bonjour de coteau-du-lac

...Quebec. To update, our travels have been fairly smooth, full of fun and have resulted in several lessons learned. The most surprising is that they really do speak French here (which means that the road signs are in French too)! I am having a great time mangling the language to the tolerant amusement of the Québécois and I am grateful (merci Mme. Schramm) for my limited knowledge because it has been useful ("ou est le vin?")

The other fantastic revelation is that not only do they speak French, they eat French. I was overwhelmed at the tiny supermarche ... Tout le choses -- le vin, fromage, pain -- French, hmmm. It looks like northern Michigan(same Mosquitos) but tastes better.

We have had no mobile service since we left Niagara so greetings to all we are missing. I also opted not to update and take the Canadian Garmin GPS maps which has made this a real adventure. Very old school, no 3G or "phone a friend" backups, just a driver, a navigator, and usually, a map.

We have also learned a little bit about mi/km conversion because the jetta (Volkswagen?!!) does not have km on the speedometer or odometer and we have to do math every time we we want to know how fast or how far. Fueling is also tricky, made more so by the fact that the nozzle does not fit into the tank and will not automatically stop when full. I have learned to just "listen 'till it sounds full." Finally, it's good to know that AAA has a Canadian affiliate (CAA) and they will also come and unlock your car in the unlikely event that the keys get locked inside.

We are having the time... Picnicking at Niagara falls (the Canadian side IS better), lost in Toronto, morning hike on lake Ontario and now settled into our base camp/KOA Montreal west for the next two days. Kids are at the pool with all the other gypsy kids (though they haven't a clue what anyone is saying) and I'm resting in the shade sippin' on some chilled vin blanc.

C'est le bon vie.