Day 2 (May 29, 2022): A plane, a train and an automobile

Our second day in Ottawa had just two items on the agenda:  to try out the new (and often berated) O-Train of OC Transpo, and to spend time visiting with family 

After a great breakfast at the hotel, we checked out at 10:30AM and set out for the eastern end of the city to start our O-Train experience. After that, we made it Kanata for a wonderful lunch and overdue conversation with Pam’s brother and family, and then headed to the airport at 3:30.  

Return of our tiny Mitsubishi rental car (we were lucky to get any set of wheels, given the Ottawa Marathon weekend), flight check-in and security all went without a hitch. Our inbound flight from Halifax showed up on time, and departure out of Ottawa was on time. That’s about as good as it gets these days!

For the last 31 years of my public service career, most of my trips to Ottawa have been work-related. So it was great to just spend a relaxing couple of days taking in our stunning National Capital. 

Our hotel, the Courtyard by Marriott Ottawa East (left) was just a short drive east of downtown, next door to the Ottawa Lynx Stadium (right).


The Confederation Line of the O-Train was officially opened in 2019, just before the pandemic. 

The eastern terminus of the Confederation Line is at Blair Station, where we boarded. 

Excited to board our first O-Train!

There are above-ground and below-ground stations on the line. The above-ground stations, such as Bayview (where the north-south Trillium Line will intersect next year) are predominantly built using glass, making them open and bright. 

As it passes through downtown, from Rideau Station to Lyon, the Confederation Line goes underground. This is an example of an underground station. 

The 13 stops on the Confederation Line. 

50 minutes after boarding at Blair, we were back there again, having ridden the entire 13-stop Confederation Line in both directions. Two happy and impressed customers!

Lots of trees are down around the city from last weekend’s storm. Over 10,000 people in the Ottawa area are still without power, eight days later. 

A wonderful lunch with Pam’s brother Ken, our sister-in-law Mandy and niece Serena in Kanata. Serena is a part-time barista and whipped up amazing lattes before heading off to start her six-hour barista shift in Stittsville. 

Our packed Westjet Encore Dash 8-400 left on time at 6PM and got us back to Halifax on time to the minute, after a wonderful weekend in the National Capital