June 24th - SAINT JEAN BAPTISTE CELEBRATION

Last week, my wife and I drove to Montreal to meet our son who had just finished teaching for one year in Kangiqsualujjuaq, Quebec, a small Inuit town of 600 people located at the mouth of the George river on Ungava bay. After spending the night in Montreal the three of us drove to Quebec City to see my cousin and his wife. We had a great time together.


One of the most interesting things that happened on the weekend was spending Saturday evening on the Plains of Abraham where the Saint Jean Baptiste celebrations were held. After having dinner with my cousin and his wife in a restaurant called Le Conchon Dingue, (the Crazy Pig), we walked to the Plains of Abraham. It was a beautiful evening so the walk was very refreshing. 


The festivities started at 9:00 PM after a long dissertation about Quebec. While we were listening to all the political and nationalistic speeches we noticed that the cameras had suddenly changed direction and were aimed directly at us. A group of people appeared in front of us. Suddenly, my cousin's wife became very animated and called the women by name, Madame Maurois. A woman and a man came up to my wife, my son and I and shook our hand, in turn, and wished us, "bonne fete" (happy holiday). We thought that they were just people that my my cousin and his wife knew. As it turned out, they were high ranking politicians in the provincial Parti Quebecois, Pauline Maurois who is the leader of the Parti Quebecois and Daniel Paille, the leader of the Le Bloc Quebecois. It was an interesting experience. We listened to the music for about an hour or so then we returned to my cousin's apartment for a while then went back to our hotel; we were leaving early the next morning.

It was a great weekend. It gave me a great sense of who I am and my ethnic roots. I feel that it is important to keep in touch with your roots. In the end, it is ultimately what defines us.