Here we were in Ottawa, the capitol city of Canada, the second largest city in Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the world...
Armed with several tips on where to go, we headed out in search of food and adventure...
According to wikipedia's entry on Ottawa:
"Founded in 1826 as Bytown and incorporated as "Ottawa" in 1855, the city has evolved into a political and technological centre of Canada. Its original boundaries were expanded through numerous minor annexations and ultimately replaced by a new city incorporation and major amalgamation in 2001 which significantly increased its land area. The name "Ottawa" is derived from the Algonquin word adawe, meaning "to trade". Initially an Irish and French Christian settlement, Ottawa has become amulticultural city with a diverse population."
We were recommended by C's friend and her husband to check out the ByWard Market near Parliament Hill.
"The name refers to the old 'By Ward' of the City of Ottawa ('By' deriving from the surname of the engineer, Colonel John By, who was the area's original surveyor). The district comprises the main commercial part of the historic Lower Town area of Ottawa.
The market itself is Canada's oldest continuously operating farmers' market...The market building is open year-round, and open-air stalls are operated in the warmer months offering fresh produce and flowers."
(from wikipedia's entry on ByWard Market)
Despite the cloudy and gray skies, it was freakishly humid. We found nearby parking at a structure where we had a good view of a portion of the market. There's a big market in a huge building and many other shops along the side streets.
One of the first places we stopped by was Le Moulin de Provence. Apparently Obama stopped here during his 2009 tour to Canada. I read later that this place is a popular meeting spot in Ottawa. I just wanted a pastry!
Patriotic cookies:
Can you tell they love Obama here?
We sat on the outer edges of the establishment. Not quite outside, but in the shade.
The coin with the bird on it is their dollar coin, called a "Loonie". Not sure what denomination the one with QEII is. I kind of don't like having tons of dollar coins. They weighed down my purse and it was annoying not having dollar bills.
My chocolate croissant (it's in there, trust me) and C's daughter's flower cookie.
View of the Indian place (where Bert and TC got their samosa) from the upper level of the market.
I love how irregular this is...we also liked the flaky crust!
The lightly spiced beef and potato mixture was also tasty. The guy's face on the shirt is a really ugly side view of the normally good looking Liam Hemsworth. TC was wearing her "Gale" Hunger Games shirt.
Outside the market were numerous produce stands selling farm fresh fruits and vegetables.
We also saw this stand and made a mental note to come back (which we did). There are only a few Beavertails retail locations in Canada. We couldn't miss this while we were here.
Earlier, we wandered around the enclosed market just window shopping and then browsed around outside for awhile. Of course, we got hungry again. Across one of the streets was this sign advertising sandwiches...
C and I both got the special - Schnitzel sandwiches with sauerkraut. My bread was different than hers, but the filling was the same.
Ther was also a spicy peper relish in there that Bert really likes. We'd been grazing all day, sharing bites here and there. OMG, look at that pork!
The delis is the one with the red awnings, next to the butcher shop. We ended up eating in the shade around the corner form Aubrey's Meats.
After our lunch, we checked out even more shops, like this French bakery, Aux Delices.
Their offerings:
Treats in the case - Canadians LOVE their maple syrup! And there's a few more patriotic cookies for ya.
We ended up getting one of these Nanaimo bars. I still haven't made them, but plan to attempt it this vacation. The recipe I have utilizes Bird's Custard Powder. The recipe is also entirely bake-free!
It was like being in heaven in here!
More of those sugar tarts. I love the glossy sheen on the tops of the tarts.
Maple tarts (again).
Farmer John''s dessert - a cannoli.
Our maple tart - very sweet and maply! I don't even think that's a word!
The Nanaimo bar - a chocolate cookie brust with custar filling and melted chocolate on top.
This is a popular Canadian dessert and everyone always claims that theirs is the best.
Next to Aux Delices was the House of Cheese!
They had so much cheese packed into a tiny little store!
Their specials...
They also had wild game pate that were paired with nuts and fruits. Very interesting combinations these were.
A wheel of Oka cheese, a local Canadian brand.
More fresh produce - yikes $4.99 a bunch!
More beautiful berries...
"Fresh from my Garden" - love that sign!
Just a random poster...
There were many stands that sold flowers, crafts, washable tattoos/henna handy dying, and such. There wer ealso stands that sold local but also "touristy" type products such as this maple stand.
See the can on the far right end of the table? One of those was given to me as a gift later during our trip, from another one of C's friends. Maple syrup is called "l'erable".
We were so tired from walking and also sweating like pigs because of the humidity and 90+ F temperature!
The places were visited at ByWard Market:
Le Moulin de Provence
Shafali Bazaar
Continental Deli
Aux Delices
The House of Cheese
Our next stop was the local mall before heading back.
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