[Magdalen] Quebec City.

[Charles Wohlers]

We last visited Quebec City about 7 years ago, and didn't encounter anyone 
who couldn't speak English. And the English was always quite understandable. 
In a previous trip, ten years ago, we only encountered one person who 
couldn't speak English - a 10-year old (or so) pumping gas at a fairly 
remote gas station near Gaspésie Nat'l. Park.

All signs, even the menus at Tim Horton's, however, are in French only - no 
English, even at Anglophone-owned establishments.

Chad Wohlers
Woodbury, VT USA
just 40 miles from the Quebec border
chadwohl at satucket.com



-----Original Message----- 
From: Cantor03--- via Magdalen
Sent: Friday, January 09, 2015 11:59 PM
To: magdalen at herberthouse.org
Subject: [Magdalen] Quebec City.



I saw a travelogue this evening featuring Quebec City.  The City  was
its usual charming and picturesque self.  This was expected.

What was not expected was the heavily accented, even broken English
of the dozen or so locals who were interviewed during the course of
the program.

I know of the tensions between Anglophones and Francophones in  Quebec,
but it was obvious that English doesn't come easily to Quebec natives, if
these
interviewees are typical.

I have always envisioned Quebec (and really all Canadians) as an
ideal setting for the very early familiarity with both languages  producing
a fluent, relatively unaccented French and English bilingual  population.

I appear to have been wrong in this assumption.


David S.