NASCAR and Port Colborne

This weekend we went to Bowmanville for a spot of motor racing. Awesome weather, sunburnt on the bald spots,  lungs filled with fumes. We chatted to an Aussie from Campbelltown and saw a Commodore SS/Pontiac G8.

Sunday we drove down to the coast to Port Colborne for lunch. Very picturesque with some nice homes. We watched a yacht sail through the locks. The road is closed whilst the bridge opens.

Ottawa

Our four day weekend in Ottawa was almost perfect, the only down side was the weather. On Friday morning it was a quick visit to a local Elementary School for Newton whilst Wendy hung out at starbucks and Ikea. Picnic lunch (subway) in the park then a wonderful afternoon tea with His Excellency Tony Negus, High Commissioner to Canada. He is a wonderful ambassador for Australia, very welcoming and friendly.

Saturday was spent touring Parliament Hill and Ottawa surrounds. We had a guided tour of Parliament House which was interesting. The ornate stonework is exquisite, the library is grand and reminded us of Harry Potter. We walked to the top of the Peace Tower for a wonderful view of Ottawa. Spent time with the Famous Five Ladies and other monuments, saw our first groundhog, walked along Rideau Canal. Our tour of the City was in an open top bus, we sat on the top deck in the rain for the 2 hour tour. It was a bit chilly but loads of fun.

A guided tour of an Indigenous camp, bison burger for lunch and then a performance by native indigenous ladies.

A quick tour of Notre Dame Basilica, the largest standing and oldest Church in Ottawa, building commenced in 1841.

May is Tulip Festival month. All the tulips were in flower, quite a spectacle.  

May 2, 1945, following five years in exile in Canada, Princess Juliana and her children were reunited with Queen Wilhelmina in the liberated part of the Netherlands. As a show of gratitude for her stay in Canada, and for Canadian soldiers’ role in the liberation of her homeland, Princess Juliana presented to the people of Canada a number of gifts, including 100,000 tulip bulbs. The following year, an additional 20,500 bulbs were received in Canada, with a request to plant them on the grounds of the Ottawa Civic Hospital. As part of sustaining the friendship that links the Netherlands and Canada, the National Capital Commission, as official gardener of Canada’s Capital, is now responsible for planting close to one million tulips every year in Canada’s Capital Region.  http://tulipfestival.ca/about/tulip-legacy/