French Canada...The New Europe?

The once-mighty greenback is mighty no more. At least not these days. I just spent nine days in Montreal, Quebec City and elsewhere the Province of Quebec, and although the exchange rate between the US and Canadian dollars is less favorable than it was in the '90s, the monetary hit isn't all that much a sock in gut. Even five years ago, one US dollar bought nearly CDN$1.60. Now it's a bit over $1.04. Goods and services no longer seem like bargains, but they don't seem impossibly expensive either. You just calculate every expenditure one-to-one, so if you just consider the two kinds of dollars to be equal, paying isn't really painful.

Travel to Europe, on the other hand, is another way of saying "travelers' sticker shock." In a piece called "As the Dollar Crumbles, Tourists Overseas Reel," Mark Lander wrote in today's New York Times: "By now, five summers after the dollar began its long swoon against the euro and the pound, American travelers are used to $5 cups of coffee and triple-digit dinner checks in Europe’s great capitals. But the dollar’s latest plunge — to $2.05 to the pound and to a record of $1.38 to the euro — has turned mere sticker shock into a form of suspended disbelief for many tourists."

The piece is accompanied by a chart indicating that in 2000-2001, one US dollar spiked several times at nearly 1.20 euros and 60 British pence (.60 pound). Now, that dollar is worth about .67 euros and roughly 45 pence. The article noted that "many currency experts say the dollar — pulled down by the combination of a persistent trade deficit with the rest of the world, a slower American economy and an unexpectedly vigorous Europe — has not reached bottom against the euro."

So for a taste of Europe without crossing an ocean, head northeast to Quebec (the quaint old quarter of Quebec City is on the left). You can practice your high school French. You can see buildings erected when what is now a Canadian province was known as New France and was ruled by le roi who lived in the palace at Versailles. You can eat fabulous food, some of it prepared by chefs, bakers and cheesemakers who either emigrated to Canada from France or Canadians who went to France to hone their skills.

If you live in the Northeast, Quebec is an easy road trip from New York or New England, or a fast flight from New York or Boston. If you live elsewhere, there is increasing air service nonstop to Montreal (like the Air Canada flight I took) and abundant flights to Toronto, with a change of planes to Montreal or Quebec City.