Carnaval de Quebec

Location: Quebec City, Quebec, Canada
Address:  Plaines D'Abraham
Date: Feb 2010
Website: www.carnaval.qc.ca

  For many years Quebec City has hosted a carnival in the very heart of winter.  It starts at the end of January and runs throughout most of February.  The carnival includes parades, fireworks, games, music and more.  In the mid 1950s the carnival was revitalized and a snowman wearing a red hat and sash became its official mascot.  His name is Bonhomme Carnaval.  We encountered Bonhommes all over Quebec City.  We were even greeted by one when we arrived at the airport.

  The main site of Carnaval de Quebec is located on the Plains of Abraham.  Before we reached the plains, we passed Place Loto-Quebec and Bonhomme's Ice Palace.  Each year a special palace is constructed out of blocks of ice.  Due to the temperature at this time of year being constantly below zero there is no fear of this palace melting during the carnival.

   In order to gain access to all of the Carnaval events you need to wear a small pin or effigy on your jacket.  The theme in 2010 was "The Carnival Makes You Dance!" so the effigys featured Bonhomme dancing in front of a disco ball. 

  As we entered the main Carnaval site we walked past the International Snow Sculpture Event.  All of the competitors deserve an award just for enduring the extreme cold weather for hours while working on their snowy creations.

  A few of our favourites were a gymnastics sculpture, a man escaping from a bear and a screaming ice face.

 

  The sculpture above represents how most people look when that first blast of cold Quebec City winter air hits their face.  It was almost cold enough that your face might just stay that way.  We did seek out a temporary reprieve from the cold by going into a few tents, like the Mr. Christie / Kraft tent that was giving out samples.

 

  Then it was back outside where we took part in some zip lining and tobogganing until the sun started to go down.  We enjoyed our time at Carnaval de Quebec but now we were ready to head back towards our hotel. We needed to find a fireplace to thaw us out and a nice hot meal to fill us up.   

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Map of Our World
Carnaval de Quebec

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Post # 93