On Friday afternoon I was going through downtown. Coming towards Confederation Park, I could hear the sounds of bagpipes and drums being played. Several groups were spread out in locations in the park, playing in coordination with each other, no doubt rehearsing for Colonel By Day festivities this weekend.
Today is Colonel By Day in Ottawa, the local name for the Civic Holiday. It honours the British army engineer who led the effort to build the Rideau Canal and founded the city which at first had his name, Bytown, and later was renamed Ottawa.
This fountain in the park is in his honour. I'll be downtown today, where there are a lot of activities going on, plus the busker's festival is wrapping up today as well. Have a great day!
At first, I read it, Baker's Festival.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful fountain!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing that!
ReplyDeleteAlways something happenin' in Ottawa.
ReplyDeleteLooks nice, both the place and the music:)
ReplyDeleteLovely photos and must have been a fun event.
ReplyDeleteThat must have sounded lovely with the pipes and drums.
ReplyDeleteNice way to celebrate Civic Holiday, William!
ReplyDeleteLots and lots of hot air being expelled there. :-)
ReplyDeleteI am sure I would have liked this! Honor the the colonel-engineer!
ReplyDeleteYou do get around, William. I learn a lot about our history here. :)
ReplyDeleteThat must have been quite something to hear William and not easy to coordinate, enjoy the festivities, looking forward to seeing what goes on on Colonel By Day!
ReplyDeleteThere's nothing quite like the sound of 'agony bags'.
ReplyDeleteJane x
They surely have fun, and the by-passers too...
ReplyDeleteInformative post, William !
Now a busker's festival sounds really cool. We just call the weekend Heritage Weekend. I like bagpipes and a good drum group.
ReplyDeleteI love the sound of bagpipes! A beautiful fountain!
ReplyDeleteEnjoy the holiday!
ReplyDeleteIt must be fun to play musical instruments in open air. I bet they will have great performance at Colonel By Day festivities. The fountain is beautiful. Feels refreshing!
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your day out!
I bet they got out their kilts for the real thing!
ReplyDeleteBagpipe music is pretty special, I've rarely heard it in the wild. In the park there must have been "an uproar" when there were drums and bagpipes together :)
ReplyDeleteNice park and a memory for Colonel By.
ReplyDeleteTomás.
Fun times!
ReplyDeleteI don't think I've ever seen pipers wearing shorts before! Here they usually need all the insulation they can get from full Highland dress, even if the kilt can be a bit draughty.
ReplyDeleteI'll bet that was great..
ReplyDeleteI love the sound of bagpipes.
ReplyDelete@Whisk: I can see that!
ReplyDelete@Linda: indeed, I've always liked it.
@Cloudia: you're welcome.
@Stuart: oh, yes!
@Gunn: it's a wonderful park to be in, though the humidity that day was appalling!
@Blogoratti: it was fun to hear the music.
@Marianne: I love the sound of bagpipes. For some reason, not everyone does!
@EG: it was a very busy weekend, particularly yesterday. I've got hundreds of photos to sort through!
@Revrunner: hah!
@VP: the city is quite a legacy for him.
@Deb: it's a pleasure to show the city off.
@Grace: I spent quite a bit of time down at the Bytown Museum and the Ottawa Locks yesterday, and enjoyed myself.
@Jane and Chris: hah!
@Karl: it was a treat to pass by there and hear the music. I'm not sure where they ended up- there was a bagpiper down by the Ottawa Locks yesterday, but not several.
ReplyDelete@Red: the Buskers Festival was a blast to see.
@Nancy: thank you!
@Sharon: I had a very good day yesterday.
@Tamago: and the music was really carrying far off. Probably would have been further off if it hadn't been such a humid day.
@RedPat: oh, yes, this was practice!
@Orvokki: a good number of people relaxing in the park did seem to be paying attention to the music as I was passing through.
@Tomas: he'd be glad to know the city he founded has prospered.
@Halcyon: indeed!
@Linda: in the temperatures we had most of last week, shorts for practicing would have been totally acceptable. I'm sure they were in full highland outfits for when they were performing for real.
@Geoff: it was!
@Janey: me too.
I love the bagpipes!
ReplyDeleteThat's a beautiful fountain, and you were that at the right time for the music.
ReplyDeleteOh man. I'd have stayed there glued for hours, listening!
ReplyDeleteThe Colonel's name is such a kick! I looked at your "rehearsing for Colonel By Day" line and immediately thought...
ReplyDeletecolonel by day; general by night... Top Officer forever!
But I do have a warped sense of humor.
The music and the fountain must have been enough to make you linger for some time.
ReplyDeleteLove the pic of the water fountain. Beautiful.
ReplyDeleteIn some ways that seems like more fun than a parade and a formal public performance. And it's not something I think you'd commonly come across in the U.S.
ReplyDeleteBagpipes! I love 'em.
ReplyDeleteAmazing Grace on the bagpipes is breathtaking.
ReplyDeleteThe fountain offers a delightful display of dancing water. And there is something quite haunting about bagpipes.
ReplyDelete@Norma: so do I.
ReplyDelete@Jan: good timing.
@Ciel: I enjoyed it.
@Cheryl: yes you do.
@Mari: as I recall, it was incredibly hot.
@Shelly: thanks!
@Kay: true!
@Jack: me too.
@Gill: that it is.
@Gemma: I agree.