Herbie, a History with French student at the University of Liverpool, writes about his year abroad in Québec, Canada, as a British Council Language Assistant.
My name is Herbie, and I have just returned home after nine months in Quebec, Canada, for my year abroad. I chose to live in Quebec and work as a Language Assistant because I wanted to experience North American landscapes and culture in a francophone setting.
This was definitely one of the best choices of my university career so far. I was able to experience a brand-new culture and take part in so many activities that I would never have had the chance to do in Liverpool or my hometown of Wallingford, Oxfordshire. The province is beautiful, full of people who are so proud to be Québecois and offers a unique opportunity to improve your French in a North American setting.
La Chute Jean-Larose, 17/01/2026:
The language
When telling my friends that I was heading to Canada to help teach English, I was often met with a similar response along the lines of ‘What's the point in that? They all already speak the language, don't they?’ This could not have been further from the truth. Over 22% of Canadians speak French as their first language, and in Quebec, that figure is over 94%.
Living in Saint-Georges, a rural town of 35,000 people in the Beauce region of Quebec, over an hour south of Québec City, French was the only language spoken, and the average level of English was extremely basic. I would even say that, from my experience, the level of English spoken was below that of a similar-sized rural town in France. Consequently, the location was perfect for me to be able to improve and practice my French.
It is important to note that the French spoken in Quebec is famously unique and can sound quite different from the French you hear in France. Many of the vowels are pronounced differently. This is amplified in more remote areas, and hence, during my first couple of weeks, I was really battling to understand just basic questions. For example, one of my neighbours saw that I was struggling to open a bin with my hands full and just asked “Besoin d’aide?” However, the way he had said “aide” made me think he was asking if I needed garlic (ail) rather than asking if I needed any help. Luckily, he saw past my confused-looking face and helped me open the bin, which was definitely more useful than some garlic in that situation!
One of the most common differences in pronunciation was the way in which the open A sounded. C’est pas ça sounded like C’est paw çaw. Whilst this was confusing at first, I quickly got used to it and even started to sometimes find myself slipping into Québecois pronunciation. In fact, some things are a bit easier in Quebec. For example, le and la sounded very similar in Quebec and therefore forgetting the gender of a noun suddenly became less important...
The accent is a challenge, but once I got used to it, I learnt a couple of the Quebec-specific sentence fillers and learnt some of the different expressions, I was able to understand people far more easily. I also provided some good entertainment for my colleagues when speaking French with them. One day I was talking about my struggles with the two tax systems and used the expression ‘J’en ai marre de…’ I was met with giggles and some “oh la las,” as that was something that would never be used in Quebec. Instead, they would say ‘Je suis tanné de…’ to express being fed up with something.
Snow Tubing at Valcartier, 13/02/2026:
Activities and culture
This year I had the opportunity to try out so many great new activities and experience different cultural activities. Thanks to the long, cold winter, I got to experience a real winter culture for the first time.
One of my highlights from the winter was something called ‘snow tubing’. This involved going down the side of a massive snow-covered hill, in either an individual rubber ring or one massive group. There were so many different slopes to go down, and you were able to get up to some real speeds. My teachers had advised me to rent some ski goggles due to the icy cold air that blasted my face on the way down. Unfortunately, I acted against their advice, thinking they were exaggerating, and I didn’t fancy spending an extra $15 (about £8). It turns out they were right… The discomfort of the wind on my face meant that I was often going down blind. It didn’t really matter, though, as it was still so much fun!
Pizza or fry
As well as snow tubing, I gave skiing a go. However, this experience was a bit more of a challenge. Before living in Saint-Georges, I had never skied before, but as the town had its own small ski centre, I thought I had to give it a try while I had the chance. So, I went with a couple of friends I had made on the programme, one of whom was an experienced skier, hoping I would quickly pick it up and not need lessons. It turned out that maybe I should’ve taken a couple of lessons before setting off down the slopes. I had been instructed about ‘pizza’ to slow down and ‘fry’ to go faster by my friend; it all seemed simple. That was until I actually gave it a go.
My first attempt at going down what was a very easy run led to me falling over about ten times and ending up having to take the skis off and walk down. After gaining the confidence to try another run, I was met with almost the exact same fate. This time, in front of a group of my students who all found great joy in watching me tumble. Whilst skiing was not a personal success, I couldn’t believe that nearly all of the students were very capable skiers, even the twelve-year-olds.
Ice hockey
One local activity I was deeply invested in was going and supporting the local ice hockey team, Cool Fm. It was great to be able to have a team in the town that I could go and support most weekends. The pace of the game is crazy, but I quickly got to grips with the rules and became a big fan!
I couldn’t believe the amount of fights that were allowed to take place; it seemed every game there would be some sort of brawl. I was told by some of my colleagues that the league they were in was notorious for fights and that in the NHL National Hockey League, things were a bit calmer.
Whilst I wasn’t able to attend an NHL game in Montreal, I found myself keeping up with the Montreal Canadiens, especially during the playoffs, as it was something that my students loved to talk to me about.
Carnival
Another great memory was going to the Quebec Winter Carnival, which was full of many activities. There were massive ice sculptures that you could walk around, maple taffy (tire d’érable), and a breathtaking parade. The parade involved people walking the tightrope on a moving float wearing just a leotard in -18℃. Ice canoeing on the St-Lawrence River was an amazing event that took place over the same weekend. A race over the frozen river, which saw crews having to jump out of their boat to slide across icebergs floating in the freezing water. Luckily, these people seemed to be wearing more appropriate clothes for the temperature.
Ice Hockey away in Thetford Mines, 21/03/2026:
Nature
Throughout this year, I was lucky enough to experience some of the best nature that Quebec and eastern Canada have to offer. I absolutely loved how seasonal Quebec is. The end of summer was warmer than in the UK, the colours of the leaves in autumn were mesmerising, and the winter was three and a half months of pure white snow, and then in spring I saw the snow melt suddenly and the green return to the landscape in a matter of weeks.
I was lucky enough to be taken on a hike with the school in Parc Massif du Sud up Mont Chocolat during the peak of autumn. The view was staggering; it was the first time I realised just how vast the forests really are in Quebec. Just trees and hills as far as the eye could see. The yellow and orange leaves accentuated the magic of the view; I had never seen colours that vibrant on trees in my life. Luckily, during autumn, the skies remained pretty clear, which added to the beauty of the season. I love autumn at home, but I fear now that it may never compare to the first few months of my time in Canada.
The snow first came to Quebec in late November and stayed pretty much ever-present until mid-March. In my town, there was a brilliant park called Parc des Sept Chutes. By December, the waterfalls had completely frozen, which was a stunning spectacle. Later, in January, a couple of other language assistants and I visited La Chute, Jean Larose. This waterfall is 68 feet tall but was completely frozen. This was one of my favourite sights of my time in Quebec.
What really surprised me is that there were maybe only five other people at the waterfall. It was so peaceful we just sat in the snow looking until the cold got too much. By this time, I had bought a car, and thanks to my winter tyres, I was able to go on many other snowy adventures in Beauce and other parts of Canada.
In February, I went on a road trip to Nova Scotia, one of the maritime provinces. Whilst it was definitely a place most would visit in the summer, the snowy pine trees next to the ocean were a sight I’ll always remember. Furthermore, Peggy’s Cove at sunset was hypnotic despite the icy wind attacking our faces.
After finishing my time as a language assistant, I spent the following two weeks on a road trip with my brothers before heading back home to the UK. We decided to go to the Gaspésie Peninsula. It was an amazing two weeks in which we went on many hikes featuring stunning views of mountains, waterfalls, lakes, and the sea. It was lovely to finish my time in Canada, visiting some of the places that had drawn me to Quebec originally.
One of the highlights of this trip was Forillon National Park. Here, the Appalachian Mountains meet the sea; it truly is a magical place. We were also fortunate to see a moose in the wild and admire its size up close. Fortunately, we were behind a roadside barrier and able to appreciate it safely. The trip was an amazing way to end my year abroad spent in La Belle Province.
Lac Aux Américains in La Parc National de la Gaspésie, 08/06/2026:
