Day 9 of the Trans Canadian

Date Night special at #Big Daddy's in #Ottawa

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 9th

Last views of THE TOWER and then it was onto our final streetcar ride to #Union Station.

Absolute masters of the bag-drag and public transport

#Union Station is lots of alleyways, byways, ramps, The Path, entrances and exits and again we needed to ask someone for directions to be able to avoid the stairs to make our way to #VIA.

 Seems we only get turned around one time too many when we are underground. Never mind, only added 4 minutes to the adventure and then we were set up in the #Busness Lounge and being looked after.

Have been able to use the loyalty points accumulated from the first leg of our Trans Canadian adventure to indulge ourselves for the next few trips.  We have a few trips along the "Corridor" section of the rail journey over the next week. Today it is #Toronto to #Ottawa, #Ottawa to #Montreal, then #Montreal to #Quebec City and finally we will join the train for the last leg to #Halifax. Happy to report that after our 30 minutes on hold yesterday morning we now have boarding passes for all legs of the trip. Once you get the #VIA team on the phone - they are extremely helpful.

Access to the lounge, priority boarding (this was huge benefit- the line snaked through the VIA Concourse and out into The Path), extra leg room and adjustable footrest, meal and beverage service and all delivered in car 1. Not bad for our 4 plus hour journey to #Ottawa. We had so much room, I was complaining that @Mac was so far away I couldn't steal his warmth.

All aboard - I am sitting in the space between the seats - too much room!

Nothing wrong in this trip- very comfortable

 So much food and drink, lunch, tea/coffee, wine, savoury and sweet snacks, served in crockery and glass with stainless steel utensils... all tasty, fresh and enjoyable. Toot, toot.

The landscape once again was beautiful. We hugged the banks of #Lake Ontario for nearly two hours, noted the increasing number of trees changing colours, lots of farmland and large solar panel installations and wind farms. All very flat land. So flat, we noted train was clocking 150  kms per hour. We were flying.

We constantly marvel at how close we are to the #USA. We travelled along the #St Lawrence River today and once again, the border simply runs down the middle of the riverway. The commentary varies - some claim 75% of Canadians live within t100 miles of the USA border - others claim 90%. Whatever the stat - we always seem to be close.

Confessing I may have missed the St Lawrence River stretch - it's tough being comfortable AND awake - not his jacket in lieu of his body 

A major stop on the line was at #Kingston (yes, I was awake for this one) - thought we were close to home with a name like that. Had no idea what as happening but there were seven emergency vehicles alongside the platform. 

Something going on at Kingston

Arrived 10 minutesl late into #Ottawa Station (love that VIA staff are routinely on the microphone apologising for late arrival) and easily grabbed a taxi. 

Clear skies as we approach #Ottawa but we seem to be a fair distance from "downtown."

Train station at #Ottawa - huge and in middle of nowhere 

Had the ultimate tour guide for our 15-minute drive to the accommodation. In a heavy European accent iur driver pointed out the highlights along the way. Hilarious. He would speak. @ Mac would look at me with a frown. I would provide a "translation."

It often goes something like this:

@Taxi driver - very thick accent "This is the very famous #Rideau Canal. It freezes over in winter and becomes a 10 km open skating path for the locals."

@Me in response to @Mac's turn of the head and frown: "Rideau Canal. Freezes. 10 km skating rink."

 @Mac on delay with head nodding "Ahhh."

This translation of English to English continues for the entire journey. The driver must have thought we were nuts - but it didn't deter him, he just kept pointing out the sights and I kept "translating" so @Mac could keep up. 😜 

Our first job was to find a general store to top up on supplies - and just one block back we had it all -  accessed all of the essentials before walking home and relaxing.

#Farm Boy supplies

The accommodation might be a bit dated - but it is roomy, comfortable, clean and in a great location (we think.) And, there was an ice tray in the freezer. #Myers Rum FOUND just one block away - our first score on this trip. Everything is looking great through the gold haze of #Myers.

Two-bedroom, self-contained unit - it goes alright 

First impression of #Ottawa - much older than #Toronto - not the proliferation of glass towers and shiny high-rise facades and certainly no TOWER. Mind you we have only walked to the edge of the gardens at #Parliament Hill so far. Lots of broken pavement, first time we have seen any litter and so far, not the proliferation of gardens that we have become accustomed to throughout #Canada. This may all change as we venture further afield.

Not quite as flashy as - #Toronto - yet

Spotted the sign as soon as we arrived and made the commitment early for our dinner venue. Have to say #Big Daddy's was a hit. It is Saturday night and it was their "Date Night" promotion. The food was exceptional - a seafood fondue to start (what a concept), followed by a linguine and a surf n turf and a toffee dessert washed down with a bottle of wine. Every mouthful was a winner. It's going to be hard resisting the temptation to just go back to enjoy those cajun/creole flavours all over again - especially that fondue. So good.

#Big Daddy's delivered

And the best part, the restaurant shared a door with our hotel lobby. We were home.

Meanwhile in 🇪🇺 with @M&I

 Loving their time in #Mykonos. I suppose we have to satisfied that at least they are wearing a helmet.