City Daily Photo Theme Day: Travel

The first day of each month is a theme day for members of City Daily Photo. For this month, that theme is Travel. See how others are interpreting this theme right here. 

To begin with, this visitor had traveled a long way. I was downtown one day in July and noticed a car with Colorado plates. I don't recall the last time I've seen one; we're more likely to see New York, Vermont, or New Hampshire plates here.

In mid-August, I spent the day out and about, and dropped in at the main train station, which lies southeast of the core. I exited the LRT station, very close by the train station.

The current train station is in the modernist style, replacing the original train station, which now sees use as the Government Conference Centre. 

The open waiting area within includes some display cases with model trains.

My other part of this theme took me to another travel location- the Macdonald Cartier International Airport, which lies south of the city. I took an LRT train, which goes right to the terminal. En route, it looked like I was in a wilderness. The trees are dense here between roadways, this train track, and the bus-only route. The sun was setting.

The airport has its origins stretching back to the 1920s, and has a history of civilian and military use, as well as regular transformations.

The current main terminal also has a modernist sensibility.

There is an inukshuk here.

It has a very open air sensibility.

It's been awhile since I've done any plane watching.

Sir John Wants A Drink

Today is the date of John A. Macdonald's birth in Glasgow, Scotland. A Father of Confederation, co-premier of the Canadas, and the nation's first Prime Minister, Sir John is more than anyone of his time the driving force behind the creation of the country. Without him there simply wouldn't be a Canada. He is our founding father, and today marks the bicentennial of his birth. Much about his life can be found here. 

He had his flaws, certainly, and policies that must be criticized, but on a day like today, we can remember his ingenuity and political skill at persuasion, forging a country out of a collection of disparate colonies. He learned from the mistakes that led to the American Civil War, and heeded those lessons well. The vision he and his fellow Fathers of Confederation devised called for a strong central government binding the country together, something the Dark Lord currently residing in the Prime Minister's office could certainly pay heed to.

The above sculpture features Sir John on Parliament Hill, taken last winter. The statue in the background on horseback is Queen Elizabeth. Below, these summer photos are the statues at the airport terminal, where Fathers of Confederation and co-premiers Macdonald and Sir George-Etienne Cartier greet newcomers to the capital.

Sir John, of course, aside from being a nation's father was also a drunken scoundrel and a rogue, and would no doubt appreciate raising a glass in his honour. Happy Birthday, Sir John; you don't look a day over fifty.

Sir John A. And Sir George-Etienne

Regarding the inukshuk from yesterday, the only information I could find was that it was a commissioned work for one of the airlines that operates out of the airport and serves communities in the far northern stretches of the country.

Macdonald-Cartier International sees both domestic and international traffic operating on site. Being out of the urban limits by and large allows for a lot of space.

This was the reason I came down to the airport. Down on the arrivals floor, visitors are greeted by this pair of statues of the two men the airport is named after. Fathers Of Confederation Sir John A. Macdonald and Sir George-Etienne Cartier look quite welcoming to the newcomer, and the sculptor has rendered them both dignified and quite relaxed. You can learn more about each man here and here.

An Odd Place For An Inuit Inukshuk

I went down to Macdonald-Cartier International Airport on the outskirts of the city some weeks ago. The place has been through a lot of renovations in recent years.

This inukshuk stands amid a reflecting pool near the top of the main terminal.

It is typical of the Inuit people of the Arctic, and an unusual but good spot to find one. 

I have more from inside the terminal tomorrow.