Winterlude

I usually hibernate in the winter.

I’m not a fan of the cold, the snow or trekking around in winter boots and parkas.  However, Sunday was fairly mild, so I decided, to scratch yet another thing off of my Ottawa Bucketlist: Winterlude.

20 million dollars.

Today I saw 20 million dollars flash before my eyes.

Which apparently isn’t a big deal.

People who work at the Canadian Mint get to see this everyday, but I consider myself lucky if I see a hundred.

Just that one building in Ottawa has held up to half a billion dollars at one time. That’s a lot of money to be in one place. Imagine what you could do with that? (Maybe take a stroll on Sussex.)

The tour cost 5 dollars, and it was worth every penny. I was pleasantly surprised.

I wanted to go because it’s pretty touristy, and I’d never been, but I have to admit I wasn’t expecting much, but it surpassed my expectations by a long shot.

Did you know, that if the image on a coin is worn of, it is no longer considered of any value? That’s why the edge of a coin is the part that sticks out the most, so that when laid flat the image isn’t being rubbed against. The average coin lasts about 60 years, according to our guide.

I knew the Mint made money, both literally and financially, but I didn’t realize the extent to what they do. I thought that they stopped making money for short periods of time because money circulates throughout the country.  I don’t believe that money makes the world go round, but I guess they just don’t stop.

In reality, when they have enough made, they are contracted by other countries around the world to produce other currency coins.  Over the years, the Mint has made coins for over 100 countries, some include, Hong Kong, Iraq and Argentina.

The Ottawa Mint however, does not produce Canadian circulation coins anymore; they leave it up to Winnipeg’s Mint. Instead the produce collector coins and medals.

The Vancouver 2010 Olympic medals were made in Ottawa, which I didn’t know. Our guide also told us that when all 1500 are put together, it makes a picture of an orca. (But I haven’t been able to find a picture to share.) There wasn’t one available there, though had there been, I wasn’t allowed to take photos anyway.

What’s on Sussex Drive?

Anyone who has ever been to, or lives in Ottawa has heard of the Byward Market. It’s kind of famous around here. It’s your average farmer’s market, where people buy fresh flowers and homemade goods, but with a yearlong twist.

From Sussex Drive to Cumberland Street, the nightlife is abuzz, with some the best Irish pubs and late-night Lebanese eateries I’ve ever been to. But assuming you’ve visited Ottawa’s downtown, you already know that.

What I find most intriguing about the area is the whole Sussex strip. No one really talks about it. (Well besides that the Prime Minister resides off it.) It’s a street I’ve come across on more than one occasion, while going somewhere else, but I’ve never really bothered to spend my time perusing through.

Imagine living in Manhattan, and not stopping by 5^th Avenue… Sussex Drive is the closest thing we have in comparison, without the luxury of Versace and Tiffany’s. I’ve always thought about dropping in at some of the cute shops with pretty dresses, and fancy manikins; but I’ve never brought myself to walk through any doors.

Until, today.

When I think of Sussex, I think, class and sophistication… Then I immediately think, unattainable.

But a girl can dream, can’t she? A little bit of window-shopping, and a lot of trying things on, never hurt anyone.

While the street lacks the world-renowned names such as Gucci and Prada, it boasts some of Ottawa’s biggest haute couture fashion designers like Richard Robinson and Justina McCaffrey.

McCaffrey’s dresses scream elegance. She’s not alone in the pack, a number of other boutiques sell upscale merchandise, but also at a hefty price.

With Ottawa having one of the highest standards of living, high-end stores are to be expected, for some reason rarely heard of. I guess the girls aren’t gossiping in this neck of the woods.

Go Gee Gee’s Go.

Surprise ourselves, indeed.

I’ve never been a football fan.

My dad watches it religiously every Sunday and like most sports I just couldn’t follow along. But I had convinced myself that men in tights couldn’t be all that bad, right?

…Actually, it’s true.

I went to a Gee Gee’s game. I figured, I’ve been at Ottawa U for three years, at what point should I cheer my school on? I don’t participate in debates, extra credit or anything else school related, besides class itself, why not give it a try?

When I arrived to Frank Clair Stadium I was surprised to see a division in the crowd. Well, I expected one – but I expected it to be divided by teams – not by age? Drunken frat boys with scantily clad girls wearing little garnet and white on one side, and then the parents on the other, sporting their son’s names on their backs.

Profanities growing louder and louder, the more time that passes. Who knew it would be so entertaining? Not to mention the quarterback’s (whoever he is) mom. I’ve never seen a woman so intense in all my life. She was shushing everyone. I thought sports fan were supposed to cheer?

I guess we do learn something new everyday. I learned a lot.

What amazed me the most were the plays. I was there four hours and I swear there was only 15 minutes of actual playtime. Why do they need so much training and practice?

After all is yelled and played I still don’t quite grasp the concept of game, however I do think I understand the crowd a little better. The crowd is what should be on TV.

If I never go to another game again, I will say – live sports is waaaay better.

Oh, Hey Ottawa!

It started in a restaurant three years too late.

When I moved to Ottawa I had absolutely no desire to get out and discover any of its unique nouns. People. Places. Things.

None. Now, I’ve been here long enough that I should know this city inside and out and backwards. I should be able to give you directions to the nearest coffee shop to my place, but quite honestly I doubt I’ve ever been there.

I’ve never been to Winterlude, Bluesfest, or any other fantastic event that has become a traditional Ottawa affair. I’m not really sure why.

Last September, I was sitting with my roommate at the Royal Oak, we started talking about restaurants we wanted to try, and naturally the conversation progressed. We complied a long list of all the things we have yet to do.

And sadly after three years, putting together a list of everything we’ve done would’ve been shorter.

After that we determined that we MUST fulfill our last year with newfound fun. We would probably surprise ourselves.