More My Canada Blogs
- New Brunswick
- North West Territories
- Nova Scotia
- Alberta
- Ontario
- Quebec
- Prince Edward Island
- British Columbia
- Yukon Territories
- ECO: Your Choices Count
- Saskatchewan
June 2008 Blogs
- Real Girl: Shevya
- Feeling Stuck When Friends Are Changing
- No Matter What!
- Career Watch: Wedding Planner
- Ponytails of Love
- How to Create Your Own Time Capsule
- Ask a Guy: best childhood memory, fave sport, fashion and the way you look, guys pants hanging low
- Quebec
- The Problem with Plastics
- Gnarls Barkley, Rap/Alternative
- Panic at the Disco, Rock/Punk/Alternative
- Locks and Lashes: will my hair turn green, makeup and sensitive skin, sunscreen and moisturizer, stage makeup tips
- Spring Cleaning
Quebec
MY CANADA, June 2008, Jen Serdatchnaia
Québec
In many ways, Québec is a province unlike any other. It’s the largest in Canada and the most noticeable difference when you get there is language... be prepared to put your French to the test!
“I absolutely love that in one day I can speak English to my family, French in a class, I can be asked the time in English, and I can hear German, Spanish and Mandarin spoken all around me,” says Devon, an Anglophone living in Montréal.
What to Do in Quebec
Recreation choices seem to be as numerous as the languages heard on the streets of Montréal, Quebec’s largest city. Try skiing or boarding down the slopes at Mont Tremblant, enjoy a flick at one of the many movie theatres, discover history and art at a downtown museum or check out the annual Montreal Jazz Festival. “There is never a dull moment,” laughs Devon.
Masarah, a Francophone raised just outside of Québec City, mentions that she includes trips to Old Québec City as a favourite past-time with her friends. Not to mention the old Quebec tradition of ‘sugaring-off’ where sap is tapped from the maple trees and spread onto snow to make a delicious taffy!
Winter Carnival
You should make every effort to visit the Winter Carnival if you are in Quebec City during the wintertime. ‘Bonhomme’ is a name that brings smiles to children’s faces in Québec, and even across Canada. Every winter, Québec City hosts the ‘Carnival’ with its plump white mascot, the Bonhomme de Neige (snowman). Carnival brings a ton of fun activities to the heart of Québec City, including ice skating, a canoe race on the St. Lawrence River, a painting symposium, a soapbox derby, a dogsled race, snow baths and outdoor dance parties.
400 Years!
This year Canada is wishing ‘bonne fête’ or happy birthday to Québec City as it celebrates the 400th anniversary of its founding by Samuel de Champlain. As usual, the city is celebrating in style! Like you needed another reason to pay Québec a visit, ‘Espace 400’ is the area solely dedicated to commemorating the occasion with everything from a themed pavilion to cabaret and artists’ gardens.
Cool Facts
Three times the size of its motherland France, Québec is rich in lakes (with more than one million lakes and waterways!) and in all types of forestry, from hardwood to mixed to coniferous. The St. Lawrence River is the province’s largest waterway, crossing Québec west to east over a thousand kilometres before spilling into the Atlantic Ocean.
Some areas of Quebec are known for their beautiful architecture, cool shops and cheese fondue!
Brush up on your French girls, put on your best party hat and get on over to Québec. Salut!
Capital: Quebec City
Motto: Je me souviens (I remember)
Flower: Blue Flag Iris
Population: 7.55 million
Languages: French, English
Industry: agriculture, manufacturing, energy, mining, forestry, transportation
Climate: extremes of hot and cold
Geography: Canadian Shield, Appalachians, St. Lawrence Lowlands
~ Jen