From My Mind to....

Day 2: Saguenay

Most of our cruising is done at night getting to our next destination. Waking up in the small port of Saguenay was no exception.

The town's name was likely derived from an Innu word "Saki-nip" meaning where water flows out. Located at the end of the largest fiord in Noth America, Saguenay was first settled by the French in 1676 as a trading post. Even today there are no roads north into the wilderness leaving access by seaplane or boat.

Today, Saguenay is a conglomeration of seven towns lumped into one political and social community. The extended population is almost 150,000 people. The ethnic origin of the top four groups by highest are Canadian, French, Québécois and French Canadian. They are followed by First Nations, Irish, Scottish, Métis, Arcadian and Innu. Nope, I can't explain the differences between Canadian, French and French Canadian.

Various excursions were set up by our ship at each stop, and Saguenay was no exception. Jeanette is very interested in rocks, so the excursion we chose naturally included a local artist proficient in lapidary. Our lapidarist spoke only French, but had a very capable translator. I managed to pick up some earrings for her upcoming birthday that had an added bonus of naturally being red and yellow--the colors of our favorite football team, the KC Chiefs.

Our lapidarist was also proficient in the art of glass-blowing. We watched an awesome demonstration of him making a whale complete with flippers and flukes as it broke the surface of the sea. One of our ship-mates negotiated a price for his creation to be mailed home after the project has slowly cooled to ensure no cracks were forthcoming. Various powdered metals were used to color the whale and sea base.

The waterfront of Saguenay was picturesque with lots of craft shops and restaurants; the government and other support for the population was more inland. We found that tourists were welcomed heartily ... especially if you tried to speak French. Many natives were bi-lingual. We were only there for about six hours, but we definitely saw the appeal of the city at the end of the fiord.