Ottawa – Loose Ends

August 22, 2019

Here are some odds and ends from my two days in Ottawa.

This street is parallel to Wellington Street but one block east.  It runs for several blocks and is primarily for pedestrians.  There were some nice restaurants and shops, including one coffee shop I went to several times throughout the two days I was downtown – to mooch their wifi and enjoy several of their beverages (fruit drinks, London Fog – a hot tea drink I’ve taken a liking to, and a mystery drink which was for charity and was supposed to change color).

There was a beauty shop which offered a multitude of services.

I briefly debated getting the Eyebrow Threading (and would have sprung the extra $5 to throw in the moustache) but I had already gotten a bad haircut in Sydney, Nova Scotia a few weeks earlier and spent two weeks apologizing to my Airbnb hosts for my hair (much to their amusement) so I decided to leave well enough alone.

Further down the street they were having a silent auction for charity.  I briefly considered writing in the phone numbers of some folks in Durham with ridiculously high bids but payback is a bitch and I knew there would be hell to pay later.  Besides, it was for charity so I thought I’d better not play my little game.

After two days walking around Ottawa this moose looks about how I felt…

Here’s the mystery drink I paid $5 for (for charity, they said).  Just a juice, not a cocktail.  It had some clever name which is what drew my attention to it in the first place.  I was told it was supposed to change color when I stirred it or when the temperature changed but nothing ever happened and I think I got hoo-dooed.  Oh well, not the first time….

This riddle appeared inside the building next to the Ottawa Locks.  The answer was – YES.

Another riddle of sorts – perhaps a candidate for Canadian Sign Language.  I’m thinking “if you want a doughnut back away from the train”…

This statue of Samuel Champlain was high on a hill behind the art museum.

And who doesn’t like colorful cookies – even if only to look at.  These were back at the Farmers Market which I made one last pass through before bailing my car out of the parking garage and heading back to my Airbnb for the night.

This clever water fountain was outside the Farmers Market.  Two for adults, one for kids and one for pets!

And I don’t know how I missed this the first day.  For a few bucks parents could pay to cram themselves in a “tiny car” with their kids for a several-block ride around the Farmer’s Market area.  Everyone except the engineer seemed to be having a good time.

This concludes my brief time in Ottawa.  Friday would be a travel day as I headed further west for a few busy days in Toronto before returning to the United States.  I did take a 2 1/2 hour boat ride so I will be posting a bunch of pictures of it in the next day or two.  It is ripe for repetition so I will try to select only the best photos which won’t put you to sleep.