Thursday, September 15, 2005

Holidaying in Ottawa

We flew to Canada on Thomas Cook Airlines. It was almost £200 (per person) cheaper than many of its competitors (and a direct flight). We were a little wary, but it turned out to be fine. No frills, but plenty of leg room and reasonable service. No TV in the back of the seats, and we ignored the movies on the small TVs in the ceiling (Mr & Mrs Smith and X Men). Instead we did Sudokus and ate several meals.

We were met at Ottawa by Ian and Sarah and a sign saying "Dr, Mr and The Bean Kent-Taylor". It was a very welcoming welcome. Ian forgot where he'd parked the car. When we found it we drove back to their apartment in The Glebe, a nice old area of Ottawa. We had another meal and chatted until we were exhausted.

Ian and Sarah are working during the week, so Anne and I spent Tuesday recovering from lack of sleep and exploring the area near to the apartment. It's 30 degrees here and we were pooped and hot.

On Wednesday Anne and I went to the Canadian Parliament and had a free tour. It's a great building and was interesting to see the centre of Canadian democracy. We've now seen the parliaments of Australia (Federal), New South Wales (state) and Canada, and yet have never been into the British Parliament.

We met Sarah and Ian in town after they'd finished work. We picked up food for a picnic in a supermarket and drove for miles to find a good spot for to eat it. When we found somewhere the wind was picking up, and so we had our picnic in the beginnings of a storm. For the first time since we arrived it was cold. Even so, I've not laughed so much in ages and it's good to be spending time with them.

Today we've been to The Canadian Museum of Civilisation and seen lots of exhibits on the aboriginal Canadians and Canadian history. We're now shattered, especially Anne who is finding carrying the weight of The Bean tiring.

We've been trying to figure out what differentiates the Canadian accent from the American accent. We asked Ian and Sarah:
Me: Can you recognise a Canadian accent?
I&S: Yeah - easy.
Me: So you can tell a Canadian and American accent apart?
I&S: Oh no - we've no idea how to do that.

Hmmm. What did they think I was asking?

No comments: