The Symbolic Heart of Canada
Written: Feb 01 '05
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Beautiful buildings, great sites, historical
Cons: None
The Bottom Line: Parliament Hill is a must do. Give yourself plenty of time to enjoy the area and go on a tour if you can. It's free.
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| jo.com's Full Review: Parliament Hill |
Parliament Hill is the symbolic heart of Canada located in the capitol of Canada, Ottawa. The hill is directly across from a huge visitor center. The visitor center is not the focus of my review however it is a really nice one with there are benches outside. I sat on one the first day we visited Parliament Hill while my husband parked. There is metered parking but at $.25 for 6 minutes you might be better off going into a parking lot. We found one for $8.00 for the day.
All facilities on the Hill are wheelchair accessible and free.
There is also a refreshment area here that is only open during the summer.
What is Parliament Hill:
Sitting across from it and taking pictures I was in awe of the beauty of the architecture and the enormity of the three blocks Parliament Hill encompasses. It is divided into the West Block, Centre Block and the East Block. There was some renovation going on when we arrived in mid August. The new building is expected to be finished soon and will be the first new building since 1930.
All visitors to the Parliament Buildings are required to go through security scanning stations. We went on a free tour of the Parliament however you must check because when the tours are given depends on the schedule of the Parliament. If you can go the tours are given in French and English. We waited about 25 minutes to go through security. The tour was worth the wait so if it is available you can get free tickets for various times at the information tent on the grounds. The tour was only 50 minutes; not long enough to learn a great deal but long enough to get a flavor and not too long for your children.
We went into many of the rooms and learned about some of the history. Whether you take the tour or not you must go into the Peace Tower. Since we had already been through security we did not have to go through again. We waited about 10 minutes to go up to the observation tower via an elevator. Here you will see amazing views of Ottawa, Quebec, and the American Embassy. There is a Memorial Room which you may want to stop in as well. This is dedicated to the men and women who died in various wars. It is very nicely done. The Peace Tower is dedicated to the more than 60,000 Canadian soldiers who died during WWI. It is 302 feet high. You will hear bells from inside and outside that chime every 15 minutes. 53 bells make up the Peace Tower carillon.
During the summer you should go back at night or stay until dark for the Sound and Light Show on Parliament Hill. It is held from 9:00 pm to 10:00 pm. The 9:00 shows are in English on Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. Please call to confirm times and dates since they might change.
The benches filled up and some people sat on the grass on the Hill. We learned about Canada through music, the lighting and giant projection screen. I felt (from my notes) that this was a bit too much like a Public Relations promo to be excellent but it was good. I loved learning about the diversity of Canada and watching the buildings light up in different colors. The music was eerie, beautiful and haunting. I thought at the time that children might be scared. The theme was wind so we heard a lot about the weather in Canada and how it makes people feel.
You will see stick sketches that look like children which were cute. Be warned that it starts out with lighting and thunder. It was really loud. My dog, Hanna, was scared! It lasted 35 min. with the singing of Oh Canada at the end.
Other special sites on the Hill:
Really everything about this Hill is special but I could write a book so I will just focus on what I liked most. There are 22 stations that we followed with a guide book explaining what we were seeing. As we entered the Centre Block there is a beautiful oval structure with The Centennial Flame. Gas feeds the flame that burns through the water flowing over the bronze shields of the provinces and territories that existed in 1967, the year of the 100th anniversary of Confederation for Canada. This is eternal; it never goes out.
One of my favorites was Station 12. Although I was not all that interested in the statues of the two statesmen I was interested in the wall on which they stand. This is called the whispering wall. When I stood on one end of the curved bench and my husband stood at the other end I whispered something and he could hear it. The Hill was not that crowded. It is a large area so there is plenty of room for everyone. However there are some stations that people really enjoy and this is one of them. Thus we had to wait for others to leave to have our turn.
Perhaps my very favorite was Station 14 called Women are Persons! Five life-sized statues of women having tea sit on a round base. These women are celebrating their victory in the Persons Case of 1929, a landmark step in the struggle for equality for the women of Canada. You will definitely want to see this one. Perhaps a dozen people were at this station so again we waited because I had to have a picture of one woman holding a journal that says Women are Persons and Les femmes sont des personnes. One woman is kind enough to have an empty chair next to her begging to be sat on for a picture.
The Royal Canadian Mounted police stand guard. The day we were there two very nice young men, though a bit intimidating sat on horses, allowed people to take their picture and were more than happy to answer questions. My husband was fascinated by them. I write that they are more than happy to answer questions. I do not know for a fact if they are happy about this or not. All I really do know is that the one my husband was speaking with had a smile on his face and conversed with him for quite awhile.
A major highlight to the Hill takes place every morning. That is the Changing of the Guards. Go about 9:30 if you want to be right up in the front row. This is ceremonial only since there are no guards guarding Parliament Hill. After the ceremony which is like a show they leave and come back the next day. This happens during the summer only.
The following day we parking in a lot for $10.50 and then biked up Queen Elizabeth Boulevard. If you have bikes I really recommend this. It was great. At one point I asked a police officer if we were going the right way to the Hill. He pointed to the Drill House which is a big brick building on the left hand site if you are coming from this Boulevard heading to the Hill. We saw the Guards getting ready to march. The police officer told us that we could follow the guards all the way to the Hill (with many others doing the same). If you do not want to bike or walk people were sitting on benches along the route just watching. You will not get to see the ceremony however unless you move with them. Of course we also were not up in front since we arrived with them and the crowd was enormous. We could see however and I would do that again just the way we did it. The ceremony (not the route to the Hill; that is an additional half hour) lasts about half an hour.
My final thoughts:
This has just been a peek into Parliament Hill. There is so much to see you need an entire day. It is worth setting aside the day in my opinion. If you would like to learn about more of the stations or about the sites I described you can find a virtual tour at http://www.ottawakiosk.com/parliament/index.html
I am keeping track of the reviews I am writing chronicling our 3-month cross country trip. Please feel free to leave a question or comment about this review, any below or traveling cross country. jo
Applebee's in Ohio
Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky • Bella Notte This is a restaurant in Lexington, Kentucky
Buckstaff Bathhouse in Hot Springs, Arkansas • Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas
Bicentennial Mall State Park in Nashville, TN • Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, TN • Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, TN • Rippy‘s Smokin‘ Bar & Grill in Nashville, TN • National Civil Right Museum in Memphis, TN • Graceland in Memphis, TN • Rum Boogie Cafe in Memphis, TN
National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma • Oklahoma City National Memorial in Oklahoma
Santa Fe, NM•
ABout About Tour in Santa Fe, NM • Blue Corn Cafe & Brewery in Santa Fe, NM • Longevity Cafe in Santa Fe • Souper Salad in Santa Fe, New Mexico • Petroglyph National Monumentin Albuquerque, New Mexico
Petrified Forest National Forestin Arizona • Slide Rock State Park in Sedona, Arizona • Sedona, Arizona
Taste of Thai a San Diego restaurant • Handlery Hotel in San Diego, CA • Sheraton Gateway Hotel in Los Angeles, CA • Kan Zam restaurant in San Francisco, CA • Polker Gourmet Burgers in San Francisco • Holiday Inn Express in San Francisco, CA • Las Margaritas in San Francisco, CA • Hanzell Vineyards in Sonoma, CA • Beringer Vineyards in Napa Valley, CA • The Coffee Gardenin Sonoma, CA • Yosemite National Park
Antelope Island State Park in Salt Lake City, Utah • Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah
Yellowstone National Park
Mount Rushmore in South Dakota • Badlands in South Dakota
Montreal Holocaust Museum in Canada
Recommended:
Yes
Best Time to Travel Here: Jun - Aug
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