Pembroke to Ottawa, Ontario – 27 May 2023

As our container of dog wash machines had arrived from Australia, it was time for Derek to fly back to Victoria to receive the machines, get them CSA approved and add credit card readers to them. For that he needed at least 4 days. We had originally thought that the best time to go would be when we were in Quebec, but I decided that if I was going to alone, I would like to spend the days exploring Ottawa instead. So we did a bit of moving around of dates and managed to extend our time at the Ottawa campground.

Derek left early the following morning and flew straight to Vancouver. The weather had picked up nicely – too nicely, it was in the 30’s and of course, the first thing that went was the fridge. So all the refrigerated stuff was moved to the outside bar fridge again. While Derek was away I walked Jax around the area and found a small community nearby that had paved trails around a large pond and fields on the side of the houses. There was also a pet store so I was able to buy him some of his favourite doggy yogurt ice creams.

The following day map in hand, I drove to a park and ride about 25 mins away and then caught a bus and then train to downtown Ottawa. It was a chance to visit our Capital and appreciated the history and beautiful architecture of the buildings at Parliament Hill. Parliament Hill is home to Canada’s federal government, where representatives from all the provinces gather to make the laws. The majority of the buildings here were built between 1859 and 1866. One year after their completion, Canada became a country. The “Hill,” sat in the centre of town and overlooked the majestic Ottawa River. The roof of each building was made from copper which had turned green over time. There were many statues around Parliament Hill including former Prime Ministers and women that had fought for equal rights. The impressive Peace Tower was the dominant feature on the hill at 92.2 meters tall.

While wandering around the town, I was lucky enough to catch the changing of the guard at the National War Memorial. In 2000, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was added in front of the memorial. The tomb contains the remains of an unknown Canadian soldier from a war cemetery near Vimy Ridge, France.

Since 2007, a pair of sentries from the Ceremonial Guard, in full dress uniform and with unloaded weapons, have been stationed at the tomb, on rotation from 9 am to 5 pm. They swap out every hour. The National War Memorial symbolizes the sacrifice of all Canadian Armed Forces personnel who have served Canada in time of war in the cause of peace and freedom. It is the site of the national Remembrance Day ceremony on Nov 11.

I was planning on visiting to the National Gallery but on the way there I saw the Notre-Dame Cathedral. The Cathedral is the oldest and largest church in Ottawa and the seat of the city’s Roman Catholic archbishop. Its twin, tin spires and gilded Madonna were very noticeable from Parliament Hill and the surrounding area. The project to build the Cathedral started in 1839 and it finally opened in 1846 after several evolutions. It was granted the title “Basilica” by Pope Leo XIII based on its historical and cultural importance as well as its art or beauty. It was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1990.

The interior decoration and craftsmanship was beyond exquisite, integrating classicism, Quebec church architecture and the French Gothic Revival style. Labourers working on the Cathedral were often the same men who laboured at the Parliament Buildings. The current instrument (including the Main and Sanctuary organs) has 4,700 pipes. After visiting the Cathedral I was too tired to walk around the National Gallery so started walking back to the train station. On my way I noticed an unusual monument called Reconciliation. This monument was made up of a number of large rocks at different angles, made to look like a bombed area. On top of a wall were three statues of soldiers. The monument commemorated Canada’s role in international peacekeeping since 1947 and all the soldiers who have participated in and continue to support international peacekeeping operations. The inscription on the monument was a quote from Lester B. Pearson: “We need action not only to end the fighting but to make the peace… My own government would be glad to recommend Canadian participation in such a United Nations force, a truly international peace and police force.” (Lester B. Pearson, November 2, 1956)

The following day I stayed at the campground catching up with work and spending time with Jax playing ball. There were a fair amount of mosquitoes around the RV so very unpleasant to sit outside. The next day I once again drove, caught a train and bus and this time tackled the National Gallery. I love visiting art galleries and the National Gallery of Canada was a real treat. It has over 75,000 pieces of art plus an extensive library and archives. The pieces ranged from antiquity to modern day with many masterworks including Van Gogh, Monet, Picasso, Degas etc. They exhibited every conceivable type of medium from photography, sculpture, painting, digital and the decorative arts. What I didn’t expect to find inside was the Rideau Chapel. The Chapel was originally part of a boarding school for girls, run by nuns. The school was scheduled for demolition in 1972 when the chapel was purchased by the National Gallery who were able to relocate the chapel – all 1123 pieces of it, to its current location inside the gallery. It is the only example of its kind in North America from this period to include a Tudor style fan vaulted ceiling supported by slim iron columns. An incredible experience and I certainly would revisit again in the future. After a few hours in the Gallery I wandered down the road to get a photo of the bridge to Gatineau and discovered the Royal Mint. I took several photos outside and had a quick look in the gift store before making my way back to the train station.

Derek arrived that evening around 1am after a long flight from Victoria. Luckily he was able to train one of our good friends, David on this trip, on how to do the receipt of the dog wash containers, so David will do them in the future.