Rideau Hall

One of the highlights of our visit to Ottawa, at least for me, was visiting Rideau Hall. It is the official residence of the Governor General. The grounds are open to the public. When we visited, the building was in the middle of renovation and restoration.

The grounds and gardens are lovely, and really serve as a public park. Many locals come to enjoy them. There are many trees on the grounds planted by various visiting dignitaries marked by plaques. The kids were not satisfied until they found the tree planted by JFK.

There are free tours of part of the building. Some visitors, although not us, have been surprised by the Governor General herself meeting them. You can take pictures with the guards, although I saw one boy who was startled when the guard he was standing beside moved. The guards are changed on a regular basis. This involves a "parade" of just five soldiers.

I had not visited Rideau Hall on my previous trips to Ottawa, but am glad I did on this trip. I would recommend taking the time to visit and stroll the grounds.

Changing the Guards

One of the most popular tourist events in Ottawa is the Changing of the Guards on Parliament Hill. This takes place every day from June to August at 10 AM. If the weather is bad, it may be canceled. It best to get there early in order to get a good spot.

I found it better than the Changing of the Guards at Buckingham Palace in London for several reasons. You have a better view of the entire ceremony because it takes place in the open on the lawn. It is not as crowded. If you want, you can interact with some of the officers before and after the event.

My son and the children of the other family that was with us had their picture taken with one of the officers.

Parliment Hill Grounds

Around the buildings on Parliament Hill in Ottawa are many different statues. These commemorate Prime Ministers, various people important to the history of Canada, and important events in the history of Canada.

This picture is of the statue of Queen Elizabeth II, the Queen of Canada. She is shown mounted on the horse that was given to her by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

A free guide book is available that gives the location of each statue, and a brief description of who is portrayed and their importance to the history of Canada. When we were there, in the summer, there was a tent with tourist information including these tour books set up on the left side of the Centre Block. This was also where you signed up for the free tour of the Centre Block.

Parliament Tour

This picture was taken inside the library of the Parliament Buildings in Ottawa. The library is the only part of the Centre Block (the main building on Parliament Hill) that survived the fire of 1916.

The tour of the Centre Block of the Parliament Buildings is free. Depending on what is occurring at the time, the tour may include the Library, the Senate Chamber, the House of Commons, and other areas of the building. The guides are knowledgeable.

After the tour, you can visit the Peace Tower on your own.

Ottawa: Canada's Capital

This is a picture of the Centre Block of the Parliment Buildings in Ottawa. I took this in August 2006 when my family and another family visited there for a long weekend.

We rented a room at a hotel within walking distance of Parliment. Between walking and using a tourist bus (we bought all day passes), we were able to visit all the sites that we wanted to visit. There is also good public transit. It was nice not to have to drive in an unfamiliar city.

Ottawa is a great place to visit. There is so much to see. Because it is the capital of Canada, there are all the government buildings. Also many of the best museums in Canada are located here. We visited the War Museum, which is fairly new. Ottawa also has many festivals. When we were there the Busker Festival was in full swing.

Druze Market

This is the picture of the open air market in Carmel City, Israel on a Saturday. Carmel City was formed in 2003 from the merger of two Druze towns. It is near Haifa and has a population of around 24 000.

The Druze in Israel are considered by the government of Israel as a distinct ethnic community. They are Arabs. Their religion is an offshoot of Islam. Those living in Israel are strong supporters of their nation. They serve in the Israeli army, and many have reached high rank.