May 20: On the Train Again

Got dressed, had breakfast, left my remaining rolled oats in the “Free Food” container, stripped my bunk, finished packing and left Alt Hostel. A few subway stations later I was at Station Bonaventure, which has direct underground links to Gare Central. There wasn’t much to do except wait and look around the main foyer.

The train to Ottawa was late, so the line growing behind me in the waiting area was getting impatient. Eventually, after the train arrived, its passengers disembarked and the business class passengers got first entry, we were allowed to board.

The day was bright and nothing felt hurried. I mainly read my Joss Whedon book. (I left Black Magic back in Quebec.)

Ottawan

After a couple of hours, we arrived in Ottawa.

There’s a metro train station right across the road from the VIA Rail station which took me to just a few blocks away from my hostel. My immediate impression of Ottawa was that, in comparison to the other Canadian cities I’ve seen so far, it’s smaller and greener; fewer skyscrapers, more trees.

I soon arrived at Ottawa Backpackers Inn.

After settling in, making my bunk and disentangling the clothes in my big case, I went out to look around in the late afternoon.

Turning a few corners, I found myself in the ByWard area, with many restaurants and bars. And what should I run into right at the end of York Street but the US Embassy.

A few hundred metres down the road was the Lebanese Embassy. Should make for some uncomfortable ambassadorial passings-by.

I checked out some of the more historic buildings in the area.

Treated myself to a pasta meal at a nearby eatery, then went in hunt of food supplies. Once secured, I headed back to the hostel.

Bunker Shot

One Ottawa highlight I’d hoped to see was The Diefenbunker, a former Cold-War bunker built just outside Ottawa in the 1950s. It’s now a museum and occasional movie set. I checked its website and read the dreaded words: “The Diefenbunker is unfortunately not accessible by public transit.”

The bunker’s quite a distance beyond the most westward of Ottawa’s trains and buses. (The bunker had a shuttle last year which ran July to September; go to that page now and you get a 404 error.) It’s too far to walk, and, although the cost of the tour isn’t that expensive, the addition of two taxi/Uber fares would ramp up the price. When I made my lists of things to see on this trip, I always wrote in too many because I was aware some might not be possible on the day. Regretfully, I added The Diefenbunker to that set.

May 21: Freshly Minted

Got up a bit earlier than usual to go to places I could reach. First stop on the sunny cool day was The Canadian Parliament Buildings.

There are three buildings on the grounds: the West Building, where the House of Commons currently meets; the East Building; and the Centre Building, which is usually Parliament’s main building but which is currently undergoing extensive renovations until 2031.

Near the Visitors’ Centre, there were a couple of younger people whose ill-fitting suits immediately marked them as interns. They said that, due to a morning event, there were no parliamentary tours until the afternoon.

I walked east down the road, to turn my attention to another venue: The Royal Canadian Mint.

This used to be Canada’s main mint, but production of circulating coins and notes moved to Winnipeg many years ago. Nowadays, the Ottawa Mint makes investment coins and collector coins.

After a little difficulty with online booking, I got onto a tour. We weren’t allowed to take photos inside the building for security reasons, but, from overhead observation windows, the guide showed us the rooms where the investment coins are produced. First, gold and silver ingots are cut up, melted and rolled into large coiled strips. In another room, the strips are further flattened, then blank discs cut out of them. Rims are added, then the blanks are checked, softened and stamped with the design. Everything’s checked along the process to ensure the coins are near-perfect and with anti-counterfeiting measures. The guide also showed us some of the collectors coins produced, which come in many varieties.

Capital Art

Back up the road from the Mint, among other wonderful buildings, is the National Gallery of Canada.

It’s about as large as the Montreal gallery, but not so densely packed; there was room for plenty of abstract works. Again, this is just a selection.

One interesting display was a whole church interior. The Rideau Chapel was a Catholic church tied to a school, built back in 1888. The school was demolished in 1972, but the chapel interior was saved and set up within the gallery. A specially composed Latin choir piece plays on continuous loop there.

City Farm

After a bite on the run, I took two metro trains further west, to visit The Central Experimental Farm.

This farm was originally established by the Ministry of Agriculture in the 1880s as a farming research station, in what was then countryside. Over time, Ottawa grew around it, but the farm is still used by Agriculture Canada.

Several of the original buildings are still there, either used by AgCanada or repurposed.

After wandering to the far end, I walked back down a road that cut through two testing fields. A sign there warned me to watch out for coyotes.

In The Senate

Taking the two trains back, I checked online re the parliamentary tours. None were available for the House of Commons, the East Block was summer only and the Centre Block tour was just a multimedia thing. That left the Senate. With the Centre Building in mothballs, the Canadian National Senate currently works out of the former Union Train Station building, which was used as a conference centre for many years.

I booked onto a tour (for free) for an hour thence. Feeling a bit worn, I found a café and had a coffee. I also bought an Obama Cookie, made popular when President O visited some years ago.

At the Senate Building, our tour group first had to go through airport-level security checks. We waited in the downstairs foyer amid several historical pictures.

Our guide took us upstairs, first showing us some of the artefacts transported here from the old building, such as the original Senate door with the crests of the Canadian provinces.

We were then shown the Senate chamber, both at ground level and from spectator level, the guide explaining all the symbolic meanings.

We were also shown a committee room.

I came away with a better understanding of Canadian political process and a great desire to get back to the hostel and rest my feet.