Canada Day In The National Capital

Happy Fourth of July to my American readers.

Today I'm showing you around for what I was doing on Canada Day. I headed across the Alexandra Bridge into Gatineau, on what had turned out to be another smoky day. I took this shot at the Ottawa side of the Ottawa River, looking upstream.

Crossing the bridge, which was closed to traffic. This is usually traffic lanes.

My destination in Gatineau was the Canadian Museum of History for a brief visit. If you'll recall from the Tulip Festival series, when I last showed you this spot, the gardens were filled with tulips. The bulbs have been dug up and replaced with plants that will grow into the fall, at which time the bulbs will come out of storage and be replanted.

A look across the river to Parliament Hill, from between the Museum's two wings.

The primary purpose of my coming here was a couple of items from a temporary exhibit here at the Museum, showcasing some treasures of Library and Archives Canada. During my last visit some months ago, I hadn't photographed in the temporary exhibits, and wanted to briefly rectify that with a couple of artifacts. Among the treasures is a sheet of music dating to 1825, handwritten and given to a Canadian teacher by the greatest composer who ever lived- Ludwig von Beethoven. The display allows you to hear the short melody he wrote for his visitor.

Touch a button and the original sheet is illuminated.

Another artifact I wanted to show is a map by Gerard Mercator, dating to 1613, and featuring a rather fanciful depiction of the Arctic.

No visit to this Museum is complete without looking up at Morning Star, my favourite work of art in the national capital area. This massive mural by the Dene artist Alex Janvier is high over the Grand Hall.

And the Hall itself, with its collection of totem poles and Pacific coast facades.

Outside is a sculpture, surrounded by water, by First Nations artist Mary Anne Barkhouse, titled namaxsala (To Travel In A Boat Together), inspired by a story told by her grandfather of him giving a wolf passage across treacherous waters in his canoe. The sculpture sits in a reflecting pool.

I stopped at the National War Memorial to pay my respects.

My last stop of the day was the National Arts Centre to take in a concert for the day. Waiting for the time when the doors to the hall would be open, I was in one of the lobby spaces of the building. There's a piano here, and numerous people would take turns playing it, most notably this fellow.

When doors were called, I got a seat down near the orchestra, and took shots as the musicians filed in and started warming up, a riotous mix of sounds that I've always liked listening to. The concert started with a choir and orchestra rendition of O Canada, featured contemporary classical music (with the composers in attendance), along with the orchestra accompanying operatic and Cree-Metis singers, a slam-poet, and ended with a marvelous rendition of Oscar Peterson's magnificent Hymn To Freedom. I hadn't been to a concert since before Covid, and I had really missed it.