Class IV Visits Quebec

On February 10, 2023, at 3:00 a.m., the Class IV French class gathered at Logan airport to begin our three day trip to Quebec. After a two hour plane ride and a three hour bus ride, we arrived and were ready for our first action packed day in Quebec City. We made a quick stop for lunch and finally made it to our first destination, the copper museum. While we were there, we learned about Quebec’s copper history, the process of making copper, and we even made our own copper engravings. All of this was done while speaking almost exclusively in French. Thankfully, the copper museum provided us with an amazing tour guide who spoke slowly and clearly and helped us understand everything she said. 

This experience prepared us wonderfully for our next activity, visiting the St. Anne Basilica. The doors to the St. Anne Basilica were made by the same family that owned the copper museum. At the basilica, we learned about who St. Anne was and the very complicated history of the basilica. The inside of the church was very beautiful, and our tour guide took us through each aspect of the building and decorations and explained them to us. It was very interesting to learn about how the basilica impacted Quebec. Afterwards, we went to dinner, made a quick stop to go tobogganing and drink hot chocolate, and then checked into our hotel. Even though we were all exhausted from the day of travel and activities, we had an amazing first day in Quebec. 

Our second day was even more exciting. We did so many things including a ferry on the St. Lawrence river, the Museum of Civilization, snow tubing, and much more. One experience that stood out to me was going to the Ice Hotel. We had already learned about the Ice Hotel because one of our classmates had done their Quebec research presentation on it, so being able to see the hotel in person was very exciting. All of the rooms were beautifully decorated with carved ice and snow. Each room had its own unique theme and no two rooms were alike. Though most of our class agreed that staying at the Ice Hotel would be way too cold, we all loved going there and exploring the buildings. 

After we finished exploring the Ice Hotel, we went dogsledding, and had a traditional lumberjack dinner at the sugar shack. The dogsledding was very difficult for the person who was steering, but for me, the person who was sitting down, it was exciting and very fun. Despite being quite challenging, the entire group loved it, and we all loved petting the puppies afterwards even more. Then, we went to the sugar shack where we learned about the history of maple syrup. We were also able to buy some fun maple themed souvenirs to remember the trip by. At dinner, there was live music, and at one point we all went up and danced. It was very fun to laugh and dance with my friends, and we got to interact with new people using our French skills. Overall, it was a wonderful way to end off our second day in Quebec. 

On our third and final day in Quebec, we started with breakfast at a cafe, and then we walked around the Quartier Petit Champlain. We got to shop and walk the streets of Quebec. Also, it was a great way for us to be able to speak French. We were all able to interact with the Quebecoi, and use our conversation skills. Afterwards, we went on a small walk at the Montmorency Falls. The view from the waterfall was beautiful, and it was a great way to end our trip. We drove back to the airport, and our trip was officially over. 

Most of our French class has been looking forward to this trip for at least a few years, and it was even more amazing than we expected. I'm so glad that I was able to go on this trip. It was an amazing experience, and a wonderful way for us to further expand our French knowledge.