I was out late last night, and crashed as soon as I got home, so I never got around to writing a post.
Yesterday I went to the Laurier House, where 2 of Canada's Prime Ministers lived, and Rideau Hall, where the Governor General lives. The Laurier House was pretty cool. Since 2 separate prime ministers lived there, some of the rooms are restored to how they were when the Lauriers lived there and some of the rooms are restored to how they were when William Lyon MacKenzie King lived there. If you remember that I went to the MacKenzie house in Toronto. The guy that owned that house, William Lyon MacKenzie, was the maternal grandfather of the prime minister, William Lyon MacKenzie King. Interesting how all these pieces fit together.
Rideau Hall was great, except there was a child on my tour who kept trying to run around and touch everything and his mother wasn't doing much to stop him. So annoying. It took me a while to figure out who exactly the Governor General is. Apparently, he is the Queen's representative in Canada and is apolitical. But he has causes that he supports, so I don't really understand how that can be apolitical. Guess there's a reason I don't live in a constitutional monarchy, since I don't really understand how it works. Not that our government necessarily works any better. Ugh.
Last night, I went out to dinner & drinks with 3 of the girls I met on our tour of Russia, Emily, April, and Jenn. It was SO great hanging out with them. The Russia/Finland/Sweden trip that we did was 5 years ago and this was the first time that I saw them since the trip. The trip was a great trip and one of the most memorable of my life and I loved that our little group found each other. We really clicked and had so much fun. It was great reliving our memories of the trip and talking about how our lives have changed since (some of the changes a direct result of the trip).
I left Ottawa this morning and headed back into the states. After my last experience crossing the border, I was nervous that I'd get grilled again, but this ended up being my easiest border crossing yet, with the least amount of questions. Phew. Such a relief. Not that I have anything to hide, but it's just nerve-wracking.
I drove through the islands in northern Vermont, stopped at a winery and then came down into Burlington. I stopped at a farm store and a local restaurant and then walked through the outdoor shopping area in the city, Church Street. The region is going through a heat wave, so it was about 90 degrees this afternoon as I was walking around, whereas it's only about 80 in Texas. How is this possible???
I got to talk to one of my orphans from home this evening. I'm sad that I won't get to see 3 of my orphans before they head off to school this fall. It's been nice hearing from a number of them over the past few days. I miss those girls.
Not driving very far tomorrow, but I have a lot of fun stops to make.
No comments:
Post a Comment