Is that French?

 

August 31, 2023

Camping Le Rayon Soleil stie 114

Kamouraska, QC

There is no doubt about it.  We felt very welcomed by the generous, friendly people in Newfoundland.  They went out of their way to make us feel welcome bringing us ice cream parfaits, iceberg ice, and extending dinner invitations. They were always ready to answer any questions and offer recommendations.  The interaction with the friendly Prince Edward Islanders was also enjoyed as well as those living in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. 

We have adjusted to the loonies and toonies  (one dollar and two dollar coins).  We now drive the kilometer per hour speed limits.  We feel comfortable seeing the Wash Room signs instead of our US Rest Room signs.  And we have appreciated the addition of the English translation on the French signs as well as the Gaelic signs.  Visiting has been enjoyable and painless.   

Just look at how many letters are used in Gaelic to spell Ladies.

As soon as we crossed the border into the providence of Quebec, we immediately had a different feeling.  No longer were the signs in both French and English.  They are French only…..everywhere!!  Some signs do use the universal symbols which Is helpful. 

Greetings of ‘Bonjour’ are the norm, but the clerk at the gas station did readily slide into English (with a French accent) as did the check-in clerk at the campground.  Whew!!   French is ever present in the air as we walk by the people sharing the same space that we are.  The over the air TV channels that we can tune in are all using French.  It is a tad uncomfortable for non-bilingual speakers.

We have grown accustomed to a friendly wave/greeting from fellow campers, but since we entered this campground in Quebec, our waves are not returned or even acknowledged with a friendly nod. 

We still have 3 more nights in this providence as we will relocate near Quebec City tomorrow.  I’m sure we will be able to locate our next campground as our GPS still is speaking to us in English, even though the signs we pass on the highway are still in French.

Maybe I should have learned to be bilingual……. Dog language as well as French.  But that probably wouldn’t help the two-legged too much as it took me a while to train them to understand my dog chatter and we will only be in Quebec for 3 more nights.

I’m Chloe