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Canada Day in Quebec

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Last week I shared with you our Saint Jean Baptiste or Fête Nationale in Québec and gave you a little history lesson. And how for some Anglos, this is just a day off from work and for most Francos, it holds pride on being French.

In Quebec, for many, Canada Day is just a day off. Like Victoria Day (only Quebecers celebrate Journée des Patriotes – Patriots Day) because in this province things are disinct… sorry, I digress!

Mick’s Flag

Now, I am what our Prime Minister Trudeau (father, not son) was hoping the people of his country would all be. Perfectly bilingual in both English and French. No matter what your province of birth is, you can be bilingual. However, that did not happen quite as he had hoped. About the only thing bilingual in the country is packaging. And I can go on and on about the laws and stuff but then I’ll just get myself worked up and that is not the point of this here post. What I am is, a Canadian, who happens to live in Quebec; not the other way around.  And like most Canadians, except for the staunchest Separatists, would be celebrating, if I weren’t working – coz I’m in the hospitality biz and there ain’t no holidays for that there group.

Peeps like to call it Canada’s birthday but that is over-simplifying things 😉  I found this on the internets and it perfectly sums things up:

“On July 1, 1867, the nation was officially born when the Constitution Act joined three provinces into one country: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and the Canada province, which then split into Ontario and Quebec. However, Canada was not completely independent of England until 1982. The holiday called Dominion Day was officially established in 1879, but it wasn’t observed by many Canadians, who considered themselves to be British citizens. Dominion Day started to catch on when the 50th anniversary of the confederation rolled around in 1917. In 1946, a bill was put forth to rename Dominion Day, but arguments in the House of Commons over what to call the holiday stalled the bill.

The 100th anniversary of the nation’s official creation in 1967 saw the growth of the spirit of Canadian patriotism, and Dominion Day celebrations really began to take off. Although quite a few Canadians already called the holiday Canada Day (Fête du Canada), the new name wasn’t formally adopted until October of 1982.”

—Source:  Mental Floss

Well how do you like them apples? I couldn’t have said it any better!

And in Quebec, July 1st is officially Moving Day… Crazy as that sounds, today will be Mover’s nightmare with trucks all over the place as people move from one apartment to another. Not a law but a tradition. Weird, but true.  How did this happen, you ask? I always thought it was because schools end their year on June 23rd, latest, so it is easier for parents to not screw up the kids’ school year. And it is for that reason but there is more.

It began as a humanitarian meaure by the Quebec government forbidding landlords from evicting their tenant farmers in the middle of winter. Sweet of them, no?  Apparently in the 18th century French law dictated that all legal documents begin on May 1 so that became the official unofficial start time for leases, going from May 1 to April 30.

In 1973, the Quebec government figured it would be even better to move this day to July 1st for the original reason I stated (to coincide with the end of the school year), plus we can still get crappy weather in the beginning of May, and, by moving it to an official holiday, people would not miss a day of work. Of course, that excludes the movers, doesn’t it?

Today’s history lesson is over 😉 I wish all of my Canadian readers a

And leave you with this little amusing and oh-so-silly video

And just so you know, I have never, EVER, used the word chesterfield for a sofa… and a few of the other expressions 😉

 

 

93 thoughts on “Canada Day in Quebec”

  3. Dear Dale,

    One day I hope to visit your beautiful country. Thank you for the history lesson. I didn’t know any of it. Nu? Why did you move June 1? Are you some kind of rebel? 😉 Enjoy Canada Day…even if you do have to work. ❤

    Shalom and lotsa holiday hugs,

    Rochelle

    Liked by 1 person

  6. Q,

    You Canadians are a breed all your own. It’s a good thing, as y’all happen to be very nice in spite of your not always so hospitable neighbors. Must be the maple syrup.

    Do you guys blow shit up on Canada Day the way Americans do on the 4th? Although around here, they had their big fireworks celebration last night, the bastids! The cat was driving me crazy, because he gets freaked whenever they do that stuff.

    Anyways, Happy Canada Day! Oh Canada! Woot!

    B

    Liked by 1 person

    • B,

      Yanno? Last week I mentioned fireworks and parades… Duh! Today we have them as well… Some were last night, I imagine. Wouldn’t know. Was working…

      Must be the maple syrup…and more than a few good ‘Muricans…

      Poor cat. Zeke hates them too!

      Thank ya, neighbour from the south!

      Q

      Liked by 1 person

  9. Happy Canada Day, Dale! Sorry that you’re stuck working. We have our July 4th coming up, and I’ll be stuck working for that too — although at least I’ll get to do my work at home with my cat on my lap, since everyone else in the office is taking the day off.

    What a crazy idea to have one day where everyone moves! I can only imagine the chaos for the poor moving companies, not to mention the traffic jams on the streets outside all those apartments moving on the same day. Well, mark that up as one way that Canadians are crazier than Americans. We still have you beat by a landslide, though (sad to say)!

    Liked by 1 person

    • Thank you, Joy!
      Ah well… At least I’m paid double time…

      It is totally crazy. You should see the mayhem!

      Yep. We have our own brand of crazy .. and it’s not a Canada thing. It’s a Quebec thing!

      Liked by 1 person

  10. Happy 🇨🇦 Day. I’m always impressed with bilingual peeps. Alas in the US that tends to be viewed as elitism and in a more negative view. We would do well to imitate our northern neighbors on many fronts, but especially on that one. Kudos to you. And thanks for sharing more historical and interesting tidbits which comes in as a close second to bilingualism. #lovelearning

    Liked by 1 person

  11. Happy Canada Day, Dale! Thank you for the lesson. I didn’t know the history.
    There’s a moving day in the Boston area. I don’t know if it’s all through the state or not, but my daughter and her wife have experienced it, and it’s insane. I think it’s August 1.

    Liked by 1 person

  13. That was highly informative. And fun. And I’m wondering if I might be an honorary Canadian cos my grandfather’s sister Phoebe married a Canadian, and I grew up with Canadian comics cos Aunt Phebes would send them in a big parcel every Christmas. Does that make me just a little bit Canadian? No, didn’t think so.
    Happy Special Yours Day!

    Liked by 1 person

  16. Happy Canada Day and I REALLY enjoyed the history lesson! I knew some, but absolutely not all, of what you wrote, and it is not far better organized in my head! 🙂 Probably a good thing, too, given that I’ll be in Canada later this month … Best be an informed visitor, no?
    As for “moving day”–it is not an official one in NYC, but it an official one for (at least) three apartments on my block, including people moving into the building to the right of mine and people moving into the building to the left of mine … The moving trucks are parked within tickle distance. 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    • Thank you, Na’ama! Glad you enjoyed my little lesson. Good thing I didn’t go too crazy, eh?
      I imagine there must be moments where it feels like an official moving day.

      Liked by 1 person

  19. Thanks to you, I am going to bed more smarter….. again.
    I didn’t know all this, well, except for the national moving day, but not the history of it.
    Andddddddddddd, I didn’t know the first part either…..
    Some Canadian eh?

    You put it all together perfectly.
    Well written.
    You should be a writer.
    Thank you for learning me something.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Well there ya go, Tony!
      Never too old to learn… even an Italian immigrant like you 😉

      I’m glad you enjoyed my attempts at writing. I’ll keep trying, k?
      LOL

      Like

  21. I’m a little late to the party but… Happy Canada Day! I watched the video and will study it well in case I decided to move to Canada (it might come to that given how things are here). I’ve only visited the Maritimes, which I loved. I enjoyed the history lesson. Thank you. 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    • Thank you, Robin!
      Well… Let’s just say we are not all checkered flannel jacket wearing peeps and some of those expressions I’ve never used but on the whole…😉
      Glad you enjoyed and you know you are more than welcome to come!

      Like

  22. Thanks for all the interesting bits that make up Canada Day. The most time I’ve spent in Canada is five one-week a year canoe trips in the Algonquin with our church youth group. Canada is just across the Great Lakes from Cleveland so we felt right at home. Happy Canada Day to you.

    Liked by 1 person

  23. I am not Canadian but I found your post very interesting. Thanks to you, I learned a lot about Canadian history 😊

    Liked by 1 person

    • The How to be Canadian has moments that frankly make me cringe… I mean, those of us in Toronto or Montreal do NOT use some of those terms…
      I’ve never used the term chesterfield in my life. We sit our butts on couches over here…

      Liked by 1 person

  25. Pingback: Canada Day in Quebec — A Dalectable Life – Truth Troubles

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