Mont-Tremblant - Arnprior

The read weather report unfortunately came true. It is raining cats and dogs. But one must look at such things positively, and it could have happened yesterday. Then my beautiful trip to the park would have been a bit watered down, so I am satisfied and plan a little differently. Instead of going through a particularly mentioned landscape, I decide to go to Ottawa Downtown. I didn't plan that actually. As it turns out, it's a stroke of luck.

The colors are a bit muted in the rain. I actually like the weather, but I have to admit that it looks much better in the sun. It rains moderately for the first 60 minutes. But then it really starts. I'm already sitting in the car in Ottawa and thinking whether I should start walking, but when I turn into the city, the rain stops. Unfortunately, the parking garage I had targeted before is closed, so I manually look for a parking space. After some effort, I actually find a free one on a side street. And it doesn't even cost anything on the weekend.

So I start walking without rain, and see a city that has relatively few high-rise buildings for a North American metropolis. Ottawa is the capital of Canada and I'm heading to Parliament Hill. I'm blown away there. The architectural magnitude of the buildings is phenomenal. You won't see anything like this in the western United States. In front of the parliament building, there are hundreds of children's shoes and toys on the ground. I have no idea what it's all about, so I ask a security guard.

He tells me a very sad story. In early summer, almost a thousand children's bodies were found in British Columbia. Indigenous children who were placed in homes to strip them of their indigenous culture. Just like in the Stolen Generation in Australia. The discovery was a shock for all of Canada, and I feel a little ashamed that I hadn't heard about it yet. I ask him if the children were murdered. He says that it is not known exactly, but that they were at least mistreated. And maybe they die because of it. The laid children's things are meant to remember these children. Once again, a stain on the Catholic Church, which operated many of these homes.

A little saddened by these stories, I walk to Major's Hill Park, where you have a great view of the parliament building and across the Ottawa River to the twin city of Gatineau. Countless squirrels frolic on the meadow in the park. I spot a gray one too - the rest are black. A glance at the sky tells me to walk back to the car after 3 hours. And it's not too early.

20 minutes before I arrive at the parking lot, the floodgates open again. And a heavy rain sets in. My parking spot was well chosen, after two turns, I'm already on the right road and getting out of Ottawa in traffic. The rain gets heavier and heavier. I just hope it lets up a bit tomorrow, because driving in this weather is no fun.

After a good hour, I have reached my destination Arnprior. It is located in Ontario and now English is spoken. The woman at the reception is from Birmingham. In England. Not in Alabama. We talk a little about COVID and children, and this small talk feeling kicks in. I missed that in the last four days. My room is freshly renovated and I arrived early so I can rest a bit. I can already feel my energy waning a bit, even though that sounds a bit ridiculous when it comes to driving. After all, I don't do any physical work. Nevertheless, I am glad for breaks.

A little trip to the Ottawa River at the end of the day leaves me smiling. There is a lighthouse here, which turns out to be hardly bigger than me. I want my Nova Scotia back.