Ottawa

First trip. Hardly had the master's thesis been submitted, the first trip was already waiting for our small group. We went to Ottawa. Located about a 5-hour drive south of Quebec, it is the capital of the country. In addition to the three founding cities Toronto, Montreal, and Quebec, Ottawa has a special history. Originally just a small locality, it was declared the capital of Canada by Queen Victoria in 1857. This was mainly because none of the other cities should be preferred by this title. Ottawa also had a good strategic location, which protected the city well against attacks from the USA due to the surrounding forest. This demarcation of Canada from the USA is also reflected in the neo-Gothic architecture of the government building. The British influence is not only evident in the "Big Ben" tower of the parliament, but also in the interior with a kind of replica of the "House of Commons". We received this information in addition to our short guided tour of the parliament, especially from our personal Swiss tour guide Raphael. You can try to guess who this is in the pictures. He impressed even the trained group guide from the parliament with his knowledge, as he could answer almost all of her questions off the cuff.

For Saturday evening, the highlight was the hockey game between the Winnipeg Jets and the Ottawa Senators (short for SANS). After an interesting Uber ride to the stadium outside the city center, we eagerly watched the game. In addition to a German, there are two Swedes in the team of the club, so we also felt some national connection. Unfortunately, the SANS lost miserably with a score of 1-5, which was reflected in an off-field power struggle (see picture). Of course, pure entertainment for us. Afterwards, we ended the game in the stadium bar and waited for a decrease in demand for Uber rides to take an affordable taxi back to the city. There, as is usual in Canada, we finished our evening at 2 o'clock with a "delicious" poutine.

The return journey on Sunday was accompanied by a stop at "Parc Omega". In addition to feeding deer and wild boars, we were able to observe reindeer, bison, elk, wolves, and numerous other animals. Unfortunately, the bears are currently in hibernation, so we missed them in the park. Then we drove back to Quebec on snowy roads, where we arrived unharmed after encountering a handful of stranded vehicles (on the shoulder).