Québec City, traditional and more French, is replacing its former conservatism with an ever-expanding aura of sophistication. With its impressive location above the St. Lawrence River and its virtually unblemished Old Town filled with 18th- and 19th-century houses, this city looks like France and is almost impossibly romantic -- it's unlike any other city in North America.
Romantic Québec City -- "Romance" could be Québec City's middle name. Every narrow street, leafy plaza, sidewalk cafe, horse-drawn calèche, pitched roof, and church spire breathes recollections of France's provincial towns. But to get the full Québec City treatment, amble those streets under a full moon and find a bench on Terrasse Dufferin, the promenade alongside the Château Frontenac in Upper Town. The river below will be the color of liquid mercury in the moon's glow, and there will be more stars than you can ever remember seeing. Streaks of comets and music faintly heard from the boîtes in Lower Town are possibilities. Romance is a certainty.
