He Has Granted Me a Home: The Last Great Vacation of the Summer

For Wednesday we had a Supreme Court tour booked and tickets to Kontinuum.
Kontinuum was the previously mentioned trip to an alternate dimension. The creators of Kontinuum claim they stumbled across this alternate dimension while working on a new subway tunnel, and for a limited time they are allowing the public down into the 2.5 kilometer tunnel to experience this "fracture of time and space".

"...It all began with a mysterious appearance at the Lyon station: a glimmering wall of light that can only be described as a glitch in the fabric of reality..."

Kind of corny, but the kids thought it was cool.

Next on our itinerary was the Bank of Canada Museum, which we eventually found under these strangely angled gardens at an intersection.

Again, the kids found some of the activities here pretty cool, but we weren't terribly impressed. For example, one could play a video game in which one had to steer a rocket ship as it hurtled through the universe, and the entire objective was to keep one's rocket on the straight and narrow path of 2% inflation.
So.... 2% inflation is the highest objective of the official bank of the Canadian government?

On to the Canada Space and Aviation Museum. Here is the original Canadarm.

This museum is home to quite an impressive collection of aircraft. Here is a World War II bomber, with its bomb bay doors open.

One small step for Jonathon Park, one giant leap for Joseph. Or something like that.

The kids treated us to Swiss Chalet for dinner. After making short work of my quarter chicken meal, I found my tummy getting increasingly uncomfortable as I waited for the others to finish up. Eventually we made our way out to the car and Daddy handed the children the bill to split up as they saw fit. By now I was in full-fledged misery, and I grabbed a bucket just in time to lose my dinner therein.

Will's philosophic comment as we drove off was: "Maybe we shouldn't bother paying for Mommy's meal since she just threw it up."

Thanks, Wills. :)

Thursday we had a lazy start. Later in the afternoon we visited Laurier House, the home of both Wilfred Laurier and his successor, William Lyon Mackenzie King. This was just prior to the purchase of 24 Sussex as an official residence for our Canadian Prime Ministers.

Our final outing in Ottawa, and one that proved to be a highlight for all, was the Museum of History.

The museum is huge, and though we did a quick look over most of it, the Children's Museum was where we spent most of our time and was by far our favorite part.
This part of the museum gives children glimpses of life around the world. Upon entering they are given passports that they can have stamped at each of the different "countries" they visit. It was beautifully created and totally child friendly, with oodles of culturally appropriate play food, play money, dress-up clothes, books, and activities.

Pardon the inundation of photos of Zay in the Italian café. It was just way too cute.

Food is always serious business with this one.

In Holland was a construction site where the kids could do plumbing, paint with brushes and rollers, lay flooring or masonry, shingle the roof, etc.

Zay at work in Heren Straat.

Marike "bought" armloads of food at a the market to take back to her little Mexican house. There was an outdoor stove in the back courtyard where she could cook her meal.

Spying the next stop: "Oooh! I can't wait to go in!

In addition to the round-the-world tour, there was also a little theatre with beautiful costumes and a special effects panel that the kids could use to create productions. They thought this was marvelous, of course.

So the curtain closed on our trip to Ottawa! The next day on our way out we had a delicious lunch at Tuckers in downtown Ottawa.

Now it was time to relax and enjoy the sunshine at Sandbanks! We had some great company there - M's parents and Marguerite, Maurice and Christine, and Jason and Andrea and family.