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HAPPY CANADA DAY !

We woke up just before the alarm went off at 07:00 and rushed around betting ready and checking out of the hotel for our taxi at 08:15.

It was about a thirty minute taxi ride out to Edmonton International Airport and I have to say the Airport was a lot bigger and flasher than anything we were expecting. We were flying with WestJet the Canadian equivalent to Easyjet I would say and we have no complaints about the flight apart from the late take off and missing the sandwich cart when it came round due to being to engrossed in a film.

Jonathan was actually able to watch the Murray match at Wimbledon live on the TV screen as the airline seemed

to have a way of receiving satellite TV which was great especially as he won.

Today though is an important day for Canada. July the 1st is Canada Day or Canada's Birthday as some would say. It means that it was 146 years ago today that Canada got its independence from England and became its own governed country although it is still very much part of the commonwealth. What it meant was that it was the day for all the Stampedes to take place and parties across all of the major towns in Canada.

Here we were heading for the capital of Canada ( both the capital of the state of Ontario and the capital of the whole country) on Canada's birthday and to their Canada day celebrations that were being broadcast all over Canada (and to our aeroplane).

Now on our three hours and forty minute flight we also crossed two time zones so we landed an extra two hours in front of where we left but that's it now, we dont cross anymore time zones until we leave on the flight headed back to the UK.

Anyway back to Ottawa, landed and baggage collected we got in a taxi and headed off downtown. We were actually quite lucky that we landed when we did as all the roads were being closed downtown and it would have been a lot harder to get around. The problem was that our hotel did not exist ( well at least not as we knew it). We are staying at the Crowne Plaza and last night when we were checking things we put Crowne Plaza Ottawa into Google and it showed us a hotel. Now we thought we would be staying here but as it turned out we are actually staying at the Delta Hotel in a much better location. This came about as the Delta used to be the Crowne Plaza but was bought out two years ago but someone had forgotten to tell the internet agent that we booked through. It took us quite a while to summon up the courage to leave out taxi roadside and walk into a hotel with the wrong name to check our reservation......thank god that worked out all right!

Having missed the sandwich cart on the aeroplane we were by now starving and with the streets being filled with Canadian revellers singing and chanting and generally having a good time we figured that with all the extra people in town we would be quite lucky to find room anywhere so we dived into the first place that we came across for quite a dodgy pub meal, still needs must.

After that we headed straight down to Parliament Hill to watch the free concert that was taking place. It was easy to find as all the crowds were walking in the same direction so we just got into their flow. When we arrived at the square it was kind of like looking at a version of Big Ben attached to Londons Houses of Parliament, you could really see its influence over Canada's government building, just so so so similar.

Carly Rae Jepsen (she of call me maybe fame) was on first followed by a string of acts that we had never heard of singing in a mixture of French and English. The Canadian astronaut that had just staked his claim to fame on the world by singing the song space oddity by David Bowie up in the international space station also took to the stage and sung but that was the end of us recognising anyone.

We left the concert for a short while to go back to the hotel and sort some things out quickly then returned to Parliament Hill to watch the rest until the end. The show closed with a huge firework Display over Parliament house and the Big Ben lookalike. The atmosphere down in the square was contagious and we did feel like we were gatecrashing someone else's party as we must have been two of the very few not wearing a red T-Shirt emblazoned with the canadian maple leaf motif.

When we got back to the hotel the staff were dishing out Happy Birthday Canada Cake and drinks so we stopped off in the lobby to sample the goods.

It looks like there is going to be quite a lot to do here in Ottawa and it has to be said whenever I hear or say or write the word Ottawa I am taken right back to my childhood at the band Ottawa that sang the song D.I.S.C.O.

Something tells me thats not something the canadians are that proud of, even on Canada Day.

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