Skip to content

Untourists of the Week: Don & Deby Elliott

Categories
Biking Canada Gardens and parks Quebec Untourist of the Week

March 4, 2012 by Mtaussig

Don and Deby Elliott  took their very first UnTour,  to Quebec, in 2011.  How did it go?  We think Don’s quote, when he sent us the pictures from his Iphone,  says it best: “It’s tough looking at the pictures and not being there.  That’s when you know you had a good vacation!’

1.”Tell us a little bit about your most recent UnTour.”

Instead of telling this time, we’ll show…via the Elliott’s photgraphs, using our slideshow widget in UnTours Cafe.  To read their captions of this fantastic trip,  lick the small “i” at the bottom right of the slideshow frame or information.  (Apologies for the attribution to Marilee Taussig; I created the slideshow but used Don and Deby’s wonderful pictures.)

Find more photos like this on UnTours Cafe

2. What is your favorite UnTours memory?” 

“The Fête nationale, or the Quebec National Holiday, is a huge deal for the Quebecois (We refrained from mentioning that Quebec isn’t technically a nation; why spoil a good party by nitpicking?) and on June 23 and 24, the streets are full of people, there is a huge feeling of patriotism (for Quebec).  People paint their faces with Quebecois symbols, all the best bands from all sorts of musical genres are playing in venues all over the city.  It’s a crowd, but a friendly, happy crowd and we were very happy to join in the festivities.”

3. “How is taking an UnTour different from other ways of travelling?”

We’ve travelled all over Europe and the States by bike, by ourselves.  One of the best things about this trip was that we had Guy, the UnTours staff person, who also owns a bike shop and loves to show people Quebec by bike.  He knows where all the trails are, and the best streets for biking.  Within a few days of being there, we felt like locals, we were able to hop on our bike, tool around the city — totally immersed in the rhythms, feeling like we knew all we needed to know to do what we pleased, and truly belonging to our neighborhood.”

4. “If you could describe an UnTour in just three words, what would they be?”

Deby said: “Catered, Freedom, Easy”
Don says: “Immersion (in the culture), Adventurous, Homey (as in the room was grand enough to feel like one’s house)”