Ottawa was a very pretty city, I thought it felt a bit European but it is a government city and there isn't a huge amount to do there. I was lucky enough to stay in the Chateau Laurier which is a very grand looking hotel right in the heart of the city.
Alongside the hotel there is a canal which runs through a series of 8 locks to get down to the river. There are a team of 4 men who operate the locks and I watched them for a while as a boat travelled through them. Apparently it takes about 1.5 hours to pass through all 8 locks when going downhill but over 2 hours when traveling in the other direction. I hope the trip is worth it! In the winter, when the canal freezes it turns in a huge skating rink. It looks like it would be brilliant fun so I'm hoping to get a trip back here in the winter to try it out.
During the spare time that I had, I took a walk over the bridge to the French part of the city. Most of the city is in the state of Ontario but once you cross the bridge you're in Quebec, it was very strange to suddenly hear people speaking French everywhere. I also got to see the changing of the guard parade which happens at 10am every day through out the summer months. The guards march through the streets to the Parliament building where they perform a 30 minute ceremony before marching back through the streets. It was such a hot day and I was struggling to stand and watch for half an hour so I don't know how they managed it in their huge furry hats.
One thing you apparently have to do in Ottawa is have a beavertail in the market place. A beavertail is like a flat doughnut so it looks like a beaver's tail. There is a choice of loads of toppings, the traditional one is cinnamon sugar which my colleague tried while I went for the chocolate sauce, both were delicious!
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