Wakefield, without a doubt, was the town that people had raved about the most. "You'll love it there", they said. "So beautiful and laid back. So many great shops. The people there are a perfect audience for your film". And they were right.
Our good friend's sister, Fiona, managed to hook us up with two fabulous local champions: La Foret and Life Without Plastic.
I had known about Life Without Plastic from the 'blogging world' as the online source for great non-plastic alternatives (think stainless steel containers and wooden toothbrushes), so it was quite an honour to meet Jay and Chantal in real life. Mel and Siomonn from La Foret made sure we had the projector sorted and spoiled us by filling up our bulk bags (and a couple new stainless steel containers from LWP) with organic trail mix, pasta, and loose tea. Needless to say, our local promoters ensured that we screened to a packed house at infamous Black Sheep, and our audience was treated to the best door prizes ever. Thanks also to Julia who let us stay at her house even though she wasn't there (Wakefield's like that) and Andrew who provided a fab lunch and a quality swimming hole.
After a lovely ride through Quebec countryside, we had planned to camp the next night in Alfred, but as we were looking at the map outside the grocery store, a woman came up and invited us to her house for the night! Claudette turned out to be a gourmet cook whose sons were about our age, and we spent a great evening socializing with her and her husband, swapping travelling and family stories. What a friendly introduction to Quebec!
Hudson, one of our very first bookings, was our next stop. Once again we were spoiled. We stayed with the lovely Madeleine, the mom of a friend, who treated us like her own kids, feeding us homemade pie and letting us sleep on a luxurious memory foam bed. We screened at the community centre, hosted by the fantastic and volunteer run, GoGreen Hudson. We also met the folks from Steward Bags who came all the way from Cornwall to see the film and give us a few of their organic cotton produce bags to try - thanks guys.
As a final note, we are continually surprised and humbled with the hospitality people have shown us along this trip. Friends of friends, parents of friends of friends, and even strangers have welcomed us in to their homes, and we know that when the trip is over, these are the experiences we'll remember the most.