Traveling Gaspese (Part 4)--- Baie-Saint-Paul

Situated on the northern shore of the Saint Lawrence river, the quaint little city of Baie-Saint-Paul is known for it's thriving artist community.   This tiny little town is also famous as the home of the  internationally renowned Cirque du Soleil, where the first production was held in the early 1980's~ 

 Baie-Saint-Paul is one of Quebec's oldest cities

and is famous for the charming boutiques

and art galleries that line the streets~

just over an hour's drive from

Quebec City--

visiting this quaint little town

can easily be done as a day trip

while you are in the area~

this little town loves to

"dress UP"

 and goes all out to decorate

the shop displays, streets, and homes

within the city~

This small town has over 30 galleries and studios,

 along with historic houses

 converted into attractive restaurants and shops.

 With its prosperous, holiday atmosphere 

and its location among wood-covered hills 

 Baie-Saint-Paul is one of Quebec's

 most appealing towns~

Come along with the Gardener and me

 as we stroll along the narrow streets

lined with quaint boutiques and art galleries~

 the whole town is in

"cute" overload!

I think I took photos of almost

every storefront in this town!

we visited last fall,

and the entire city was

decked out in beautiful autumn displays~

 seriously,

how cute is this little woolen store?

 the city was filled with

beautiful blooming bushes and flowers~

 the city is famous for it's 

annual artist festival

that is held every 

Autumn

~

one of our first trips to the city,

(a few years ago)

was during the annual art festival.  

every street was filled with artists

and their displays...

the city was a wonderland of color 

and artistic impressions.. 

around every corner

is a pretty little painted

mural~

no shortage of "green thumbs"

in this city,...

the blooms were amazing!

one of my favorite photos

taken as we strolled around town~

some of the "century" old homes

in the city,

have been converted into

art galleries~

one of my favorite shops..

I fell in love with the garden display

(it was a tad bit cool that day!) 

 

 in the early 1920's,

a group of Canadian artists

known as the 

"Group of Seven"

lived in this tiny little cottage 

within the city~

the "Group of Seven"

 is best known for its paintings

 inspired by the Canadian landscape..

 their continued residence in

Baie-Saint-Paul

helped to establish this town's reputation

 as an artist community~

  this cottage,

now turned "art gallery"

houses some original works of art

from the "Group of Seven" artists

and contains original furnishings

dating back to the period 1920's

when the artists were in residence~

a beautiful mural is in process

at the flood wall on the 

outside of town~

situated on the highest ground within the city

stands the beautiful
Place de l'Église

church 

the banks of the

Saint Lawrence river~

 on our way back to

Quebec City,

we followed curvy country roads

in search of this historic

 covered bridge~

 and ....

we ended our wonderful day

like this~

~~~ In my next travel post, we are seriously on the road as we begin to make the circle around the Gaspe Penninsula.... thank you for traveling with us on this amazing adventure. We travel past ancient churches, picturesque settings on the bank of the Saint Lawrence ,and our very first hotel outside of Quebec City.  Wait till you see the incredible scenery just outside our hotel door!

We will meet all types of weather, days in the 80's, days in the 20's, and everything in between!  We will have calm days, and days with gale force winds,... if you are packing to travel along with us you will need to prepare for all the situations! 

~~We have beautiful blooms in our yard and 4 baby kittens roaming around on our back sundeck --- both are sure signs that Spring has finally come to our little corner of the world!

While I am working on the next set of travel pictures, I have one more nesting post I wish to share with you--- next up will be some photos from this seasons beautiful Shabby Treasure nests.  I made 6 of these special nests and sent them off to new homes. I'll share one of the personal stories relating to this "commission" only nest  and some photos in my next post~

Love,love,

Vicki

  

Traveling Gaspese (part 3)-- the Basilica Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupre

The Basilica of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupre is one of the most beautiful and beloved religious shrines in the world.  St. Anne is believed, by the pious, to obtain miracles through her intercession. People from all around the world come to the Basilica seeking miracles. Pillars in the front entrance are covered in crutches from people who are said by the parishioners to have been miraculously cured and saved~

 located about 20 miles 

east of Quebec City,

our visit to this religious shrine

was easily done as a day trip

while we were staying in Quebec City.

This amazing cathedral is an important catholic sanctuary 

which receives about a half-million pilgrims each year.

 The peak period of pilgrimage is around July 26,

 the feast of Sainte Anne, 

the patron saint of Quebec. 

The basilica of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupre 

was initially a shrine  to honor Sainte-Anne.

 On March 8, 1658, 

a man by the name of Etienne de Lessard 

donated two frontal acres from the West end of his property 

to the Catholic Church 

 so that a chapel could be built. 

This chapel eventually became the site

 of the modern-day basilica. 

It was built for two reasons:

 to provide a place of worship for the new settlers

and to house a miraculous statue 

of St. Anne.

 The first reported miracle at the site

 happened during the shrine’s construction. 

A man named Louis Guimond 

was hired to help build the shrine even

 though he suffered from 

rheumatism.

~

 After placing three stones upon the shrine’s foundation, 

Guimond was cured of all his ailments. 

This was followed by other testimonies

 of healed people 

and the shrine soon grew in 

popularity. 

~

For hundreds of years,

 pilgrims have visited this shrine

 hoping to be blessed with a

 miracle.

Because of the popularity of the shrine,

 the building was enlarged several times to accommodate

 all the pilgrims.

 In 1876, the first basilica opened for worship.

 The former basilica 

was destroyed in a fire on March 29, 1922. 

 The present-day basilica 

was built 

on this site of the prior church 

in 1926. 

Miracles are still believed to be performed at the basilica. 

When entering the church one can see two pillars 

filled with racks of crutches, canes, braces, 

and other signs of disabilities.

 Every item has been left by a pilgrim 

who reports being healed 

at the Basilica.

 The main doors of the Basilica

 are hand-made of copper

 and they present many scenes 

of the life of Jesus. 

~

This exceptional work of art

 created by the artist Albert Gilles

 was originally hanging on the doors of the

 St. Joseph Church in Quebec City in the 1950’s.

~

The three double doors alone represent

 12 months of laborious work.

 After the closing of this church in 2003,

 Albert Gille’s masterpiece was given a second chance at life

 when it was transferred to the Basilica 

the same year.

some scenes from inside 

the Cathedral~

this collection of candles was housed in one of the 

basement sanctuaries,

~

From my journal--

"as we walked down the stairs,

I could feel the heat from the candle lamps,

hundreds of prayers said from the hearts

of those in need"~

The pilgrimage to Beaupre

 has not always had the importance 

which it has gained

 in our time.

~

 Only in the last quarter of the nineteenth century

 did it attain to the growth, organization, and fame 

which now render it comparable 

with the great pilgrimages 

 to Lourdes.

across the street from the Basilica

stands the tiny little

Memorial Chapel

The Memorial Chapel 

is a souvenir of the third church 

which welcomed pilgrims from 1676 to 1876.

~

The chapel was built in 1878 

on the foundation of the transept of the third church

 (1676-1876). 

~

The material, the decor and the steeple 

were all retrieved from the old church 

and incorporated into the construction 

 of the Memorial Chapel.

~

 A rooster weather vane,

 a symbol of Peter’s denial as a follower of Christ,

 pivots on top of the steeple. 

The adjacent cemetery

 was where parishioners were buried 

until 1930.

scenes from inside the chapel

and the 

memorial plaque

in this photo--

I'm standing on the front balcony

of the beautiful, tiny

Memorial Chapel.

The Basilica is directly behind me.

looking out from the inside

of the chapel~

Forgive me for being so "historical" in this post.

~

I'm not usually so "factual" when I share photos -- 

but this is such a special place...

  It just didn't seem fitting to say,

"and here are some photos of this pretty church we visited..." 

 I really wanted to share with you

 some of the history relating to this

 amazing place.  

~

a visit to the

 Basilica of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupre 

is truly a destination.

On this trip we were only there

about 2 hours,

but on one of our previous trips,

we were there the entire day.

~

Truly, it is a place

of great spiritual presence

and beauty.

(You can read more about the

Basilica here )

As we continued on journey northward

to the town of 

Baie-Saint-Paul,

we passed this beautiful place

and stopped for photos--

(of course)

traveling down the gravel road

brought us to a beautiful restaurant

housed in a home that dates back

to 1840.

You can read about the Auberge Baker

and see photos of the inn and restaurant

here...

 In my next post-- (in just a few days!)--I am taking you to the eclectic little artist town of Baie-Saint-Paul... a lovely little town on the banks of the Saint Lawrence River. You will so enjoy a tour of this beautiful little town known for it's artist colony and quaint little shops and restaurants. On our visits to the Basilica and the town of Baie-Saint-Paul, we continued to stay in Quebec City -- as both these visits were actually little day trips for us.  

After the post of the little artist town... we will pack our bags and truly begin our northward trek to the Gaspe Peninsula.  As much as I am enjoying sharing  with you all that we did in and around Quebec City---- I cannot wait to share with you the amazing sights from our travels around the Peninsula.  I hope you will continue to follow us along on this incredible journey..


A note from me~
Spring is truly and finally here!  I am mowing grass, starting to prepare for planting flowers,... I am a happy girl.  My winter nesting is over and I am working on some new projects to share with you later this summer.  I've just finished watching the Ken Burns documentary of the Roosevelts. I loved every minute of this incredible historical documentary -- so much that I may watch it all again! (I watched it on Amazon Prime). Also, I just finished reading book 2 of the Glassblower series -- "The American Lady" (loved it).
  (Book 3 will be out in September.)  Honestly, I have so many books, and sample books in my Kindle Que, that I'm quite sure that I won't ever get them all read! 

Thank you for your wonderful responses to the travel series posts, I appreciate your comments and emails-- and I am so happy that you want to go along with me on this incredible journey. I am so very excited to be taking you there~

xoxo,
Vicki 

ps--soon, very soon, hopefully next week... our packages of love will be arriving in Mombasa and from there they will travel to Kampala, Uganda.  The minute I have pictures of the children opening their gifts, I will begin to share them with you.  Please pray for the arrival of your gifts for the children..

The Shabby Chic story-- (and a few to share with you!!)

This year's Shabby Chic nest is one of the most beautiful ever. Vintage laces, exquisite yarns, and an amazing vintage bridal headband are all combined to create this year's 
stunning nest~

the process for creating this year's nest

was one of the most time consuming

I've ever done...

 my goal was to have these

nests finished by Spring

and I just barely

made it!!

my Mother had an amazing lace collection...

I had no idea that she collected vintage laces.

finding them in her craft room

made my heart beat faster! 

those laces 

lived in my own

craft room for several years

with me thinking

"what will I do with these?"

sometimes...

I would just open up the tub

and finger them, 

just admiring their beauty

and different textures..

 

 the idea to create a nest

using my Mother's beautiful laces

was actually very frightening to me~

but after I began to work them into

the design...

it began to feel so right,

almost like they had been waiting all this time

be used in these nests~

I'm not sure what my Mother

had in mind for these laces...

but I think she would

love seeing them

used this way~

 she must have collected these

laces over years and years

of visiting flea markets

and antique shops~

 when I found this antique

bridal headpiece

at the flea market last year..

I knew that it was meant for the shabby chic nests!

although

the general design of the nests

remains the same,

year after year,

the embellishments change

based on my mood

and---- my latest

treasure finds~

working with the bridal headband

was not easy..

it was so very fragile..

but now that the nests are finished--

I think they are the most beautiful 

ever~

 As a special surprise

for all of you--

I managed to create 3 extra nests.

You can find them here

in my ETSY shop.

These nests are NOT reserved

and may be purchased by anyone

who wishes to give them
a loving

home...

If you wish to be placed on

next year's Shabby Chic waiting list

please email me

vboster1@windstream.net

~

Some notes~~

Gosh I wish I had all the time in the world to blog --- there is SO much I want to share with you.  I just returned from an amazing 3 days at the Abbey of Gethsemane in Trappist, Ky.  Spending 3 days of quiet time... just me, the beautiful gardens, silence, and of course, the monks--- this was maybe one of the best things that I have ever done for myself.  Beautiful does not begin to describe this amazing place--- and of course I so want to share those photos with you!

The next post will be a continuation in the Traveling Gaspese' series--- (the good thing about taking so many photos is that you have all those wonderful photos to remember your trip!  The bad thing about taking so many photos is that you have to sort through them all!!)  

Did you notice my beautiful new blog header??? My friend and blog miracle worker Karen Valentine created it for me:)

I send her the photos and she works her magic every time making the most awesome blog header!  You can contact her for your own blog magic by clicking on her name above.

What I'm reading and watching---
Right now-- I'm watching the PBS Ken Burns documentary,
"The Roosevelts" on Amazon Prime. I've been waiting forever for it to be available for me to watch.  I'm totally loving it--

Slowly-- (because I don't seem to have a lot of time to read)-- I'm almost finished reading "At the Water's Edge" --- it's totally captivating and I loved it from the very first sentence.  The book is so beautifully written...I thought the premise would be silly (looking for the Loch Ness monster)-- but it's really not --- truly, it's a great read -- and beautiful.

Spring is here - and although it is still more cool than warm, I'm counting the days until I can play in the dirt and plant my flowers... I'm so happy when I get to be a "dirty girl"!!

love,love..

Vicki 

ps -- if you left a comment on my last travel post or are leaving a comment on this post --- I promise I will be by to say Hello to you at your blog -- I am slowly making my rounds! xoxo