Sunday, February 03, 2008

things to do in ottawa that you cant do in the usa

Last week, I had a look at my Statcounter report on search strings that bring people to this blog. It turns out that Marcie's list of exciting things to do in Ottawa is the #1 hit for things to do in ottawa that you cant do in the usa (With the apostrophe in "can't" I drop to #4). In reviewing Marcie's list it made me happy to see that in fact, they are all things that you can only do in Ottawa and therefore not in the USA.

However, I imagine that there are many places in the USA that could provide a similar experience to many items on the list. So here are

A few things that you can do in Ottawa that you can't do in the USA:

  1. Marry a same-sex partner [ceremony ; licence]
  2. Stroll around the head of state's house
  3. Protest at a US Embassy
  4. Watch a Quebec Major Junior Hockey League Game (not technically in Ottawa, but close); or an Ontario Hockey League game (which can also be done in Plymouth Michigan, but not with 2 Ontario teams, right?)
  5. See Lucky Ron perform
  6. See Ball and Chain at the Elmdale
  7. Spins'n'Needles
  8. 5-pin bowling
  9. Make art while being inspired by a Canadian Artist like Joe Fafard

Note: There is an almost excellent list by Janika on Virtual Tourist, but one of the things she recommends is taking a trip on an amphibious bus. Now, I'm sure they have fixed the problems that caused that one to sink and kill those people. So you probably won't drown on the trip, but you will be bored senseless. Take a boat trip or take a bus trip; don't combine the two in one experience.

Other decent lists:

Anything else I should add to my list?

6 comments:

aandjblog said...

Spins and needles is an ottawa gem if you ask me. It so nice to have an alternative activity on a Friday night, instead of going to the Byward Market to get drunk on a Friday night.

I hope that S'n'N continues for many years to come.

aandjblog said...

A couple of events to add:

- Disco Bingo at Shanghai Restaurant
- Wing night at Minglewoods. Best wings in Ottawa.
- Visit the Museum of Nature for free on Saturday mornings.
- Being able to see a Canadian Hockey Team live at a resonable price (compared to Toronto).

David Scrimshaw said...

Thanks for the suggestions, A&J.

I haven't tried any of your outings and will definitely have to investigate wing night.

I've thought about Disco Bingo, but I keep getting stopped by the fact that I don't like Disco or Bingo.

It appears that Disco Bingo may also be available in the USA.

XUP said...

Skate to work in the middle of a blizzard?
Throw a pie at your national leader?

EK said...

I made the mistake of putting lyrics to a Juno song in the title of one of my blogs and now really upset french people show up at my blog a lot. Oops.

Anonymous said...

I frequently sit on the steps in front of the Parliament buildings on hot summer days. I eat a picnic lunch and read the Globe and Mail. I love to look up from my newspaper and watch tourists taking pictures of the Peace Tower, demonstrators gathering near the Eternal Flame, and little kids running gleefully about the huge lawn. We are lucky to have such a beautiful space, almost a park, in our city.