Once referred to as the “Tibet of Catholicism,” for centuries Quebec was a rural, conservative province with a church at the heart of every village. By 1900, there was almost one church official per 100 people (a ratio that makes Starbucks embarrassed). The church’s influence has faded considerably since then, following the Quiet Revolution that secularized the province in the sixties, but it’s still part and parcel of the culture. The province’s spiritual roots are evident in its attitude toward money—most Quebecers believe wealth should be redistributed to those in need, not controlled by the one percent. Mark Twain once remarked that you couldn’t throw a brick in Montreal without breaking a church window, and that’s still the case—it’s just that these days, many of those windows belong to condos in converted churches. And Quebecers continue to invoke the language of the church every day—through the colourful, religion-derived swear words that are an integral part of the local French vernacular. Shout about tabernacles, chalices, ciboriums or hosts, and risk a good old-fashioned Quebec beating … which is really like a regular beating, but most likely in front of a church.

In Quebec, snow and cold are facts of life. A heavy blizzard might shut down the city—and maybe even bring out the army—in Vancouver or Toronto, but not in la belle province. People have adapted. The law requires everyone to put snow tires on their car in winter. Montreal’s fleet of 2,000-plus snow removal vehicles is ready to rumble into action whenever the city gets snowed under. Salt’s not just a condiment here; people keep bags of the stuff by their door to scatter on icy steps and driveways. And Quebecers don’t endure winter—they relish it (also not just a condiment), by skiing, snowboarding, skating, skidooing and, of course, playing hockey. Every day’s a snow day!

In Quebec, watching a couple of guys in leotards, playing on swings, caked in makeup is normal. In fact, it’s big business. One of the province’s most famous exports is Cirque du Soleil, which contrary to what some might think, was not born in Las Vegas. Founded in 1984 by a couple of unknown street performers, it has transformed the big top experience from lowbrow entertainment to high art and put Quebec talent on display all over the world. With estimated annual revenues upward of $800 million, it has helped clowning to spawn an entire circus industry in Quebec, where you’ll find North America’s only diploma-granting circus school and companies specializing in niches like big top maintenance. It all makes Barnum & Bailey look like a subdued accounting firm.

French-language comedy might get lost in translation, but there’s no mistaking the fact that the humour business is no joke in Quebec. The province is home to the world’s biggest comedy festival, Just For Laughs. Few outside the province may have seen hockey comedy Les Boys or its sequels, but that hasn’t stopped it becoming one of the highest-grossing film franchises in Canadian history, even if it knocks some Chiclets out of good taste. And Quebec has more than its share of comedy superstars too. While the likes of Martin Matte and his fellow French-speaking funnymen couldn’t get arrested in the anglophone world, they’re household names in their home province—and laughing all the way to the bank.

The French connection in Quebec goes well beyond language. In many ways, Quebecers’ buying habits are more European than North American. They buy more imported cheese than the rest of Canada. They buy fewer spirits and much more wine—indeed, Quebec is the rare province where per-capita wine sales rival beer sales. Conversely, they spend less on non-prescription drugs. Perhaps the wine is a substitute for medicine—after all, the French equivalent of “cheers!” is santé!, or “here’s to your health!” Other differences are harder to explain, like the fact that they spend 50% more on tomato juice, or 30% more on laxatives. Maybe it’s something to do with all that cheese they’re eating...

Given the exorbitant taxes they pay, you’d think Quebecers would be fed up handing over money to the government. Not so: it seems they’re much happier forking over their hard-earned cash to state-run lotteries than giving it to worthy causes. Quebec has ranked dead last among Canada’s provinces in donations to registered charities for 15 straight years—but it’s top of the heap when it comes to lottery ticket purchases, accounting for one-third of the country’s lottery ticket sales in 2012. With gambling so ingrained in the culture, no wonder Quebec talent feels right at home in Las Vegas...

Quebec is a famously Catholic culture, but the province’s true religion is hockey. Quebecers worship the Montreal Canadiens, or Habs, with the fanaticism of zealots. Their religion has a cathedral (the Bell Centre arena) and saints (including legendary forward Maurice Richard and goalie Patrick Roy, aka “Saint Patrick), and each season the team quests to reach the Holy Land of the Stanley Cup finals. The downside is that sometimes emotions get out of control. Habs fans have rioted on multiple occasions. In 1986 and 1993, after the team’s most recent Cup triumphs, they notoriously rampaged through the city’s downtown, burning cars and smashing windows. We don’t want to know what happens if they lose...

In Quebec, the legal drinking age is 18 and closing time is 3 a.m.—a combination that makes it pretty much the best place to (legally) have a good time in North America. No surprise then that Montreal has earned a well-deserved reputation as a party town, with no shortage of late-night options for eating, drinking and dancing. In some cities, people begin heading home at 10 p.m., but in Quebec that’s when they start getting ready to go out. In the wee hours, nightlife hubs like Saint-Laurent Boulevard and Crescent Street are a veritable parade of stumbling drunks and boisterous barflies—and grabbing a cab is practically a competitive sport. For those who’ve had a little too much to drink, the city also serves up the perfect hangover cure: nothing beats a greasy after-hours poutine for soaking up all that excess booze.

Jazz, comedy, experimental music, comic books, dragon boat racing, cult cinema, tattoo art—you name it, Quebec has a festival for it. (How long until there’s a festival celebrating festivals?) In summer, it seems there’s a different one every weekend, while winter features major occasions like the Quebec Carnival. Books are no exception: Quebec has the most book fairs in North America. Not restricted to industry insiders as elsewhere in Canada and the U.S., these public fairs are highly popular. Montreal’s Salon du Livre welcomes 120,000-plus visitors each year, and there are plenty of similar events across the province where bookworms can satisfy their literary appetite.

For the average English-speaking Canadian, domestic TV is about as appealing as a plate of broccoli. “Canadian content” is associated with worthy-but-dull fare or lame American knockoffs. Little Mosque on the Prairie... or Game of Thrones? It’s not much of a choice. In French-speaking Canada, it’s another story entirely. Quebecers love their homegrown shows, which account for a whopping 80% of their viewing. The province—which watches more TV than any other—has a booming French-language broadcasting industry with top shows enjoying viewing figures of a million-plus. These made-in-Quebec shows cater to the unique culture, with local stars speaking viewers’ own language. And getting in the way of a francophone Quebecer and their panel talk show is like snatching a flank steak straight out the mouth of a starved lion.

Quebec, like France, is notable for its open-minded attitude toward sexuality. Perhaps it’s something to do with the fact that they speak the language of love—or is it the language of $15 lap dances? It’s probably the lap dances. The province is infamous for its strip clubs, which are more numerous and less frowned upon than elsewhere in Canada. Forget churches and museums: these clubs are so popular that they’ve become a significant tourist draw, and some are practically “cultural” institutions in their own right. Studies also show that Quebecers are more tolerant of sex in advertising and more sexually active than their anglophone counterparts. There are plenty of outlets for sexual diversity too, from Montreal Fetish Weekend to swingers clubs to one of North America’s largest gay villages. Look, winter’s long …

Despite the province’s traditional Catholic background, when it comes to marriage, many Quebecers opt for “I don’t” instead of “I do.” Rather than taking vows, they become common-law spouses by living together, entitling them to some rights of married couples (including all-important ones like the right to nag, the right to blame and the right to sleep on couches). This means it’s not unusual for couples that have been together for decades, perhaps with grown children, to still call each other “chum” (boyfriend) and “blonde” (girlfriend). As for those who do get formally married, they have one of the highest divorce rates in the country, which might explain why so many of their fellows are reluctant to tie the knot...

In Quebec, nothing is certain except death, taxes... and talk of separation. The idea of independence is always there, whether at the centre of public debate or bubbling away below the surface. Despite the tub-thumping of politicians, however, many Quebecers get cold feet when asked to commit, and have twice voted against separation in referendums. But the talk goes on... leading to all sorts of oddities: a federal political party, the Bloc Québécois, whose main purpose it to break up the country it represents, or provincial parties with blatantly separatist agendas who dance around the issue of another referendum for fear of losing votes. Quebec humorist Yvon Deschamps summed it up best: “We want an independent Quebec inside a unified Canada.”

Given her media (over)exposure, you could be forgiven for thinking Céline Dion was the only star Quebec has ever produced. In reality, the province has many native stars, whose projects and personal lives receive so much coverage on talk shows and gossip rags that they’re practically like family. Take the ubiquitous Véronique Cloutier, or “Véro” as she is familiarly known: having started out as a VJ, she’s now a one-woman media empire, Quebec’s answer to Oprah, with radio and TV shows and her own magazine. Marina Orsini, Richard Séguin, Robert Charlebois, Paul Piché, Mitsou Gélinas... the list of household names unknown to the rest of Canada goes on and on. On the other hand, your average Quebecer thinks George Stroumboulopoulos is the name of a Greek restaurant and Jian Ghomeshi a type of curry, so what goes around comes around.

Quebec’s most famous culinary creation is of course poutine, a mess of fries, gravy and cheese curds that should come with a warning label. But the province has plenty of other tasty ways to increase your risk of a heart attack. Quebecers are excessively fond of heavy, rich foods, like sandwiches piled high with fatty smoked meat or bagels slathered in cream cheese. They also have a pronounced sweet tooth: chocolate is big, while Montreal has three times as many pastry shops as Toronto. And at high-end restaurants like Au Pied de Cochon and Joe Beef, people happily shell out for comfort food served up with a haute-cuisine twist—after all, who hasn’t sat down to a hearty plate of poutine and thought to themselves, “You know what this needs? More foie gras!”

Most Quebecers don’t have a traditional bank account. Not that they keep their money under the mattress—instead of banks, they put it in Desjardins, an association of “caisse populaires” (credit unions). Founded in 1900 near Quebec City, Desjardins was North America’s first credit union and operated out of church basements in the early years. Today, it has hundreds of locations used by over 5 million people. Branches have even sprung up in Florida to cater to the province’s snowbirds. Caisse populaires differ from banks in important ways: their CEO is elected by members, they sell a wider range of financial products, including insurance, and—believe it or not—they even redistribute profits to members. Try not to think about that next time you pay $3 for the privilege of using your bank card at an ATM...