Whine and Cheese

So I finally managed to pull the Ottawa photos from my camera. I really enjoyed that trip and I now have an itch to do it again. Here are a few highlights from the trip:

• From my poor geography skills, I didn't realize that Ottawa was right across the Ottawa River from Quebec. It was fun to jump from province to province. This time of year was especially fun because of the changing of the seasons. Autumn was definitely booming.
  
  
• I love how all street and traffic signs have both English and French. It was fun to see the French be secondary on the Ontario side of the river, and the primary just across the way on the Quebec side.
  
  
• Mer Bleue Bog was beautiful, despite a name that conjures up images of swamp land. It's not a swamp. Bogs are actually spongy vegetation masses where plants and trees can grow, but they are relatively free-floating. Because of the acidity of the water, the bog doesn't degrade due to bacteria or bugs, so there is no degradation smell.
  
  
• The National Gallery of Canada is a beautiful museum. We didn't walk to see paintings, but my buddy Steve (brownbearon) wanted to show me the architecture, which is impressive. And there is a giant spider statue outside. Now that was a tad creepy.
  
  
• I love seeing the city statuary and building design. The Canadian Parliament building has a very cool design and it's beautifully situated on the Ottawa River.

Photos from my trip are now posted on my Flickr. You can see the set by clicking the photo below:


Me and a Small Evergreen at Mer Bleue Bog

I was in a good mood this morning, I promise. The air was cool and inviting, I told myself I was going to start today and this fiscal year at work with a new positive attitude.

Then I opened my email and my resolution fell apart. My trip has been changed yet again. The dates are set, but the locations aren't the same. Toronto has been dropped from the trip, so now only Winnipeg and Varennes remain and the trip planned decided to tag on Mexico as a replacement. Mexico... you know, where you don't drink the water... I have nothing against Mexico, but I think I need to be in the right frame of mind for it and I wasn't. I didn't like this mix-and-match trip planning and wrote a slightly scathing email about how this trip kept changing to the powers that be.

Well, it turns out Mexico was a pipe dream and didn't workout, so I'm only gone for two weeks instead of three and both weeks are in Canada. Still, I had hopes of meeting the Canadian LJ'ers while I was there and one particularly handsome burly bear who shall remain nameless.

Damn...