Lack of sleep! This was to be expected, because we flew from Calgary at midnight, reached Toronto in the early morning for transit, and then took another hour-long flight to Ottawa. 

Oh yes, before I continue, let me correct your pronunciation. “Ottawa” is not pronounced as “Oh-tah-wah”. Instead, it is “Ah-dah-were”. 

There’s Uber here in Ottawa, so that pretty much sums up our transportation choice in the capital city. We checked in to a pretty new Condominium building via Airbnb, then quickly made our way to the National War Memorial for a 2-hour free walking tour at 11am. 

It was a REALLY good Walking tour! We watched the changing of guards at the National War Memorial, then followed André the guide around the main historical buildings in the city. It also included a look at the UNESCO site of the Rideau Canal, which brought life to Ottawa, as well as the Byward Market area. The guide packed his tour with stories after stories, and it made Ottawa really interesting! But we were also told by locals that Ottawa is usually just a government municipal area, as this is where the seat of the government is. The race weekend at Ottawa made the capital city very much livelier than it should otherwise be. WL and I agreed that this was a really must-go tour if you happen to be in Ottawa, and on hindsight, we thought that we should have tipped the guide more.

Personally, I loved the old historical buildings of the city along the river. We didn’t visit any of them (walking tours are available) due to time, but I’m sure these buildings tours, as well as the many other museums in the city, would have made a visit to Ottawa worthwhile. 

After collecting our race packs from the convention centre, we headed back to the condominium to catch an important nap before WL’s 10km run. The convention centre was quite packed – seems like people really congregated here from all over Canada. 

The atmosphere build-up before the 10km run was electrifying. Runners and supporters lined up in front of the start line beside Confederation Park, all looking pumped up and excited. It was a colourful and bubbly evening, with a carnival awaiting everyone at the Start/Finish line. The 10km run was flagged off in waves, which made for a great running experience for the runners. 

My marathon race was on the next day, so there was some waiting time for me to stroll around, and then find my way to a better spot at the Finish line. She finished comfortably around 1hr 20min after flag-off, which was a good run for her. 

We headed to a restaurant near Byward Market for dinner. It was recommended by the walking guide today and it was superb. I am still thinking about the Poutine with Pulled Pork right now, and it had to be the best Poutine I’ve had in Canada. Poutine is a local dish that originated from Quebec,  and is made with French fries and cheese curds topped with a light brown gravy. So appetizing that I wished we have it in Singapore too!