things to see & do in & around Ottawa

A little over a month ago, my parents and brother flew in for a visit. They brought lots Pioneer farmer sausage with them, as well as a hunk of Bothwell cheese. (When did it drop the "New" from its name?) I accompanied James to work each morning so that I could use the car to get around. (He had to miss out on the daytime fun.) Here's how our week unfolded.

Sat., May 9: James & I picked them up at the airport, had Shawarma from Guava's, and then the women left the men behind and went shopping.

Brockville

Sun., May 10: I prepared brunch for Mother's Day. The 1000 Islands boat cruise I'd thought I'd booked didn't materialize (I'd reserved tickets online, even received a confirmation e-mail stating we had to be at the pier an hour in advance, but nobody showed up at the office), so we ended up just going on a drive to Brockville and back. We ate supper at Boston Pizza and spent the evening watching the Amazing Race finale.

Aviation Museum

Mon., May 11: We visited the Canada Aviation Museum (fees are reasonable; we didn't go on the tour, but I suspect we'd have gotten more out of the experience if we had), ate lunch at Zak's Diner (our server was tops) in the ByWard, then circled around & around & around trying to find parking so we could visit the Bank of Canada's Currency Museum. Admission to the Currency Museum is absolutely free, and while that alone will draw some people, it's also quite fascinating to see what's passed as currency over the years. I'd suggest people follow the museum brochure's recommendation to bring or buy a lunch to eat in the tropical garden court. Also, don't pass up the chance for a photo in front of the huge $20 bill. However, plan your parking in advance. The lot on Queen Street, for instance, charged me $17 for one hour, whereas it charges $18 for the entire day. Ouch. We had barbecued farmer sausage for supper and Beaver Tails, which we'd bought earlier in the Market, for dessert.

Currency Museum

Tue., May 12: We drove over to the Tulip Festival International Pavilion at Lansdowne Park. My family was not interested in testing any of the international dishes available there, so we headed for home and leftovers, driving past Dow's Lake and some of the tulip displays on the way. In the afternoon we made a quick trip to WalMart, Indigo, and Staples. The weather was still holding up, so we fired up the barbecue again.

at some point along the canal

Wed., May 13: We floated down the canal...with Paul's Boat Lines. A group of seniors was also cruising that morning, and one 88-year-old man sitting in front of me was feeling particularly garrulous. Apparently, he's an expert in growing orchids. One of his colleagues finally convinced him to pipe down so everyone else could hear the tour guide. We weren't all that hungry--relaxing will do that to you--but we enjoyed some appetizers at Hard Rock Café before heading for home and yet another BBQ supper.

Thu., May 14: I drove my parents downtown so they could submit their passport applications in-person. It rained, so we spent almost the entire day at home reading the books we bought on Tuesday. Mom and I squeezed in a quick trip to Bayshore.

Fri., May 15: Working holiday! We picked up "stuff" from Canadian Tire and Home Depot and my parents basically got our yard in order. The absolute best thing I purchased was a Fiskars weeder. The one I've got has a D-handle, unlike the two stick-handle ones pictured at the bottom of that linked page. (When James loaned it to the neighbors, I was filled with anxiety the whole week it was gone, fearing I might never see it again.) In the evening, we drove rather aimlessly around, stopping at Britannia Park/Beach, and following Carling out to Kanata.

Britannia

An historical photo of Britannia Park here reminds me of Seurat's "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte."

Sat., May 16: We had a leisurely morning. I took Mom & Dad to the airport in the afternoon; Perry came along for the ride while James tinkered with his computer. I ended up going on my own to see the NAC's production of The Ecstasy of Rita Joe, a play I'd studied three times over the course of my university education. Forty years ago, it was the first English language play put on by the NAC. I'm glad I finally saw it staged, although I had expected...I'm not sure what. I'm still mulling it over, so it'll have to wait for another post. (OK, I Googled the play's title, and it burns me up to read the synopsis here. "American," my eye!)

Sun., May 17: We didn't do much. Ventured over to Home Outfitters, M&M Meats, and Metro, and that's about it.

Mon., May 18, Victoria Day: Dave & Ci and James & I went to see Star Trek Zero or Star Trek XI or whatever title you want to ascribe to it. I'll just refer to it as the Star Trek with the two equally hot leading men. Oh, baby. Kirk or Spock? Spock or Kirk? Do not make me choose.

Tue., May 19: Perry and I spent some time driving around Kanata before picking James up from work. We drove past the Scotiabank Place (the Sens' arena) and made a stop at Chapters at the Centrum. The parking lot set-up at the Centrum is, like the majority of box-mall parking lots in Ottawa, poorly designed. I'm always amazed more accidents don't happen; maybe they do, and I just don't hear about them.

Wed., May 20: I drove Perry to the airport around 11am.

Don't know if I'm alone in this, but I always tend to go through a bit of withdrawal after company leaves. I consoled myself by listing potential items to explore next year: Muséoparc Vanier, Rideau Hall, Kingsmere, War Museum, and Steam Train, to name a few options.

Note: Tourist season in Ottawa begins during TulipFest, but officially picks up after Victoria Day. The upside of a pre-Victoria Day visit is that there are less crowds; on the other hand, certain activities may not yet be open for the season.