la fête nationale

Last Friday was Quebec's National Holiday--la Saint-Jean. It is a BIG deal in Quebec, I would say equally or even more celebrated than the Fourth of July in the US. It turned out to be a rainy and cloudy day, but we persevered and were able to take part in some of the celebrations.

The first thing we did was watch the Parade of Giants. This parade basically runs through the history of Quebec, using giant 25-foot tall representations of its important historical figures that are wheeled through the streets. It took awhile to get started, but really picked up momentum and was really fun to watch by the end. We brought Jeter along with us, and he was scared of everything!

After the parade we made our way to the Parc Maisonneuve to check out the Saint-Jean fair--food vendors, carnival games and rides, and live music. On our way to the official site, we stopped by the Parc Olympique and had fun walking around the old Expos stadium and standing on the Olympic podium. Due to the rain the actual celebration site was really muddy, but we made the rounds and partook in the fair food--yum!