Our Lady of the Cape Shrine and La Maison des Grands-Parents de Trois-Rivi\u00e8res (MGPTR) are pleased to launch the 6th edition 2023 of the long-awaited Trois-Rivi\u00e8res Christmas Market event. As part of the No\u00ebl au Sanctuaire (Shrine\u2019s Christmas), the Christmas Market will be open on Saturday, December 9 from 11am to 6pm and on Sunday, December 10 from 10am to 5pm.<\/strong><\/p>\n Visitors are invited to join us and meet 75 local artisans, who will be set up in small huts outside and in the basement inside the Basilica. Artisan will offer a variety such as : crafts, jewelry, clothing, sewing, leather goods, wood products, ceramics, painting, books, beauty care, oils and soaps, candles, ornaments, decorations and gourmet treats.<\/p>\n You\u2019ll need to pass through the Service Center (restaurant and boutique) near the river to access the entrance that leads to the basement. Scouts elves will be on hand to guide you and introduce you to the holiday atmosphere as soon as you arrive!<\/p>\n \u201cTrois-Rivi\u00e8res Christmas Market has become a must for Christmas shoppers, and visitors are out in force this weekend. Our free classical concerts in the Basilica and our celebrations are also a great opportunity for many to experience a moment of interiority,\u201d notes R\u00e9mi Lepage, o.m.i., Director of Our Lady of the Cape Shrine.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n The Director of La Maison des Grands-parents de Trois-Rivi\u00e8res (MGPTR), Emilie Dallaire, is proud to be partnering the event for a second year running. \u201cMGPTR volunteers are excited to welcome artisans and visitors, and happy to help organize the event,\u201d says Ms. Dallaire.<\/p>\n Entertainment<\/strong><\/p>\n Visitors can take part in a variety of activities: outdoor entertainment, a storyteller, a horse-drawn carriage (Saturday only; in case of storm, postponed until the following day) from Gaetany Farm, shows in the basement and concerts in the Basilica. Holiday music around a bonfire and street food trucks await visitors on the esplanade square in front of the Basilica. The Market includes a visit from Santa Claus for children. In the basement, on the artisans\u2019 circuit, you can see or revisit the country miniatures (maquettes) created by Claude Bastien.<\/p>\n Cultural program<\/strong><\/p>\n Christmas markets also means music. On Sunday afternoon, fiddle and accordion music will liven up the entrance to the atrium and the \u201cLe go\u00fbt du Paradis\u201d restaurant, with holiday folk music by the Duo Trad Leclerc-Bell. Also on Sunday afternoon, storyteller Steve Bernier will be on hand around the fire, near the outdoor cabins, to present a few tales. On Saturday and Sunday afternoons, the Emmanuel choir will be outside, singing by the fire or near the cariole.<\/p>\n In the Basilica, the free (voluntary contribution) Christmas concerts present \u201cLes Classiques de No\u00ebl\u201d on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. (90 minutes), with three voices, Manuel Blais (baritone), Mari\u00e8ve Beauchesne (soprano), Eric Prud\u2019Homme (tenor), accompanied by organist Jocelyn Lafond. On Sunday at 2 p.m. (60 minutes), the Coro latinoamericano choir from Trois-Rivi\u00e8res presents a concert of Christmas carols in Spanish, \u201cNavidad con Jesus\u201d. These are two great concerts of traditional Christmas carols.<\/p>\n