“Big Brother” state in Quebec

Protest in Quebec over language law Bill 14

The language saga continues in Quebec as the Premier of Quebec, Pauline Marois announced last year, the creation of a new law: BILL 14.
Highlights of this “Big Brother” law include:
Employers will be threatened with sanctions unless they can prove that their staff needs to speak languages other than French. This is crazy since most companies that sell outside of Quebec need their staff to speak English.
Municipalities may loose their bilingual status. Most English speakers have left the province, this would incite even more to leave.
English CEGEP’s (college educational institution) would require French proficiency testing for the for all students. You attend an English school and you need to take a French test -makes no sence!
This is a clear violation of Canadian’s rights and Freedoms!
Revolts are taking place -a regular site in the streets in the province of Quebec.

Springtime in Montreal, blink & you’ll miss it!

Spring has supposedly sprung in Montreal this week -officially on March 20th/2013, but the city got hit with a huge snowstorm (30+ centimeters or 10+ inches). Montreal has a relatively short spring season. It is not safe to put your shovels and mittens away until at least April 1, as snow slowly begins to melt. The tree buds start to come to life in April, but foliage and flowers make their appearance in May. By the time June comes around, the weather starts to heat up with the start of summer. Averages temperatures go from April springtime of 8 Celsius (46 Fahrenheit) to two months later in June to 18 Celsius (64 Fahrenheit). Blink and you may miss spring in Montreal…

http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/montreal/Video+March+Snowstorm+hits+Montreal/8121586/story.html?tab=VID” title=”Montreal Gazette newspaper link and video” target=”_blank”>

Are you sick? Don’t live in Quebec

Typical in Quebec hospitals are stretchers lining the hallways due to overcrowding.

Upon moving back to Quebec, I discovered the trials and tribulations of finding medical help. I had to beg my father’s family doctor to take me. When I got there, he said, “don’t tell anyone, I only consider taking family members of existing patients in special circumstances”. He gave me referrals to two specialists over a month ago, and I am still waiting to be called for an appointment! It is a good thing that I am not sick (it’s for a routine check-up) because it could take months until I see them. If you have the unfortunate luck of having to go to an emergency, and if your case is not highly urgent (flu, broken arm, stiches), you may have to wait in excess of six hours to be seen by a doctor. I lived in Ontario for 5 years, and I had a family doctor, specialist checkup appointments were fast, and I never waited more than 10 minutes in a walk-in clinic. Quebec may be a fun place to live, just stay healthy while you are here!

Ready for a 14 hour ski day?

The weather can get quite frigid in Quebec over winter. The daily average temperatures is around −10 °C (14 °F) in January, but add the windshield factor (combination of current temperature with added cold of wind blowing), it can feel like −30 °C (-22 °F).Since you cannot beat winter, the only way to enjoy it is to embrace it. There are numerous winter activities such as skating, toboganning, dog-sled, cross country and downhill skiing. In fact,many Quebec Alpine ski centers are open from 8am until 10:00pm offering night skiing. After a short 45min drive from downtown Montreal, you can be on the slopes.

Have you heard of the language police?

Quebec became the laughing stock of the world when 60 minutes aired a show highlighting the province’s “language police” that goes around measuring business signs, websites, and other company material (promotional, letterhead, etc.) to ensure that the French lettering is bigger than the English. Some businesses had no French lettering and they received fines, or many left the province for fear of fines and pure frustration with the bureaucracy. The “office de la Langue franchise” which stands the “office of the French language” and the language police was created to protect the French language for fear of extinction in the province. Have any of you outside of Canada heard of this? Any comments are welcome.

Unique to Quebec is the Winter Carnival

Rio has their carnival, and so does Quebec!
You will not find women in bikini’s and feather head pieces, instead you will find people with alot of clothes on to keep warm from the frigid temperatures. If the clothes are not warm enough, then you can always sip some “Caribou” to warm up. Caribou contains brandy, vodka, sherry and port and the taste is unforgettable.
If you like snow scultures and sleeping in an ice hotel, this is the place for you.

Check out the Quebec winter carnival running until February 17, 2013 by visiting this website; http://carnaval.qc.ca/en/

Why “Anglo” in Quebec?

Anglo is a term used in Quebec to say that you are primarily an English speaker or come from an English speaking background. “Anglo” is an abreviation for Anglophone The term “Francophone” refers to a French speaker who’s mother tongue in French. Lastly, term Alophone, means a person’s who’s mother tongue is neither French or English.

Welcome to Quebec Living

I am a born in Quebec but have lived abroad and come to realize that Quebec is unique in many ways. This blog will explore how Quebec is different than other provinces and provide tips for the newcomer.