Ottawa

When my bus arrives in Ottawa the girl I have been sitting next to on the journey kindly offers to give me a lift downtown. My hostel is in the old jail and my room is cell 4. It's atmospheric and a bit spooky, but I don't see or feel any ghosts.

Jail Corridor

Cell 4

Ottawa is Canada’s capital city, as chosen by Queen Victoria in 1857, which put Montreal’s and Toronto’s noses severely out of joint. I have 3 days in Ottawa and although it is a small city, I have to punctuate the sightseeing with regular stops for cups of tea and muffins. I find it far more exhausting than a good long hike.

Ottawa is a truly bi-lingual city and I hear French and English spoken equally on the streets. The Ottawa River is the border between the provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Ottawa sits on the Ontario side and here the information boards and signs put English first, then French, whereas on the Quebec side the same signs put French first.

Bridge across the Ottawa River

As I wander around the city I soak up the feeling of national pride that is symbolised in the grand buildings, parks, monuments, statues and flags of the city.

National, Provincial and Territorial Flags

The parliament buildings, which are home to Canada’s federal government, sit on a hill on the banks of the Ottawa River. Construction began on Parliament Hill in 1859 and the surrounding area was laid out as a public garden. The original central block building burned down in 1916 and the building here today was opened in 1920.

Gates to Parliament Hill

Parliament Central Block

In the grounds an everlasting flame was lit in 1967 to commemorate 100 years of Confederation.

Everlasting Flame

I take a free tour inside the parliament building. We go inside the House of Commons and also the Senate Chamber. The whole thing feels and looks very like Westminster.

Inside the Parliament Building

House of Commons

Senate Chamber

The library is the only part of the central block building that survived the fire of 1916. It is a beautiful round building with lots of wood and balconies of books line the walls, but we are not allowed to take pictures inside.

Library

We are most of the way through the tour when the fire alarm goes off and everyone files outside. Within a couple of minutes the first fire truck arrives. I don’t know if it was a false alarm, but the next day when I go back everything is still standing.

Fire Evacuation

Fire Truck

The changing of the guard takes place every morning and tourists line the edges of the grass field in front of the parliament building to watch the specatcle.

Changing of the Guard

On Parliament Hill there is a statue to 5 women who were instrumental in the struggle of Canadian women for equality. For years groups had repeated requested that a woman be appointed to the senate. However 5 successive Federal Governments maintained that woman were ineligible to serve in the Senate on the grounds that they were not ‘qualified persons’. The group of 5 woman petitioned the Government for a definition of the word ‘persons’. In 1929 the Privy Council finally said that ‘their Lordships have come to the conclusion that the word ‘persons’ includes members both of the male and female sex.’ After that women were eligible to be appointed to the Senate.

I wouldn’t argue with them – they are huge!

Women are Persons

The impact on Canada of their involvement in war including the First and Second World Wars has not been as obvious to me up till now, as it was in New Zealand. Their war memorials are generally not so centrally placed in the small towns I have visited. However Ottawa remedies this through several imposing monuments dedicated to the men and woman who have served for Canada. First of all I come across the Peacekeeping Monument. It is inscribed with the words ‘in the service of peace’ and ‘reconciliation’.

Peacekeeping Monument

Then there is the National War Memorial which is called ‘The Response’. It sits calmly and quietly in a large open square centrally within the city, while the modern life of the city swirls around it. Statues of men, women, guns and horses struggle through an arch, from conflict towards peace. In front of it two soldiers guard the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

The Response - National War Memorial

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

In front of the parliament building is The Peace Tower which was erected as a monument in 1927 in memory of the service and sacrifice of the men and woman who died serving their country in the First World War. The bells ring each quarter hour with a Westminster chime.

Peace Tower

Views of the Ottawa River from the Peace Tower

Inside the tower the Memorial Chamber is a commemoration of those who died in military service to Canada. It was originally designed to honour those fallen in the First World War but it has evolved into a national memorial for all Canadian men and women who have died serving their country during times of both war and peace since Confederation from 1866 to the Korean War in 1953. 65 000 Canadians died in the First World War, 45 000 in the Second World War. In the middle of the chamber is a glass cabinet containing the book of remembrance. Around the walls are marble carvings listing all the conflicts, the number of dead and some war poetry.

Memorial Chamber and Book of Remembrance

War has not Spared our People

Book of Remembrance

In Flanders Fields

Each evening there is a light show on Parliament Hill and tourists sit around on the grass to watch. Light is projected onto the parliament building and the story of Canada is told from its natural beauty and the indigenous people; through to the modern day; the role of canada as peacekeepers and the importance of democracy and parliament. It finishes with the National Anthem. It is very uplifting and I feel a sense of national pride for Canada.

Light Show

Away from Parliament Hill, Byward Market is a pleasant lively area of market stalls, cafes and bars where live music plays and people wander.

ByWard Market

Beside the Ottawa River is the National Gallery of Canada which is currently showing a Van Goch exhibition. I think about going in, and in a way it is a shame to miss the opportunity, but it is very busy and I decide to save the $25.

National Gallery of Canada

Outside the gallery there is a sculpture I recognise. I’m sure there is another one like this outside the Guggenheim in Bilbao.

Maman – by Louise Bourgeois

Across the road is an imposing cathedral, with a shiny tin roof.

Cathedral of Notre Dame

In an open-air amphitheatre outside the art gallery there is a free chambre concerty as part of the chamber music festival.

Chamber Concert

Another square in the main shopping area also has an amphitheatre and a man sings and plays the guitar to entertain the office workers having their picnic lunches on the steps.

Square at Lunch Time

I come across a statue to a Canadian hero, Terry Fox. I had heard about him before. He was a young man with cancer and a prosthetic leg and in 1980 he attempted to run across Canada in support of cancer research. He completed 5373 kilometers and but had to stop and he died 10 months later. The plaque by the statue says that ‘Terry’s heroism and determination live on in the hearts of not only Canadians but all people worldwide who continue to pursue his dream by raising money annually in the fight against cancer.’

Terry Fox

In the centre of the city, below Parliament Hill is the start of the Rideau Canal. This is a 202km route linking the Ottawa River and Lake Ontario through a system of lakes and rivers made navigable by 19 km of man-made channels, 45 locks and dams. It was completed in 1832 to create an alternative route to the St Lawrence River as a safe route for military supplies in the case of hostilities between Britain and the United States. It was never used for this purpose, however it did open up the area for settlers and trade and it is now a major recreational route.

Rideau Canal

I hire a bicycle from one of the city bike scheme stands and cycle up the canal. It is a pleasant trip alongside the water and by the side of parks. I share the path with other cyclists, walkers, joggers and in-line skaters. I come to a set of locks with a lock-keeper's cottage beside it and watch four cruisers going through.

City Bike Scheme

Lock and Lock Keeper's Cottage

Weekend Boats in the Lock

The canal joins the Rideau River and here I turn around and follow this back into the city. In the parks I pass various groups enjoying the weekend. There is a group of black men drumming, a family picnic including a baseball game and some sort of organised fun day and the smell of a barbecue wafts across the path. Back in the city the Rideau River joins the Ottawa River in a small waterfall.

Rideau Falls

Beside the canal there is a photographic exhibition showing all her visits to Canada, in celebration of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and flags lining the main streets also celebrate this event. Queen Elizabeth is still the Head of State here. Her first visit was In 1951 when she was still Princess Elizabeth and there is a photograph of her line dancing!

Photographic Exhibition of the Queen's Visits to Canada

Princess Elizabeth visits Canada 1951

Across the river on the Quebec side is the Canadian Museum of Civilisation, depicting Canada’s cultural heritage.

Canadian Museum of Civilisation

As I walk back to the hostel I see some evidence of conflicting opinions about Canada’s relationship with the monarchy. Stuck on a lamp post is a poster which says:

‘Canada’s history hasn’t started yet. We’re still a colony’.

Someone has taken a pen and amended it to read:

“Canada’s history has started. We’re not a colony.’

Canada's History Hasn't Started Yet