The Meaning of the First Long Weekend of  Summer

Nothing is more celebrated in Canada than the long weekends of summer.  The first of those weekends is officially called Victoria Day but is better known to most Canadians as the "May Long Weekend".  It has been an official holiday in Canada since 1845, to honour Queen Victoria, who was the reigning  monarch of Canada, a British colony at that time.  Even though Canada has been a sovereign country since 1867, the British monarch continues as the titular head of state and Victoria Day continues to be celebrated, even though Queen Victoria died in 1901.  Although her actual birth date was May 24 the holiday occurs on the Monday prior to May 25, in order to assure the date makes a long weekend.
I think it is fair to say that most Canadians don't give the old queen a thought when the weekend comes.  But that does not diminish their enthusiasm for the weekend that is known as the official start to the summer season.  Regardless whether it is sunny and hot, rainy and windy or even cold and snowy,  barbecues come out, camp grounds fill, lake cabins are opened up, boats are launched, gardens planted and a lot of alcohol gets consumed.
In Vernon, we were blessed with a hot sunny weekend   We painted the deck, did some gardening, went hiking, barbecued on the deck and enjoyed eating and drinking outside until late into the long evening.

Lupine blooming above Kal Lake May 2013

 Iris and pink Poppy in the garden

May 2013

The following weekend we visited the States and were in Washington DC for their first long weekend of the summer, celebrated on the last Monday of May known as Memorial Day.Originally in 1868 a day in May  was set aside to honour the dead following the Civil War but there was not country-wide acceptance for the holiday until after WWI when it became a day to honour all Americans who had lost their lives fighting for their country. 

We found the tone of the celebrations to be quite different than our Remembrance Day celebrations in Canada.  The message was very much remembering the dead and acknowledging their contribution to maintaining liberty and freedom, as it is here in Canada, but there was no emphasis on peace replacing war which always seems part of the message here.  Maybe that is because the Americans have spent most of their history engaged in some sort of military conflict: the Indian wars, the War of Independence, the War of 1812, the Mexican-American War, the Civil War (with 600,00 deaths), the Spanish-American War, WWI, WWII, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Iraq War, the Afghanistan War....no wonder they are so determined to own guns! 

33,000 flags in Boston Common represent war deaths of Massachusetts residents since 1861

Maryland Sons of Confederate Vets                                Vietnam Vets at Memorial Day 

in Memorial parade Washington 2013                                      Washington 2013

We did not find the crowds large at the Memorial Day ceremonies on the Mall in Washington but had not gone to the Arlington Cemetery.  However later in the day we did find big crowds in Alexandria, the historical town just south of Washington where there was a jazz festival and lots of people enjoying the great early summer weather as they wandered through the shops and lingered in the outdoor restaurants.  More than anything it seemed to be a celebration of summer. 

Alexandria Jazz Festival Memorial Day 2013