Wednesday, January 29, 2020

Odds And Ends In The Province

A reminder to those in the area: Winterlude starts this Friday and runs through to February 17th.

I have some odds and ends today. I'm starting with this spot in Little Italy. A rock cut allows for the passage of one of our commuter LRT lines, and in the winter ice tends to build up on the walls. I took this in December.


This shot from December is out in Westboro, where the utility boxes are adorned with images of nature or gardens, in this case tulips.


I passed by Central Park in the Glebe one evening between Christmas and New Year's, and noticed snowmen.


This is the first photo I took in 2020. I was in Major's Hill Park and noticed more snowmen. The American embassy is in the background.


After New Year's I went away for a few days to southern Ontario. Coming back, I took this shot out a window on the GO commuter train heading for Toronto. This would have been somewhere west of Brampton, in Peel Region.


This is taken later in the day, somewhere in the Brockville area, where my VIA train had paused on a switchback to allow an oncoming train to pass.


Back in Ottawa, here we have the front facade of St. Matthew's Anglican Church in the Glebe.


This was taken one evening in Confederation Park. The Aboriginal Veterans Monument honours First Nations veterans.


Here we have the Supreme Court of Canada, with its distinctive Art Deco design.


On the grounds of the Court is a statue of Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent, who succeeded Mackenzie King in the office. Had he not gone into politics (at King's request), this lawyer probably would have ended up on the Court, so his placement here is appropriate.


Out on Lebreton Flats, I paid a visit to the Canadian Firefighters Memorial, which stands near the Holocaust Monument. The names of firefighters who have given their lives in service across the country are inscribed on the wall. A large statue of a firefighter stands vigil over the area.


A worksite, nearby at the Garden of the Provinces and Territories, is currently dormant. Sometime later in the year, a new memorial is to open. The Memorial To The Victims Of Communism, also called Canada, A Land Of Refuge, was first thought of by the previous government, at another location and on a much larger scale. Our former prime minister, Stephen Harper (aka He Who Must Not Be Named, aka Darth Harper, aka Sauron The Deceiver) sought to build a giant monument near the Supreme Court as a great big screw you to the Court in general and to the memory of Pierre Trudeau in particular, as the grounds had been set aside for a future justice building to bear his name. Fortunately his ambitions were thwarted, a new government came into place, and a new version of the monument, better designed and better scaled, is to be built at this other location.


I finish with this view looking down a staircase. The Rideau station in the LRT line here in Ottawa happens to have a particular distinction. One of its escalators, beside the stairs here, is the longest transit escalator in the country, at 35 metres long. The station is the deepest one in the network, as the section of the line going through the downtown is all underground. The platform is 26.5 metres below street level.

42 comments:

  1. ...those tulips, sure look encouraging surrounded by all your snow.

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  2. Love the utility box.
    Such a nice contrast to all the wintery grey...

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  3. An interesting collection of oddments. I particularly like that impressionistic shot from the train window.

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  4. Winter appears to have passed us by this year, but of course there is still time as February and March are yet to arrive!!!

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  5. I like the idea of decorating the utility boxes with colourful floral motifs.

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  6. Hello, pretty city and winter scenes. I like the utility box painted with the flowers, spring is coming. Wishing you a happy day!

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  7. Great variety, I prefer the first and the last photo.
    I'm a little jealous of all that snow. We haven't seen one snowflake here this winter. ;-(

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  8. very cool cold views. nice!! hope u have had a great few days.
    wishing for snow, lots of snowless-days ... no fun. ( ;
    take care.

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  9. A super series of shots William, the random snowmen made me smile, at 35C that's something I don't think I'll ever come across ⛄

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  10. I love this collection, William, and some are particularly striking to me because of the lighting -- especially the snowmen in the park and the First Nations memorial. I love how they cover the utility caps!

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  11. Enjoyed this tour of the area. I especially like the Aboriginal Veterans Monument and the statues.

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  12. I like your winter pictures and the tulips are a great pop of color!

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  13. That first photo is beautiful. I like that utility box with the tulips, really pretty and so is the Art Deco Supreme court building.

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  14. Someone did a great job painting that utility box.

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  15. @Tom: it's still going to take awhile for the real ones.

    @Iris: that it is.

    @John: I did too.

    @Rosemary: for us, we're in winter.

    @Francisco: thank you.

    @David: I do as well.

    @Eileen: thank you!

    @Jan: we're pretty cold today.

    @Beth: ah, but snow is good.

    @Grace: snowmen are a common sight here.

    @Jeanie: the idea of covering utility boxes is a good one.

    @DJan: I do as well.

    @Tanya: thank you.

    @Sami: thanks!

    @Sharon: I don't know if it's painting, or if it's something done on a surface that adheres to the box when ready.

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  16. Those are some very interesting odds and ends.

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  17. Interesting series, William, I like the colourful utility box between all that snow...

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  18. Lovely photos and interesting post
    The escalator photo is scary.

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  19. Love the first picture of the ice!!

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  20. The firefighters memorial is a well deserved tribute to brave people.

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  21. How much snow. I loved all the photos

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  22. The features look dramatic against the white snow making these into beautiful B&W images.

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  23. Beautiful 'odds and ends' photography ~ snow and light are particularly pretty ~

    Happy Moments to You,
    A ShutterBug Explores,
    aka (A Creative Harbor)

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  24. The length of that escalator is impressive.

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  25. @Red: thanks!

    @Karl: so do I.

    @Maywyn: I've only taken that escalator going up, not down.

    @Happyone: thank you!

    @Marie: that it is.

    @Maria: we've got a lot.

    @Alexandria: thank you.

    @Carol: thanks!

    @Marleen: it's quite an angle.

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  26. That LRT is quite awful, isn't it?
    I'd forgotten about Winterlude. Soon it'll be tulip time!

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  27. Pretty winter scenes. Oh my that is a long escalator. The longest one I have seen was in the metro in Paris.

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  28. I always enjoy your photos when you are walking around your area. Thank you :)

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  29. Did you walk through to the last car to take the picture of the lay by, or did you get out of the train?

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  30. I would have taken the escalator.

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  31. William - this is an interesting hodgepodge of pictures - I like it because it gives a glimpse into your "daily life" and the sights and sounds of your diverse country!

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  32. You do get around. I especially like your first and last shots. (Have you shown us the Supreme Court building before? If so, maybe not from this distant perspective. Interesting looking building.)

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  33. Wonderful photos,tulips so cheering on the utility box and I love the tram lines:)

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  34. With Winterlude coming, you will have much grist for the mill.

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  35. @Jennifer: it's had its issues.

    @Janey: I've never seen an escalator that long. I figured it was a good idea to photograph the stairs instead, as it descends the same amount.

    @Denise: you're welcome.

    @Joanne: I was in the last car.

    @Catalyst: oh, I take the escalator. I might try the stairs down the next time I'm in the station, just to count how many steps.

    @Angie: thank you!

    @Kay: I have shown it before.

    @Rosie: thank you!

    @Anvilcloud: I'll have a lot to photograph. I already photographed one ice sculpture in progress.

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  36. I like these winter photos and the sculptures and monuments. My legs will turn to jelly looking down that deep staircase.

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  37. The icy waterfall is beautiful as are the tulips.

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  38. Nice to see those tulips …

    All the best Jan

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