That one summer in Quebec

I’m thankful for many things, and since November is a popular month to recognize those things we’re thankful for, I thought I’d… wait, it’s December already? Oh.

At any rate, I visited my parents over Thanksgiving, and while I was there I found some old photo albums from back in the day. One of them was the photo album from the six weeks I spent at a French language school in Quebec City, at Cégep de Sainte-Foy, during the summer before my final year of high school. I went to Quebec with my friend Peter, who has been one of my best friends since we met in the fourth grade, but we met a lot of new friends from all over Canada (and even one from Atlanta) while we were staying there.

One reason why I am thankful is that the program was sponsored by the Canadian government. The trip to Quebec City, the room and board, and the daily French lessons were paid for as part of a French language bursary program. The program still exists, it seems – it is now called Explore, and it lasts for five weeks. It doesn’t seem like the current program is comprehensively covered as it was when I was in high school, but I still think it is pretty cool that the Government of Canada will sponsor English-speaking Canadian citizens to learn the French language, and vice versa. It shows the emphasis that the Canadian government places on being a multilingual country.

I learned a lot of French in Quebec, of course, but I learned a lot of other things as well – a lot about independence, and friendship, and Quebecois culture. It’s an experience that I will always remember, and it’s something that I hope my own children will be able to experience one summer once they themselves reach high school.

Here’s a picture I scanned of Peter and I at Toronto Pearson International Airport, getting ready to fly to Quebec City for the program.