Ottawa Trip - February

During our winter reading week me and a couple of students in the Computer Science program decided to take a trip (arranged by UofT) to our countries capital Ottawa! We shared a room in the Cartier Place Suite Hotel and stayed there for three nights. It was bitter cold at times reaching lows of -15°C; fortunately that doesn’t daze the hardiest of Canadians! I gotta meet some great people and I got to network with some great software companies on the visit. Below I have shared some pictures/videos from my trip and hopes that I’ll motivate others like yourself to visit our countries capital.

First day at the Nature Musuem

On our first day in Ottawa we arrived rather late around 4pm. Having a thirst for adventure my roommates and I decided to look online for tourist attractions near our area. To our luck the only location open was the Nature Musuem; and it closed at 5pm. We made haste and battled through mounds of snow that were as high as our knees. We arrived 20 mins before closing and were told by the receptionists that the musuem was free for the last 20 mins. With this knowledge we raced through each floor taking as many pictures as we could. Unfortuantely I only managed to get through three floors, but one of us did manage to get four.

Butterflies don’t actually get this big do they? Just can’t help but to smile back:) Intense

Second day at the Library of Parliament

On our second day in Ottawa we took a trip with the whole group to see the parliament building. It was quite big and and it took our group some time to get through the metal detector gates. We were given a breif tour of the building and were also given a peculiar history of the building. We were told that we were actually standing in the rebuilt version of parliamentary building, as the building was burned down in 1849. Unfortuantely we did not get to examine the house of commons as their was an official meeting going at the time, so instead we were directed to the library. As our guide was telling us the history of the library most of us decided to take a video of the place as it was quite expansive and beautiful.

Final day out in Ottawa

On our final day my we roommates and I decided to split up. A few of us went to the mall, while the others and I went to skate on the Rideau River. This was my first time skating and it was a terrifying but rewarding experience. I remember having my jaw dropp as the occasional rockstars decided to bless us at the skate shack with their awesome moves. For me it was quite frustrating as skating seemed so simple and elegant on television but in reality was quite difficult. I often found myself taking baby steps and pacing along the side of the river in the hopes of me not falling down unlike my friend who fell down every couple of minutes. After skating for an hour I decided to take a break and was approached by a local. I was told that since he was leaving I could help myself to the remaining maple syrup popsicles. And so I did (Please check him out if you’re skating by the river).

On our way back to our hotel we passed through Ottawa Park and noticed a wonderful sight. The image in the middle was a glass art piece that lighted up when the sun started setting. You don’t see that in Toronto everyday. As we continued forward we met up with our other roomates and exchanged some concerns, while we did have fun, we wanted to make our last night memorable. So we decided to eat out in a resturant located in Ottawa’s China Town. Waiting for transit was quite a challenge as we had to a battle with the ever freezing night. Even with my heaviest goose jacket I found my self shivering from the cold. But at last when the bus came we knew our journey was for not. Upon arriving to our destination we saw the warm welcome in the picture to the right and promptly entered the Yangtze restaurant to celebrate our trip.

Me learning how to skate

Ottawa Park

China Town

Overall

I really enjoyed my experience in Ottawa and would definately go back given the chance!