Old Quebec City Is A Magical Place
When celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain travelled to Québec City, in 2013, he said he felt Iike he was in an entirely different country.
Quebec
A decade of experiencing culture and heritage
The Yukon portion of Culture Days will happen at numerous locations around Whitehorse on the last weekend in September as part of a national effort to increase participation in arts and culture. The event was created in response to the success of Québec’s Journées de la culture weekend that first took place in 2007. Michelle …
In search of the perfect poutine
Poutine. This simple, but tasty dish, was officially put in the dictionary in 2014 and listed in the top 10 Canadian inventions of all time.
Teaching language through song from Québec to the Yukon
Multilingual Quebec musicians Andrée Levesque-Sioui and Kyra Shaughnessy are in the Yukon this month for a series of workshops with high-school students. The workshops are aimed at promoting bilingualism in the Yukon and are conducted in French and the Huron-Wendat First Nation language.
Through dark to the light
Winter Child, the first novel by Virginia Pésémapéo Bordeleau to be translated to English, is a lyrical journey through a mother’s grief of losing and outliving her child.
Making it last
Cathy Stubington doesn’t mind being in the shadows when she does a show. In fact, she prefers it.
Tout en musique pour la Fête de la Saint-Jean
La Saint-Jean, qu’est-ce que ? À l’origine, une fête païenne célébrée, le 24 juin, depuis quelques siècles, qui a, par la suite, été christianisée. On y faisait des feux de joie, on chantait et on dansait, le tout pour célébrer l’arrivée de l’été et le jour le plus long de l’année! Depuis une cinquantaine d’années, …
Les femmes, unies, jamais ne seront vaincues!
Il y a près d’un an, j’ai quitté le Québec pour m’établir au Yukon. À la recherche de nouveaux défis, j’ai pris les rênes des EssentiElles, un groupe de défense des droits des femmes francophones du territoire. Bien que je me sois toujours considérée comme une citoyenne engagée et progressiste, cette expérience de militantisme est …
Farewell to the Big Top and its Big Thrills
The child’s heart that beats in my aging breast is breaking. They’re shutting down the circus. After 146 years (exactly twice my life span so far), the iconic Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus is turning off the lights, packing up the Big Top and sending home the clowns. In May, the roar of …
Summer Fun has Begun
Look around. The birds are singing, canoes and kayaks are back on Subaru roof racks and my neighbour seems to have an urge for gardening at 11:30 p.m. These are signs of summer. It’s a change from spending much of our time inside, sipping hot tea and feeding the woodstove to living the wild and …
Hitting the Powder
I will try anything once; twice if the first time doesn’t kill me. Which is fortunate, because that’s how many times I had been skiing prior to my lesson at the Mount Sima Ski School: exactly twice. I was 17 and had gone on a “romantic ski date” with my then-boyfriend at the Batawa Ski …
Chance of a Ghost
Claude Turcotte was the father of my two younger kids, Josh and Sophie Turcotte, also Dad to then-toddlers Geordie MacInnis and Lee Robitaille. He was my partner, lover and frenemy from 1979 to 1988, when his shenanigans became too much for me. Claude came to Yukon in 1973 to work in Clinton Creek, and stayed …
Street Party
Nadine Landry describes Louisiana’s Cajun culture as a ‘holy trinity’ of food, music and dancing. “People invite you over to dinner, so there is food, and that’s hugely important in Cajun culture. And it takes so long for the food to get ready, you start playing tunes, and then people start dancing,” she says. “So …
Behind the scenes Of Canada’s bilingual heritage
In mid-January, I was given the opportunity to coordinate Je parle français And I Love in English, 2015, a theatrical performance written by and for Francophone women that will be presented this weekend, March 6 and 7, at the Old Fire Hall. As a newcomer to the Yukon, I did not see the sold-out début …
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Tanya Tagaq Reclaims Stories of her People
For those who missed Tanya Tagaq on stage at music festivals in Dawson and Atlin, the Available Light Film Festival (ALFF) is giving Yukoners another chance to experience this acclaimed musician’s work on February 10 at the Yukon Arts Centre. Tagaq rocketed onto radar-screens last year when her newest album, Animism, won the 2014 Polaris …
Vacation’s Over, Kid
Recently my wife and I went to Mexico. Rather than bring our three-year-old daughter, Emily, we decided to fly my mother from Quebec to take care of her. Emily doesn’t get to see her grandmother too often so we knew a week with “Nana” would be one of spoiling, late nights, and treats. Which is fine. …
Hot Dogging in Quebec
I was on vacation with my family in southern Quebec when I opened e-mail from What’s Up Yukon editor Peter Jickling asking me if I had any “hot dog” stories for the magazine. It occurred to me that other than eating them over the years I had no stories of any value. Once I burnt …
Life on the Border
National Geographic Channel’s TV show, Border Security, about customs officers dealing with strange and sometimes dangerous people is often set in a metropolitan city, most frequently in an airport. But Beaver Creek — the most westerly community in Canada — is a town of about 100 people, and it includes Border Services officers, too. Mark …
Chef Karina Lapointe: Treat Your Buds
If your taste buds long for something new and your eyes are looking for something as pretty as it is tasty, you need to find Karina Lapointe. This local chef graduated from two different professional culinary schools in Québec but her training started long before then. “I’ve always been crazy about cooking,” says Lapointe. “I …
Law-Abiding Beer
The Liquor Corporation in New Brunswick has created a wee bit of a stir lately (pun intended). It seems it is losing a lot of beer sales in border communities. Not to the U.S., as you might think, but to Québec. Every province and territory in Canada has their own approach to beer pricing. As …
Pop With a Gypsy Touch
Don’t let the name fool you. True, the Québec-based trio, The Lost Fingers, took its name from the two fingers of legendary gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt that were rendered useless in a fire, leading him to develop a unique and unmistakable playing style. And it’s true that the group’s sound is highly influenced by the …
