The Last Winter Tale - Ottawa

The last stop on my journey was Ottawa. We were really curious about how we would fill the 2 days, as we had heard several times that there isn't much to do here.

An amazing experience was our hostel... A former prison that closed in 1973 and reopened as a hostel just 6 months later. The necessary work was of course done by the prisoners. We stayed in a historic cell and were initially speechless and not quite sure if it had been such a cool idea. But it turned out fine. We also took the guided tour the next day, which was really interesting.

But now let's continue with day 1. We walked around and ate at the ByWard Market. It's a small neighborhood where there is a big farmers' market in the summer, but not much was going on in the winter. Except for all the Irish pubs.

We also visited the National Gallery. It didn't quite suit my taste, but we had the opportunity to stay longer in the museum and attend an exhibition opening. That was pretty cool.

During that time, there was another snowstorm. Ottawa in the snow was really beautiful, especially the view of Parliament Hill.

In the evening, we randomly ended up in Ottawa's oldest bar.

The next day started with the prison tour, as mentioned before. Then we went to the House of Commons. The tour wasn't that great, but our guide wasn't either. At least it was free.

The last museum of the vacation was the Canadian Museum of History. We could also get in for free because Thursday evenings have free admission. We mainly focused on the Native American history. The huge totem poles were very impressive.

As a conclusion, we discovered a proper diner - just like you see in the movies. And after already having the famous Beavertails (pastry in the shape of a beaver's tail) and the Obama Cookie for lunch, we had to try the traditional Canadian poutine. And oh man... I understand why Henni hasn't tried it so far... Fries with cheese and gravy (the latter being instant). And they call it a national dish.... I definitely can't recommend it.

And that's it for this time. I'm already on my way back. First by train to Toronto and then by plane back home.

Thanks again for all the positive feedback. I really enjoyed sharing with you.

I think the sequel of my blog will be in August. This time from Ireland!