when we were there.
One of the advantages of visiting late was to see the city's historic structures lit up at night. Montreal has designed the lighting carefully for each building.
This is City Hall.
Place d'Armes features a statue of Montreal's founder, Paul de Chomeday. The domed structure is the Bank of Montreal.
Paul de Chomeday's statue faces the Notre-Dame Basilica of Montreal, completed in 1829.
Creepy doll-eyed mannikins...
This is Montreal on a Monday night!
And so another city goes on our "places to revisit when we have money" list. While Quebec City reminded us of a European walled city (like Toledo, Spain or Orvieto, Italy), Montreal is commonly referred to as "the Paris of North America". It certainly lives up to the comparison!
Next: Toronto!
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