Instead of the old saying “A picture is worth a thousand words” I’ve coined a new one
“A picture can lead to a hundred words”.
In 2010 we spent two months in Canada and as part of that trip we drove a hire car from Quebec City along the picture perfect northern banks of the St. Lawrence River as far as Tadoussac. After loading our car onto the ferry across the Saguenay River and exploring Tadoussac, we returned back to Saint-Simeon and followed the Saguenay toward the heartland of Quebeckers, Lac Saint Jean.
Somewhere along the banks of the Saguenay we photographed this bridge.
I remembered the bridge well, but had no idea of it’s name or the name of the village. My diary entry for that day summed up the trip from St. Simeon to Lac Saint Jean, a distance of 176 kilometres in two measly sentences, neither of which shed any light on the bridge.
I googled websites on covered bridges, but without photographs their descriptions meant nothing to me. Next I traced the route taken and researched the towns along the way to see if they had covered bridges, to no avail. Finally through Lonely Planet’s on-line Thorntree Forum I found what I was looking for.
I’m now a bit of an expert on this bridge, and all because of a picture (and a Forum)…
- Anse St. Jean is a member of The Most Beautiful Villages of Quebec Network
- The bridge has a name – Pont du Faubourg
- It featured on the pink $1000 CAD bill from 1954 till 1992
- The framed paintings inside the bridge were hung as part of the 150th Anniversary of the Village in 2009-2010
- In 1986 the bridge was swept away a distance of 1 km by an iceberg, and was subsequently returned by road and repaired!
Since that trip in 2010, I started this blog and improved my journalling skills and I’ve learned to take photos of signs and Information boards.
Do you keep a diary or notes when you travel? Have you ever used an On-line Forum to answer a travel question?
ONE NIGHT IN BOWEN
What a wonderful trip it must have been, despite the fact that not many notes or photos were taken. How we change over the years with our blogging, hey! I never go anywhere without pen, pad, ipad, camera and mobile phone these days and take copious notes.
Yes Jo, I wasn’t actually blogging when we were in Canada. I find my phone great for making notes that I might not remember at the end of the day.
Jan I almost always complete a travel diary of our trips, because otherwise I forget names of places and events. I also try to label my photos straight away while they are still fresh in my mind. Isn’t Quebec gorgeous? I visited here in 2004 with my Mum, but I never saw this wonderful bridge.
Isn’t it amazing how quickly we forget when we’re are travelling. I keep a written journal, as well as taking photos of signs and info boards. I also keep the itinerary after the trip, which can help to trigger memories for me.
All good ways of keeping a record Lyndall.