Greetings from what seems like the capital of ice sculptures!
Bonhomme Carnaval and I!
That’s right, Quebec City in the middle of their world-famous Carnaval de Quebec!
I really thought that this entry would be easy. Traveling up to Quebec for their winter carnival has been the highlight of my winters the past few years, so it should be easy enough to write about what there is to see and do, right?
Wrong. The problem is, it’s hard to put into words the music, the laughter, the sights. It doesn’t matter how old you are- as soon as you walk into the carnival grounds and see the endless stretch of snow-scuptures, the giant ice castle, and the strange costumed creatures on stilts – you can’t help but grin and you find yourself always keeping an eye out for the elusive Bonhomme Carnaval!
There are two highlights for my annual trip… no, make that three (I love it all!):
Snow sculptures as far as the eye can see!
The first is the snow sculptures – there are endless sculptures to see from artists around the world. If you’re lucky, you can watch them in action as they turn a block of snow into a work of art!
Night Parade
The second is the night parade. I grew up in small town Nova Scotia where a parade usually happens in the middle of the afternoon and consists of a few decorated truck beds. Even the Halifax parades didn’t prepare me for the Carnaval de Quebec! I found myself up front and center and just as excited as the ‘under 10′ crowd… The floats are amazing, the participants are very interactive and the music makes you forget just how cold it really is outside!
The main lobby of the Ice Hotel
My third highlight isn’t actually part of the Carnival but is a must-see if you are in the area: the Hotel de Glace (Ice Hotel). It is just outside the city, and if the Carnival itself is hard to describe, this is pretty near impossible. It is proof that looks can be deceiving: from the outside, it looks like a giant igloo but the inside is a stunning masterpiece made entirely of ice! Each suite is decorated with a different theme, and each year, the hotel is different (it melts every spring!). Pictures can’t even start to do it justice because again, pictures don’t properly show the colors and the music!
I know I didn’t do a great job at describing the Carnaval de Quebec but really, you just have to live it yourself! It’s done for this year, but start thinking early and plan to visit next year – we can help you out with that, of course, with our 2011 Carnaval de Quebec tour!
Tags: Canada Tours, Quebec