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Published: October 10th 2013
Terry Fox StatueOvernight Temperatures dropped to 2 degrees C. overnight but the day has ended up being just perfect. Sun shining and no wind maximum 18 degrees.
Ottawa is the capital of Canada and has a population of just under one million.
We got an early start to the day but that's where it ended. Made our way to the Park & Ride station but the car park was full. Geoff asked someone about the train line and was told there was no trains in Ottawa and we should just drive the RV downtown - only 20 minutes away...
The drive into the city was slow - should have turned around then and found another Park & Ride but we kept going - bad mistake...made it downtown - now the fun begins - to find a park for this RV - and that was impossible...lots of roadworks and construction happening downtown Ottawa.
Basically wasted an hour or so driving around looking for a park before deciding to go and find public transport.
Parked about 7km from the city and found they had a train downtown or so we thought. Get on the train and end up at the
Fairmont Chateau Laurier on Wellington streetfinal stop of Bay View which was quite some way from downtown...so then it was onto a bus before finally getting off near Parliament House.
Decided we would take the free tour at Parliament House and while waiting we went up to check out the Peace Tower - which is the highest structure in the city and has great views all around. While up at the peace tour you pass by the memorial chamber which pays memory to the fallen soldiers. You can do a free tour of the centre building of Parliament House which takes about 45 minutes in a tour group with a guide. The inside walls of Parliament House are hand carved limestone walls, which if you look close you will find fossils over 4 million years old. The tour takes you inside the House of Commons, the Senate and the magnificent library with its display of fine woodwork and wrought iron.
Next we did a walking tour of downtown - taking in local sights - The Fairmont Chateau Laurier, the national war memorial which includes a monument to the unknown soldier and the Rideau Canal which is the oldest continuously operated canal in North
Peace TowerAmerica. The canal runs right through the city's downtown core and the Ottawa River acts as a natural border.
Ottawa has many paths running alongside the canal - mostly used by cyclists and joggers. There were plenty of people taking advantage of the outdoors today and it seems like many folks cycle to and from their downtown jobs as well. During the winter the Rideau Canal is transformed into the world largest skating rink - 7.8km of ice.
Next was a stop at the Notre Dame Cathedral Basilica - built in 1841 the Cathedral boasts 2 shiny tin topped spires and is the oldest church in Ottawa. Inside the Cathedral has elaborate wood carvings and shimmering stars line the ceilings. It also has stain glassed windows that looked amazing with the afternoon sun glistening through them.
We stopped by a statue of Terry Fox which was just outside of Parliament House. We first came across Terry Fox in Valemount in British Columbia...I've written about Terry Fox in that blog...an amazingly positive young man who died at the age of 22 from cancer. How fantastic that Canada pays Terry such respect - very heart warming.
Public transport
Parliament Library looking down from Peace Towerback to the RV wasn't much fun in the peak traffic. We caught the bus which was thoroughly over crowded and the bus driver seemed to enjoy going around the corners at a fast pace so that passengers were nearly sent flying out the doors. We really dislike using buses as a form of transport - trains are much more efficient minus the cranky drivers - making for a nicer ride!
Our last stop for the day was at the Rideau Falls - just a few blocks from downtown. A display of water as its being released from the last lock and then enters the Ottawa River - a perfect way to finish off the day.
We drove on towards Montreal - once crossing the state border of Quebec everything is Now French. In Ontario both French and English are spoken and everything is written in both languages but that all changes once in Quebec.
We stayed the night in Lachute. A small town about 80kms out of Montreal. We found a Walmart to park at - would have to be the smallest in North America but it served the purpose. Geoff cooked up his version of
City view from peace towersloppy joes and we were into bed just before 10pm - an early night for us!
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