Where Was Your Body Last Night? - Ottawa

Ottawa, truth be told you’ve never been my favourite. I know some amazing people who call you home, and even though your Heart & Crown was the first bar to ever give me the boot, there is still something a little bland about you. I guess it’s fitting then that my most recent visit started with an arrival on Good Friday, a day when the entire city shuts down.

So we ran across the bridge to Hull where the SAQ happily sells bottles of whatever you like on the most sacred of days, and then indulged in a gluttonous feast of the province's finest culinary offering - une belle grosse poutine.

 

Finding our hotel initially proved a bit difficult as it had changed name and ownership since we booked it, but that was only the beginning. The renovations added to the confusion as one day there was a hall here, the next it was gone. Spaces appeared and disappeared. It was actually kind of great.

Saturday was spent walking around the ByWard Market ....

…. where we stumbled upon the Chateau Lafayette. It seemed extraordinarily busy for a Saturday afternoon. We soon found out why. 

Reason #1. Enormous beers.

Reason #2. Lucky Ron. Listening to Stompin’ Tom and Johnny Cash covers while standing on bar benches and singing your heart with a couple dozen strangers makes for a great afternoon. Good news -  he's there every Saturday.

Our last day started with a half a pig’s worth of meat at Zak’s.

 

We tried to shake off the meat sweats by taking a walk around Parliament Hill....

... and having a cup of tea with the ladies from The Famous Five.

The weather was so nice, and we a little worse for wear that we gave up on the walking idea and had a little flop.

Ok. So maybe Ottawa isn't all that bad.

Maybe.