Hot in the city

Before I get to my short rant about summer, I've uploaded quite a few photos from Toronto, Hamilton, and Québec, so enjoy.

It's been searing hot here in Québec. It hasn't reached ridiculous temperatures, but the humidity has made it quite unpleasant. Even today, when it was cloudy (it's actually just started to rain a few seconds ago), the moment the sun made any appearance, you would just start to broil inside your clothes. The fact that the city is very hilly doesn't help one bit. Walking uphill in 30+ with the humidity amped up are perfect conditions for dehydration.

Accordingly, I haven't been outside of the hostel for more than one hour at a time. I just sweat far too much and, even armed with a full bottle of water, I need some shade and refreshment at regular intervals. It's a nice city and all, but the weather hasn't helped me out in seeing all of it... not that there's a ton to see. In fact, I've probably seen most of what the city has to offer despite the limited time I've had to walk around.

The other reason I haven't done a lot is because of the money situation. I forgot to mention this, but I lost my Canadian bank card in Burlington before leaving, and had to cancel it. This encouraged me to save up some money and only spend what I had left in my wallet until I got a replacement card. I finally decided to get a replacement card on Wednesday (after much confusion, partly due to the language barrier) but figured it would be good to continue the trend, so I kept eating self-prepared food, resisted the urge to join the several pub crawls, and haven't entered any attraction that has an admittance fee. I think I've done pretty well.

To the Maritimes

I've just finished reading Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, and it was a good read indeed. I really want to read the next book now, but it's not yet out on paperback, so I think I may have to just start reading bits and pieces at bookstores when I get to the Maritimes. I suppose the three other books I've started reading will have to do for the train to Halifax.

I leave for Halifax tomorrow, getting there the day after (as the train takes about 20 hours). I'm sure hoping that the coastal weather at this time of year is a lot more forgiving.