I just returned from a week in Ottawa, Ontario yesterday–http://www.ottawa.com/. I was in Ottawa last week for a work-related Finance Symposium. Ottawa is Canada’s capital and the seat of our current government.
I stayed at the Lord Elgin hotel and these first three pictures are of the view of downtown Ottawa from my room.
This is the Federal Government’s Conference Centre where our symposium was held.
After the symposium finished each day, I took advantage of the time and did some sightseeing.
This is the original Bank of Canada building, built in 1938 – view from the back of the building.
This is the same building from the front.
The Bank of Canada building was expanded in 1979 and the original granite building was preserved by being partially enclosing it the new glass courtyard flanked by two glass towers. This building is a statement in contrast between old and the new–history and present day.
http://www.bank-banque-canada.ca/en/index.html
The Bank of Canada also houses the Currency Museum.
http://www.currencymuseum.ca/eng/collection/index.php
This is a piece that is called “What’s it Worth” by a Canadian artist, Marc Adornats that was hanging in the Currency Museum.
“What’s it Worth: $1200 in Canadian bank notes on canvas. The obvious question is the value of this piece. It is made of $1200 worth of Canadian bank notes that have been shredded into tiny pieces and glued to a canvas in the shape of the stars and stripes. So what’s it worth? And to whom? Adornats’ piece questions not only the value of art, but the value of paper currency and the ever fluctuating value of the Canadian dollar relative to the US dollar. His work examines how war, trade policy, and leadership affect confidence in one of the world’s strongest currencies–the US dollar.”
The previous three photos are of the inside of the Bank of Canada. In the winter this must be an absolutely wonderful building to work in. Ottawa can be so brutally cold in the winter. Inside this building it must seem like a tropical oasis in contrast to the freezing wind and snow outside.
This is a statue of Queen Elizabeth II, our current queen. This statue is one of many statues on the grounds of Parliament.
Behind this fence is the cat sanctuary. Legend has it the cats housed on Parliament Hill are descendants of the felines that were originally set loose on Parliament Hill to get rid of all the mice.
Two of the wild cats that call Parliament Hill home. This was a very sunny day and these felines were taking advantage of the heat and warm pavement.
This is a giant spider sculpture outside the National Gallery of Canada. Although this spider is a permanent fixture, I thought it was very fitting for the month of October–very Halloween like.
These two pictures are of pumpkins for sale in the ByWard Market Square. This is an area where farmers and artisans come into the centre of the city to sell fresh produce, flowers, and crafts.
I will leave you with a picture of the colourful fall foliage on Parliament Hill. The trees are just starting to turn beautiful shades of gold and red.