法国的巴黎是欧洲的时尚之都。你知道加拿大也有一个"巴黎"吗？那的人们讲法语，吃法餐，住法式的建筑。想体验浪漫的巴黎，在加拿大也可以感觉像法国哦。

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Canada has two official languages, English and French, thus it has two founding cultures. Why so? The story can be traced back to the 16th century.

The French were the first Europeans to permanently colonize what is now Quebec. Their colonies of New France are commonly called Canada.

The first permanent European settlements in Canada were at Port Royal in 1605 and Quebec City in 1608 as fur trading posts. The inhabitants of Canada called themselves the Canadiens, and came mostly from northwestern France. Many French Canadians are the descendants of the King's Daughters of this era.

In the 18th century, France ceded the territories to Great Britain since it was defeated in the Seven Years' War. Now more than 20% of the Canadians speak French, and most of them live in the province of Quebec. Bilingualism, therefore, is the most distinct characteristic of Quebec as well as Canada.

Montreal is the largest city in the province of Quebec and second largest French speaking city in the world after Paris, and it is called "Paris of North America".

Jason Tsoukas is a Montrealer studying in Beijing. Talking about his hometown, he says the centuries-old marriage of Protestant English and Catholic French cultures defines Montreal and has given the city a unique character.

"Montreal has culture of its own in terms of duality of language. People may speak to each other in English and French. So somebody may start a conversation in English and somebody would answer in French and back and forth it goes. It comes to the point that Montrealers may not even be aware of their language they are speaking. It's just natural. "

Yet, being at the confluence of the French and the English traditions, Montreal has developed a distinguished cultural face, thus it is called "Canada's Cultural Capital". Another distinctive characteristic of Montreal cultural life is to be found in its animated downtown, especially during summer, prompted by cultural and social events, particularly festivals. The city's largest festival is the "Just for Laughs" comedy festival, which is the largest in the world of its kind.

"It's a festival where comedians from all over the world come to Montreal and do stand-up comedy. It's been a great success. We also have the largest jazz festival in the world, called Montreal Jazz Festival. It happens every summer and attracts the top musicians in the world as well."

For over a century and a half, Montreal was the industrial and financial centre of Canada. The variety of buildings today provides a legacy of historic and architectural interest, especially in the downtown area and the Old Port area. Ariane Johnson is born in Montreal and now works in Beijing. She says,

"In Montreal, all the old buildings are European like. They are French architectures. When you go into the old Montreal, you feel you are in Europe. It's very beautiful. It's just like you're in Paris."

Today there are also many historic buildings in Old Montreal still in their original form: Notre-Dame de Montreal Basilica, Bonsecours Market, and the impressive 19th century headquarters of all major Canadian banks on St. James Street.

The beauty of Montreal is also reflected in its food. You can find the most delicious cheese in Montreal because cheese culture is still shared by Quebec France. People in Montreal like to drink wine, just like the French, although Canada doesn't produce good wine.

"Montreal is never dull. It is exciting and it reflects the passion that people have for everything from their food, from something known as Montreal smoked meat, it's typical Montreal fast food. Or poutine, which is a concoction of French fries, gravy and cheese curds, which is also very popular. So these are interesting dishes you may not find anywhere else. And every spring, we have a tradition, at least in Quebec, called "Sugar Shack". People get together and listen to French Canadian folk music and eat various kinds of pork products, roasted beans and maple syrup. They enjoy the outdoor activities. That reflects the Montreal culture and passion for the good life."

Quebec has a distinguished culture. The Canadians are proud to have a French speaking province in a largely English speaking country.

"We feel richer as a country culturally. Certainly when I go abroad, I feel good being able to speak both languages. That's part of Canadian identity. "

For EasyFM, I'm Zhang Wan.

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