Come Down From the Mountain, You Have Been Gone Too Long

Ottawa. Our country's capital. The big city where the big cars go up to a big hill and make some big decisions. There are also big museums, big galleries, big restaurants, and big fun!

Ok, too many uses of big.
Last week I went to Ottawa, not as a leisurely vacation, but as a staff resource for my old public school's grad trip. I was going mainly to assist with a visually impaired student and make his time in the country's capital unique and exciting. However, in a three-day, two-night trip, it is hard to experience all the city has to offer, especially considering the amount of stuff we do and the speed we do it at!

On the first day, last wednesday, everyone had to be ready to go for 6.30 in the morning. Ew. That's all I can say about that load up time. We had scheduled about 8 hours to get Ottawa, a little much considering it takes, oh, 4 hours. So we got there early, which was awesome, because then our itinerary had some leeway. So where do we go before our first real stop? Well, where else do you take a group of grade eight kids, especially girls...the mall! We had a nice stop there to eat our lunches and catch our breath before we got thrust into "learning." Our first stop was the Canada Science and Technology Museum, which featured a simulator ride! It kind of made me sick (eek), but it was a nice museum. A little bit too sterile and, to be quite honest, odd (it was like a warehouse with mix and match exhibits), I enjoyed it. We then checked into the hotel, got about an hour to rest, then off to dinner. Our first buffet dinner was ok. It wasn't amazing, but, for me at least, I didn't have to worry about footing the bill. After this was a trip to Parliament Hill, which, as a budding politisaurus, I found quite interesting. After that tour, we had a "ghost walk" through parts of downtown Ottawa, specifically a hostel that was once a prison (MAD CREEPSIES). Finally our night came to a close, we walked back to the hotel, and PASSED OUT (however, my roommate snored, making it really difficult at first).

I should interlude here. The boss of the tour company was our tour manager for the trip, and my brother worked for him for years. Both he and my mother wants me to get a job with this company, so after the first night, the boss already said "if you want the job next year, it'll be there for you." This is fine and all, in fact it's great, but also balls because I want to work in my school town full time next summer. TOO MUCH PREDICAMENT! (bad grammar, yeesh).

Day two was a later awakening, followed by a buffet breakfast at the Hard Rock Cafe (wierd place, but whatevs). Couldn't eat the sausage or bacon, but probably for the better...don't know how the kids handled it. Following this (note that I may have skipped something here), we went to one of my favourites spots in the country: the Civ. The Canadian Museum of Civilization is nothing short of AWESOME. Formerly the unfortunately-titled "National Museum of Man," the Civ is a massive testament to the power of cultural institutions in Canada. Housing an impressive original Totem Pole collection that is well maintained, myself and the tour were able to make our way through the growth of North America into what it is today (whether that's good or not) through large, interactive walk-through displays. I'm pretty much in love with the place. After lunch we saw an IMAX on their dome screen about Mars. It was ok, but kind of boring. Following this was the Supreme Court of Canada, which was funny because we did a mock trial with the kids being lawyers and judges. THEN we came to my other favourite part, the National Gallery of Canada.

The National Gallery is more than just an art gallery. It's an experience, to say the least. When the place was built in the 1980's, it stood out like a sore thumb in Ottawa's "skyline," if you can call it that. Moshe Safdie (an Israeli-Canadian architect) created a glass and sandstone masterpiece of a building, with magnificent glass structures and a high-ceilinged open aired gallery on the inside. Not only is the display of the artwork incredible, the building itself is a work of art. As our tour guide explained, for instance, the windows for all top-floor exhibits have automatic curtains and make sure the amount of light in the gallery is the same at all times. Also, unlike some galleries, there are no gallery lights immediately around art works, giving an eerie, unnatural look to some paintings. Also, the National Gallery has incredible Contemporary and Canadian sections, which I would have liked to spend more time in without a doubt. One of the most intriguing parts of the whole place, which we only walked by briefly, is the interior garden. Many parts of the building have indoor flower and other plant gardens which were a strange sight within the building.

After the Gallery was dinner time, followed by a trip to a bowling alley for relaxation and, for me, terrible bowling skills (as my visually impaired student said, and I agree, "5 pin bowling sucks"). The next day included the drive home, so we only had the chance to visit a few places. First, we went to the Canadian Aviation Museum, (which, in my opinion, isn't great), and then the Canadian War Museum. This place was incredible. Not only was the architecture of the new building VERY similar to that of my university (as well as much of the interior), but the design of the medium-sized walk-through museum was incredible. We only mangaed to visit the WWI section, as the students had only learned up to that point, but I definitely would have enjoyed the chance to be at this museum longer. Afterward was a short stop at the ByWard Market, the market of Ottawa with lots of little shops and restaurants. This was our lunch, where I had an overly expensive veggie sandwich. And that rounded out my trip.

After the bus back, I got home, flicked on the TV, and fell asleep not long after. I need to go back to Ottawa. And soon.

"Free Man in Paris" by Joni Mitchell

I was a free man in paris
I felt unfettered and alive
Nobody was calling me up for favors
No ones future to decide

That's it that's all, folks!