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Ottawa, Ontario
To the men who move only in dimly lit halls and determine my future for me
We’re back in Canada, and not just in Canada but in the capital city and the capital building of Canada. The Centre Block on Parliament Hill sometimes gets confused and thinks it is actually in England during a time when Gothic Architecture was fashionable, but that’s ok.
In Ottawa but not actually in Ottawa is the Canadian Museum of Civilization, on the other side of the Ottawa River from Ottawa in Hull, Quebec. A terrific building with a terrific collection in a terrific location right across the river from Parliament Hill.
The Moshie Safdie designed National Gallery of Canada is another of the big time, heavy hitter museums in the capital. The Louise Bourgeois spider sculpture outside is pretty awesome and inside the art is, well, Canadian. I’m not saying that to be mean or insulting- a lot of the art is solid and quite good, but that doesn’t mean it’s great.
A half hour out of the city at the Diefenbunker Cold War Museum. Even Canada was caught up in the cold war and this was where the government was supposed to hide as the populace burned during a nuclear attack. The bunker has four levels, a CBC broadcast studio, a really sad rec room and no place for guests- even the PM wasn't allowed to bring anyone along.
Keeping with a depressing theme, this is the Canadian War Museum. Although they might not be known for their aggressiveness, Canadians fought and died in just about all of the big wars and it's always interesting to see a non US perspective. For example, during the US Revolutionary War (or War for Independence), cowardly rebels wanted the British out while brave loyalists eventually left the US and moved to Canada. Who knew?
The brave loyalists of British Canada had reason to fear the British hating Americans, and around the time of the ugliness of the War of 1812, they started building the Rideau Canal as a way to protect against an invasion. Today Canada probably doesn’t have to worry as much about an invasion as they did two hundred years ago, and the Rideau Canal has morphed into just a great place in downtown Ottawa to kayak or even to just walk.
We’re now in Utah at the Kennecott Copper Mine, the world's largest excavation, the world's first open pit mine and one of the only man made objects visible from space. The mine has it's own visitors center, really just corporate advertising but also really impressive when they get into the process of what it takes to make a mountain disappear into a 3/4 of a mile deep hole.
I saw this from the plane on the way into SLC, and then looked it up on my iPhone as the plane taxied to the gate, and before you knew it, I was on my way there. It was a crazy cool (and weird) place to visit, and I don’t know why Salt Lake City doesn’t do a stronger job letting people know it’s there and it’s open for tourists, like me.
I stayed in downtown Salt Lake City this time thinking that it would somehow be easier, and ended up spending a few hours walking a five mile loop around a very pedestrian unfriendly Salt Lake City. Highlights included Temple Square (the center of the Mormon Empire), the Utah State Capitol Building (lots of beehive motifs), Moshe Safdie's Salt Lake City Library (still the best building there) and a certain burger joint that is now in Utah (although not downtown yet).
