New France Festival - Les Fetes de la Nouvelle France

Festival Location: Quebec, Canada

Festival Type(s): Historical Festivals, Cultural Festivals

Scarlett Does Québec

By: © Jacqueline Harmon Butler 2009

"I have a rather unusual request," I said to the young man behind the hotel's front desk. "Would you mind undressing me?"
His face turned beet-red with shock and alarm as he looked at me. But when I turned around and he saw the problem he laughed and willingly undid the ribbons. My costume had laceings all the way up the back and I couldn't unfasten them by myself. Usually one of my women friends was nearby to help me but that night I came in very late and alone.

I was in Québec City for their annual Les Fêtes de la Nouvelle France celebration. It was my first time in Québec and I wanted to do and see as much as I could squeeze into a few days. After settling in at my hotel I noticed that it had begun to rain, but that didn't stop me. I put on my rain gear and went out for a walk.

The buildings in the old part of Québec City resembled a collection of treasured jewels surrounded by ancient walls and crowned by the beautiful Fairmont Le Château Frontenac Hotel. Looking down on the city from the top of the funicular, a reasonable alternative from the very long and straight-up stairway called 'Heart Attack', I was surprised by the variety of colors of the copper roofs. The shade of the metal changes as the roofs age. When new they are similar in color to a shiny copper-penny; as they become older a soft green patina begins to form and ultimately they turn a beautiful turquoise hue.

The summer rain didn't keep many of the people who had come for the Festival from parading around in 18th Century costumes. The shops along the cobblestone streets, with their abundance of flowers growing or climbing around their windows and doors, made a perfect backdrop for photos. I enjoyed the variety of sights and smells around me as I splashed along through the puddles.

Much later, when I decided it was time for lunch, I wandered into an interesting-looking café. The hostess regarded me with dismay. I was quite a colorful sight with my dripping wet bright yellow rain parka and tomato-red umbrella. I smiled weakly as I shed my rain gear and hung things to dry near the door. I was seated in the center of the room, warm and dry at last. I dined on the typical working Frenchman's lunch: steak frites, and a glass of dark red Burgundy wine. It was pure comfort food. The meat was juicy and tender, the fries crisp and the wine smooth.

That night I was invited to Les Grands Feux Loto just outside town at the Montmorency Falls. The setting was magnificent, albeit rainy, and the water tumbled down the cliff with wild abandon. The spectators in my section all wore white plastic rain parkas, giving an other-worldly appearance to everyone. I laughed in spite of myself at the strangeness of the situation. It was very rainy and many of the fireworks disappeared in the low clouds but we oohed and aahed at them anyway.

The next day my friends and I went to the Maison Chevalier to get fitted for costumes. It reminded me of a bargain basement sale with dresses, laces, shawls, fans, feathers, sequins and other finery being tried on, discarded and finally chosen. My dress was a sumptuous creation made with yards and yards of burgundy-colored damask. It had a cobalt blue panel down the front with miles of black and gold braid and white lace trimming the neck, sleeves and around the bottom. It weighed a ton and I felt like Scarlett O'Hara dressed in the living room drapes. I realized how important a lady's maid was to the women of that era. There was no way I could not get myself into or out of that dress by myself.

Many of the festivities were held in Montmorency Park, located high on a hill in the city center. The sun finally broke through one afternoon as we watched madcap performers dancing and clowning around under the giant maple trees. Later we went to an evening concert in the park and I marveled at the tree's beauty. Illuminated from below, the branches seemed to stretch all the way to heaven. A light breeze ruffled their leaves and now and then a bright star shone through the foliage.

We filled our days with sightseeing: a boat ride along the St. Lawrence River, a tour of the L'ile d'Orléans, stopping to dine on local cuisine and delicacies. We joined in the daily parade through the city as part of the Louisane section, throwing colorful beads to the crowds. We pranced around town in our finery, stopping to taste the many delicious foods offered by street vendors: luscious strawberries, tangy goat cheese, fresh egg sandwiches (the hens were laying their eggs right there in the stand), barbecued chicken on a stick, giant ears of corn dripping with farm butter, washed down with glasses of homebrewed beer and cider. Our last night dinner at the Fairmont Le Château Frontenac found my group of friends decked out in full 18th Century dress, hand-cuffed together as we searched for the keys to release us in a game of "Find the Key." We were in high gear when we sat down to a delicious dinner in the Place D'Armes room.

But of all the sights and tastes and sounds of Québec City, it was the beautiful maple trees that I remember the most. A vision of me in my sumptuous Scarlett O'Hara dress, swaying to the music and watching the leaves dancing in the breeze comes to mind. That and the look of shock on the night clerk's face, when I asked him to undress me, were the high points. Who would have ever thought that it would be the maple trees that would steal my heart?

by Jacqueline Harmon Butler

New France Festival - Les Fetes de la Nouvelle France Dates and Location

New France Festival (Les Fetes de la Nouvelle France) take splace in Old Quebec, Canada for five days over the first weekend in August. For more information, visit the Web site at www.novellefrance.qc.ca.