BigWeather's Blog

Note: This blog is actually for the date of the post, Wednesday, July 27.  I have actually caught up (for now, we’ll see what Quebec brings…)

Got out a bit later than planned but still managed to get to Tim Hortons at the Rideau Centre for a couple of maple dip donuts (a recurring theme) and a Ice Capp shortly after 9a.  Didn’t care for that much, but it did grow on me a bit.  As we were under a time crunch to make the 10a changing of the guard ceremony on Parliament Hill we wolfed our food down and headed out.

We got to Parliament Hill and staked out a pretty nice spot at about 9:45a.  I ceded my spot to an old lady (and this time nobody else jumped in the gap, yay) but I could see just fine over the kids.  There were some chairs set up facing Parliament for dignitaries and a few guardsmen with their fancy furry black hats and red coats standing about.

The ceremony started promptly at 10a with bagpipe music from an incoming group of kilt-bedecked guards that marched down Wellington Street and into the green commons in front of the Parliament building.  Then the existing guardsmen marched in formation to our left and awaited the arrival of the new guardsmen, who marched in after an incoming (from the other direction) group of trouser-bedecked guards playing more traditional brass and drum instruments.  There were inspections, commanders marching about, color guards going to and fro, fixing of bayonets (with one guardsman heart-breakingly dropping his), presentation of arms, and exchanges of pleasantries.  I couldn’t make heads or tails of it but it was all so deliciously… British.

Changing of the Guard, Parliament Hill, Ottawa

The ceremony over, Addison posed with a guardsman who had the patience of a saint.  Then we went to the welcome tent to the right of Parliament to get tickets for a tour.  The helpers there have a great way of sussing out your language — they simply just say “bonjour” or “hello” and see what they get in response.  Anyhow, got tickets to the 12:50 tour.

Centre Block, Parliament Hill

Ooooo, gargoyle rain spouts!

It only being 11 or so we headed back to the room for a few minutes then went out to find something to eat on Sparks Street not far from Parliament.  We ate at Vie Bella, a nice little sandwich / sub shop.  I had a toasted sub with a variety of spicy Italian meats that was delicious.  We then stopped by an adjoining store selling Native American goods.  Much of it was very pricey (they even had stacked stones like on Rush’s Test for Echo album cover — apparently it is an inunnguaq, a formation used to denote food caches and the like).  However, Genetta found some earrings and Addison bought some “spirit rocks.”

Reflections in Ottawa

Headed off to the Parliament tour and, while waiting, soaked in the view of a beautiful cathedral to the east as well as the Ottawa river with Quebec beyond to the north.

Gatineau, Quebec view from Parliament Hill

Passed through security and had a wonderful tour.  We learned that though Parliament was in recess for the summer holiday and normally there weren’t caucuses going on (they normally happen on Wednesdays) that there was a special caucus being done by the opposition NDP because they needed to replace their leader who needed time off to fight cancer.  They had met that morning and had chosen an interim leader.  Hopefully Jack Layton will get better soon!

We got to see the library, built in 1876.  It was the last part of the original Parliament buildings to be finished, construction on the Hill having started in 1860 in preparation for the nation’s 1867 birth with the Canadian Confederation (whereby Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia formed Canada).  It is now, ironically, the oldest part of the Parliament buildings as most of the buildings were burnt in a great fire in 1916.  The library survived, however, because the last one out closed the door behind him and the wind was blowing from the north (the library being in the northern part of the complex).  What a gorgeous room!  Sadly, we weren’t allowed to take pictures but it was spectacular.  It is circular, with two floors and the coat of arms of each province present on the stack-ends.  In the middle, towering above the reading tables, towers a white marble statue of Queen Victoria — the Queen at the time of Canada’s formation and the person that decided that Ottawa, being centrally located between Toronto and Montreal (both fighting to be the capital) and adjacent to French-speaking Quebec, would be the capital city.

Exterior of The Library of Parliament

Next we learned that the building was built with Alberta stone — much of which contained fossils visible today.  We visited the Senate chambers, sadly the House of Commons was not open.  The 105 senators are appointed and serve until age 75, meaning that there is very slow transition.  They mostly review legislation coming from the House of Commons, however, and rarely interfere.  You can read more about their system here.  The room is spectacular, bedecked in red carpet.  In the center sits the chair of the speaker, with two thrones behind — one for the Queen and one for her husband.  Canada is a constitutional monarchy with its head of state being the British royalty but the head of government being the Prime Minister.  To the left and right of the center three chairs were two little chairs to be used by pages — what a job that must be!

Senate chambers with comfy chairs

We then went to a chamber where the original four provinces were represented as well as portraits of many British royalty.  French royalty is also present in a room specially allocated for the Quebecois.  In the past it was used as a smoking room but now it is an area where dignitaries are often feted.

Leaving the building, and deciding that the line to climb up the Peace Tower was too long, we headed off to check out the cats on Parliament Hill.  Prior to the 1970s cats were used to control the mouse population.  After they were no longer needed, however, the friendly — but now feral — cats were allowed to stay on Parliament Hill and are looked after by a volunteer.  They have little houses they live in and can survive the harsh Ottawa winter.  We saw four of them — adorable.  It really made us miss our cats so much.  We also saw a squirrel that was almost solid black in color.

Quit eating from the Parliament Hill cats' bowls!

As we were leaving Parliament Hill a Canadian Mountie was getting geared up and I got some great pictures of her in front of Parliament.  Even though it was quite a mild day (well, by our standards, I suppose the natives would call it hot) in the low-80s I think she’d be miserable in that heavy coat, gloves, etc.  I coaxed Addison into petting the horse as well.

Canadian Mountie

We then went back to Sparks Street and got some Slush Puppies.  They were yummy.  We read a plaque about some Irish guy that was in the early government and felled by an assassin in 1868 — I thought the U.S. had a monopoly on that sort of business!  Continuing down Sparks Street then turning back to Wellington Street we passed many important buildings — the Supreme Court of Canada, the Library of Canada, the Bank of Canada, etc.

Turned around and headed back to the hotel.  On the way we managed to see two boats navigating the lock system of Rideau canal — fascinating stuff.  After a rest in the hotel we headed out to Zak’s Diner in Bywater to the east of the hotel.  While the cream soda, coffee shake, and nachos were delicious neither Michelle, Addison, or I particularly cared for our entrees.  And at nearly $100 it turned out to be an expensive meal.  It’s all good.

Chateau Laurier by day

Small craft navigating Ottawa's Rideau canal locks

Left Zak’s and checked out the park next to the hotel, soaking in the view of Parliament Hill and Quebec bey0nd the river.  Headed back to the hotel and the kids got ready to swim.  I didn’t feel so well so I didn’t join them in the pool but I did watch them for a bit.  Afterwards Genetta chose to go to bed but Michelle, Addison, and I headed back to Parliament Hill for the 10p light show we saw the night before — Mosaika (pronounced mosaic-a).

Parliament Hill at dusk

What a treat!  It projected the story of Canada on the front of the centre block of Parliament (the main building) and was accompanied with narration, sound effects, and fog.  It covered the Native Americans, the arrival of Europeans, Confederation, the World Wars (including a moving visualization of “In Flanders Fields”), and more modern topics.  It’s well worth the price of admission (free!).

Centre Block, Parliament Hill transformed by Mosaika sound and light show

Headed back to the room, the others to sleep, myself to write this infernal blog (and pay another $13.95 for the right to use the internet, grrr!).

Our first day in Canada was spent in Niagara Falls.  A location that, while in Canada, could pass for the United States with ease.  Our second day, that beautiful drive along the northern shore of Lake Ontario, spanned terrain that could have easily been the south shore — from the sprawl of Buffalo to the area north of Syracuse to the foothills of the Adirondacks.  It was during this, our third full day in Canada, that I finally got a glimpse of what Canada is about.  Not that I’m ready to turn in my passport or anything (sorry, the winters are just too cold…) but I have a greater appreciation for our northern neighbor and I finally understand why every schoolmate’s girlfriend back in the 80s lived in Canada — it’s darn nice here.

Note: This is the blog for Tuesday, July 26.

Tim Hortons is a chain of stores that is everywhere in Canada.  I mean McDonalds level of everywhere.  And like McDonalds it does breakfast right and has one stellar performer for the non-breakfast times.  The analog to McDonalds’ frappe (yum, yum) is the maple dip donut.  Anyhow, I’ve become addicted to them and what I once thought was a fictional restaurant on How I Met Your Mother has become terrifyingly, deliciously, real.

Anyhow, woke up and ate one last time at Mr. Coco’s.  Checked out and had to walk down the street to exchange our boring U.S. money for colorful (and, as of now, more valuable) Canadian money.  I noticed one of the pennies had a male royal on it so I knew it had to be old (Queen Elizabeth the II having become Queen of England in the early 50s).  Yep, 1950!

Hopped on to the highway and beat a quick retreat out of Niagara and to the west and north around the western edge of Lake Ontario.  We had several stunning views of the lake and crossed a bridge near Hamilton at the extreme western edge that was really neat.  We could also make out Toronto and the CN Tower across the lake miles (oops, kilometers) away as it was a very clear day.  We may have also stopped at Tim Hortons for a couple of donuts and a map of Ontario (which, despite the $2.95 price was given to me for free — I think they were helping a clueless American out).

Yay Tim Hortons! Now where did I put that maple dip donut?

As we rounded the western edge, however, traffic steadily picked up.  We were still cruising at about 100 (…kilometers, stupid metric system) an hour but more and more lanes kept getting added.  Toronto was very, very busy and a bit stressful driving-wise and honestly it reinforced my decision to have us do Ottawa instead.  Sure, we’d miss the CN Tower but we’d hopefully enjoy the slower pace more.  Yeah, we’re getting old.

One-hundred miles p... oh, never mind.

Toronto has a cool system of express and collectors.  Basically the right lanes split off constantly and “collect” (or, I suppose “disperse”) three or so streets worth of traffic.  Then the lanes combine back in with the express lanes and another set of collector lanes split off.  It worked pretty nicely, seems like something we should do more of in the states (and, no, the area near I-40 and US-64/1 near South Hills does not count).

I saw some shops that were blasts from the past: EB Games and Chuck E. Cheese.  Chuck E. Cheese, are you kidding me?!  Is Canada the place where all the haunts of my youth went to pasture?  Also saw a “Hockey Life” store dedicated to selling, I suppose, hockey stuff that I just had to take a picture of.  I also tried to snap pictures of signs that kept referring to “O.P.P.” — Ontario Provincial Police.  But I couldn’t help thinking “yeah, you know me.”

Canadian Hockey Life -- Stanley Cup on back-order since 1993

We also stopped at a McDonalds for a sweet tea and frappe.  Here’s the blow by blow:

Do you have a frappe?
A what?
Ok, never mind, we’ll take a sweet tea.
A green tea, got it.
No, a sweet tea.
Yes, we have iced tea.
Never mind, we’ll just take a bottled water.

Michelle didn’t even want the bottled water, but we couldn’t just admit total defeat.

As we drove further east along the north shore of Lake Ontario the land transformed from mostly flat with tons of suburbs and commercial buildings to beautiful rolling hills with farms.  Further east near the Thousand Islands area the terrain became noticeably rockier and reminded me a bit more of the Adirondacks.  Oh, and birch trees!  Yay!  I also started stupidly looking for moose.  It’s a bit of a running joke in my family since the failures to see a single one in 2007 in Maine and 2010 out West.  This year is my year, though!

Beautiful Ontario farm

Leaving route 401 behind we turned on to 416 towards Ottawa.  The land here was also quite beautiful, hilly at first then becoming flatter and more boggy.  I was sure I’d see a moose now, but to no avail.  We arrived in Ottawa around 7p or so and somehow made it to our hotel (amid lanes dedicated to buses and taxis only, one way streets, and the like) — the Chateau Laurier.  I’d do that fancy French accent thingie but I a) don’t know how and b) am lazy.

Our hotel, the Chateau Laurier

Anyhow, we pulled our Town & Country up to the hotel entrance.  I’ve been watching lots of that show “Lie to Me” (recently canceled — FOX, you sure don’t know how to support the good shows!) and I zoned in right away at the micro-expression of disgust that flashed across the valet’s face.  While the car ahead of us, a Porsche, was encouraged to do valet parking (with the valet eying it greedily and calling to mind the wonderful scene in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off), it wasn’t even offered to us.  So we slunk off to the parking deck and checked out our room.

Turns out they upgraded us to a nice room — and assured us that our view would not change.  WOW.  What a room.  I’m typing these blogs literally staring at the illuminated Parliament building.  And the beds are so soft…  All for less than $200 a night.

View from our hotel room

We reluctantly left our rooms to go to a bookstore, Chapters, that Michelle saw on the drive in so she could pick up the latest Harry Dresden book.  Addison picked up some Fighting Fantasy books (but he’s finishing The Hobbit first, only a hundred more pages to go!) — now that’s a blast from the past.  Genetta re-bought the first Ranger’s Apprentice and I got… a French – English dictionary.  Weeee.  Nice store, though, and it’s funny — they have their own version of the Nook / Kindle called the Kobo.  I just looked it up and it is an anagram for “book.”  Kinda shocked the Quebecois didn’t want it called the Liver or some crap.  Canada, eh?

It getting late and us not knowing where the heck we were (turns out we were a block away from much better dining) we went to the food court of the Rideau Centre, a mall in downtown Ottawa.  They had some fancy stores and even a Sony Style store, but we didn’t bother — we needed to get our respective grubs on.  The kids ate KFC (yay globalization!) and Michelle had some Chinese and I ate at some place called “Teriyaki Experience.”  It was OK, but I’d stop short of “experience.”

Returned to our room and I took Addison down to the pool for a quick swim.  Wow, the pool (in the lower lobby) is nice!  All tiled and Biltmore-y (though the one in the Biltmore was cooler) and deep — none of this modern wimpy shallow pool nonsense.  Addison swam several laps in freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, etc.  He refused to do butterfly, however — he always hated that stroke.  He also did a couple of cannonball dives which echoed loudly about the room.

Pool at the Chateau Laurier

Outside they had an article from Construction magazine in 1908 about how proud Canada was that the plans for the hotel were from a Canadian firm that beat out a New York firm.  To the right of that was another article, from later in 1908, comparing the New York firms rejected plans with the Canadian firm’s — nearly identical.  Oops.  The article rightly pointed out that while it was right that work on such an important structure be given to a Canadian firm that it should not violate professional ethics.  A fascinating read.

Went up to the room and noticed that the center bloc of Parliament had some kind of projected images playing across it.  It was spectacular but we had no idea what it was.  We’d find out the next day…

Route for July 26, 2011

Note: This is the blog for Monday, July 25.  As for the title, it is from the Primus song “Over the Falls.”  I expect only Daniel will appreciate it, but it really fits.

Woke up and ate breakfast at the hotel’s attached restaurant, Mr. Coco’s.  It was reasonably priced (for the area) and quite good.  I had three eggs over easy, some bacon, two pancakes — with decent syrup! — and some toast.  The rest of the family also had their favorites, including oatmeal that was hand-made and not out of the carton.

The weather when we woke was rain but seemed to be letting up despite lingering cloudiness.  We walked the short distance downhill to the falls.  It was a wonder to behold.  Though I had been twice before, once with Daniel and shortly after with Michelle in 1994, I had never seen the falls from the Canadian side.  While America gets a set of falls (American and Bridal Veil) all to themselves there is no question that Canada gets the better view — as you can see all three (the other being Horseshoe) in one sweep.  To the left (north) are American and Bridal Veil, side-by-side, then Goat Island (part of New York state), then the massive Horseshoe.

American Falls (with Bridal Veil right next) to the left, Horseshoe Falls to the right

We decided to go north along the river to the Maid in the Mist boat ride.  Though we were concerned it’d be a long wait the line moved rather fast.  We were issued blue ponchos and, after going to the restroom, shuffled aboard the Maid in the Mist VII (they have seven boats in total) and, as we were in the front of the line, got a nice spot on the upper deck’s railing.

It rocked a fair bit more than we were expecting, but it wasn’t too bad.  I tried to give my railing spot to an elder couple standing behind me (as I can see over almost anyone no problem) but while I was backing out this young mother and her child cut in place.  While it irritated me somewhat I guess it helped a child out so that’s cool.  Still!

The boat got pretty close to American and Bridal Veil, allowing us to fully appreciate how rocky the lower falls is — as a result of rock falls in the 30s and 50s.  Then the boat made its way up to Horseshoe, putting us firmly inside the horseshoe’s ends.  Water came down in sheets and I was quite worried about the camera but I managed to keep it dry.  We then proceeded back to the dock, going past a rock absolutely covered in birds.

Maids in the Mist... of Horseshoe Falls

By the time we got off the boat, recycled our ponchos, and enjoyed some drinks (while taking in the amazing sights), the sun was bursting through.  It became downright hot and humid (ok, not as bad as down in North Carolina, but still…).  A shelter along the cliff that we had previously used during a sudden downpour now, only an hour later, gave us much needed shade.  Hungry and in need of sunglasses we walked through the shady park (and agreeing we should just nap under the trees like many others were doing) and up the hill back to the hotel.

We grabbed a quick (but not cheap!) lunch at Margaritaville right next to the hotel.  Addison enjoyed doing the kids’ activities and got a “treasure” — a plastic ruler — for finding all sorts of answers around the restaurant to questions on the menu.  Michelle and I had Cajun steak wraps which, while not bad, were a bit spicy.  Genetta made a brave choice and ordered (and enjoyed) portabella mushrooms.  The boy had a kid’s steak which, while tiny, was tasty.  We then swung by the car and picked up my sunglasses and hats for the others, after a short rest in the hotel, then went back down the hill and went towards Horseshoe Falls and the Journey Behind the Falls attraction.

We got a ticket to for 5:20 (a good thing, by the time we got out there were no more showings) trip and in the meantime did some browsing at the gift shops as well as snapped many photos of the falls and the beautiful rainbows that were showing up with the setting sun.  In particular a cool watercolor world map caught my — and Addison’s — attention as well as this really tacky plastic moose magnet painted red and white like the Canadian flag.  Once we got out of Journey Behind the Falls we snagged those treasures right up!

Journey Behind the Falls was really neat.  Basically we donned ponchos (yellow this time, Genetta said we looked like bananas) and rode an elevator down about 150 feet to near the base of the falls (the falls are 180 feet tall, and the pool it drains into is as deep).  From there we walked down a 200 meter (dang metric measurements!) tunnel that had two viewing points.  The railing at these points was about six feet beyond the end of the cliff face and the cascading sheet of water.  It was amazing to see it come in pulses, roaring into the tunnel (beyond the railing) in torrents.

Also along the tunnel walls were informative plaques.  We learned that enough water to fill 1,000,000 bathtubs goes over the falls each second.  The falls used to recede ten feet a year until recently, when modern engineering slowed it to one foot every ten years.  That is probably a good thing because once the falls opens directly into Lake Erie the results could be very interesting (like, “get an Ark” interesting).  Ships use a parallel canal with locks system just to the west of Niagara Falls to descend the 200 or so feet between Lake Erie and Ontario.  The falls carry 20% of the world’s fresh water.  Amazing.

Ice is kept off the falls by a series of twenty-two booms, though sometimes ice will overtop and go down the falls, damaging the Maid in the Mist and other facilities.  Also ice bridges routinely form in the river below the falls and, until 1912 when three people fell through during a slight warm spell to their deaths, people used to go out and have parties on them.  Ice also crushed a bridge called the Honeymoon Bridge back in 1938.

Next we went out to a multi-level viewing platform near the bottom of Horseshoe Falls that afforded a beautiful view as well as a good soaking and a thunderous roar.  Well worth it, I hated to turn back up the tunnel and the line for the elevator back up.

Looking up at Horseshoe Falls from Journey Behind the Falls

Once out of the attraction I saw one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen — and resisted it.  Fries with gravy on top.  Now, those of you who know me know I’m no stranger to going to Two Guys and putting a cup of gravy and parmesan cheese on my fries.  But it is something I do once every five years or so.  And I do it in secret, in great shame, in their darkened dining hall.  Here it was, however, in full view of the world.  “Yeah, I got some fries with gravy on top, you got a problem with it?!” it practically shouted.  Though I resisted (and would do so again, just this night in Ottawa) I suspect I will succumb…

We walked back along the river (and I took tons of photos — it is so very hard not to, particularly in the age of “free” film) and up the hill to the room and rested a bit (hey, it’s vacation).  At about 8p we set out to find some steak.  Addison was really in the mood for some (the lunch nibble serving only to whet his appetite).  Every place was $40 per-person, or more, however, so we ended up back at Mr. Coco’s where Addison got a very good 12 oz.  It wasn’t cheap ($32!) but the rest of us didn’t have anything near that expensive and I just got French Onion soup and ate some of his vegetables and a left over piece of pizza that Genetta couldn’t eat.  Returned back to the room and the others went to bed while I plonked away at the Gettysburg blog in… horrors… Notepad.

American (and Bridal Veil to the right) Falls

Horseshoe Falls double rainbow

Rainbow at top of Horseshoe Falls