Haut Village

By SIMON VAN BOOY

Extraordinary cities compel us to explore them on foot — to discover the secrets hidden for centuries in the architecture and the rolling maze of streets and alleys. Exploring old Quebec City's snowy streets is like being inside an elaborate model Christmas village, where the shopkeepers have come to life and wear their breath like beards and the freezing air holds the scents of wood smoke and the local aged wine, Caribou. Listen carefully and you'll also hear the hollow clap of hooves on cobbles, as horse-drawn caléches make their way to and from the fabled Chateau Le Frontenac — Québec City's own Edinburgh Castle — that towers above the city and overlooks the St. Lawrence River.

Quebec City is one of North America's oldest European settlements and a mere 90-minute flight from Newark International Airport. It's clear from the moment you set foot in this province that rural Quebecois are delighted with the idea of being visited. A taxi from the airport to the city is a fixed rate of approximately $25, and the only way of getting into town unless you rent a car.

Upon entering the old part of the city, travelers should ask the driver to point out the Plains of Abraham along the rue St-Louis, where one of the most significant battles for North America between the English and the French took place. Quebec City is the only walled city north of Mexico. In the 1530s, Jacques Cartier sailed up the St. Lawrence river searching for a corridor to the east, passing the point where in 1608 Samuel de Champlain would establish a "settlement" on the banks of the St. Lawrence River. Today, this area is known as basseville, the lower-town. As a result of incessant attacks on the inhabitants of the lower-town, first by the indigenous Iroquois, then the English, and later by the Americans, the Quebecois moved their village higher up the cape, to an area known as the upper-town or hauteville. However, the attacks continued for several years until 1759, when English General Wolfe defeated French General Montcalm on the Plains of Abraham.

Where once lay wounded and dying English and French soldiers, now run children screaming with excitement, as each winter the plains become just one of the staging areas for activities during the city's annual Winter Carnival, which runs from January 26 to February 11. Imagine an arctic version of Mardi Gras, though more wholesome (leave your beads at home) and more European. The festival dates back to 1894, and is now the world's third-largest carnival after those in Rio and New Orleans. Expect a variety of athletic, artistic, and cultural events aside from the general bonhomie that fills the air. Highlights of the festival include the snow palace — 9,000 tons of snow packed into blocks and sculpted — certainly as breathtaking as the grand Quebec Parliament building standing opposite it. Also, the Winter Carnival's night parades are not to be missed. And don't underestimate how cold it will be — locals advise dressing as if for skiing.

The grandest hotel in Quebec City and one of the finest in Canada is undoubtedly the Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac. This 18-story structure towers above the city, projecting its grand architectural style, which dates back to 1893. The majesty of Le Chateau Frontenac is comparable to that of New York City's Plaza Hotel in its glory days. Over the years, Quebec's most famous castle has hosted celebrities and dignitaries from Grace Kelly to Leonardo DiCaprio. During World War II, Prime Minister Churchill and President Roosevelt reputedly planned D-Day in one of the castle's upper suites. The hotel boasts five restaurants and bars, and service is taken very seriously.

Surprisingly, there are rooms to match every budget, from studios to sprawling suites. Of the 618 rooms in the hotel, 55 are "Fairmont Gold" rooms located on concierge floors, which feature private check-in and a private lounge where a deluxe breakfast is served. (Rates range from $170 per night, for double occupancy in a Fairmont Room to $812 per night, for double occupancy of a Fairmont Suite.)

The question of identity is a controversial issue for many Quebecois, and it's tempting to compare the atmosphere and the architecture of Quebec City — much of which in the old section dates from the 17th and 18th centuries — with small-town France or Switzerland. The city is indeed peppered with French touches, from the charming lampposts to ancient churches with names like Notre-Dame-des-Victoires.

Quebec City is a city, but with a population hovering around 170,000, it feels more like a large town (expect to be greeted with "bonjour" by strangers in the street). Yet similar to its more famous relative, Montreal, Quebec City is home to several fine restaurants, and even posh lounges such as Maurice on Grande Allée est.

On a recommendation, I spent an evening at Le Saint Amour, on rue Sainte-Ursule. The French contemporary, family-run restaurant specializes in foie gras, which is served in several variations, including seared ($25USD), with salt flower on coco bean purée chicoutai and ice cider chutney, maple sweet and sour juices. Several wine pairings were suggested, including a Banyul Grand Cru (1947), the most expensive on offer. However, I explained to my waiter how I wasn't able to enjoy any wine or spirits because of prescription medication. He peered down at me in sympathy and then rushed off to the kitchen. When my foie gras arrived, so too did a splash of Loupiac Chateau Grand Peyruchet 2002 in a wine glass, courtesy of the waiter, who appeared halfway through the first course and explained how merely the bouquet of the wine would enhance the experience. À la carte entrées included Inuit Caribou ($33) with sautéed fruits, mild spices, truffled celeriac, and parsnip purée with peppercorn reduction and wildberries.

If you seek respite from the cold, spend an afternoon at the Musée de la Civilisation. For local history, an imaginative resource is one of the museum's five permanent exhibits, which take viewers on a chronological history of the region and includes everything from traditional museum pieces such as tools, garments, maps, and furnishings, to interesting kitschy ephemera rescued from the more recent past. For shopping, try walking along Saint-Joseph Est (the site of an exquisite toy shop, Benjo), where you'll discover designer clothing boutiques, cafés, and other shops — the names of which will be refreshingly unfamiliar to most non-Quebecois.

Quebec City is the sort of place you'll want to revisit with loved ones, so they too can have the experience of losing themselves within its maze of snowy streets and old shuttered houses, where the statues, bathed in streetlight, beckon visitors to ponder their carved inscriptions and imagine the lives of the first French settlers who first stepped ashore off the freezing St. Lawrence River.