Jolly holiday

Oh it’s a jolly holiday with Mary

Canada Day in the Canadian capital. This was going to be a big day. Everyone had the day off work, the weather was forecast to be hot and sunny and Ottawa had some special visitors – Wills & Kate, and me. I’d been told that everyone would be wearing red and white. I don’t own anything red so I settled for a white t-shirt. I had toyed with the idea of buying an “I ♥ Kate and William” t-shirt the day before but decided against it. As I was finishing getting ready in the bathroom I heard the pop of a cork indicating that the celebrations had begun. It was a little after 9am. We were joined by Michael the Australian (who I was nice to) and Krister and Joseph, friends of D&G who I had met earlier in the week. We had brunch and mimosas before making our way up to Parliament Hill to see the Royals and the Noon Show. 

Everyone in Ottawa, and the surrounding area, seemed to be at Parliament Hill. The crowds were enormous and we made our way as close as we could get, still quite some distance from the main stage. As Wills and Kate arrived there was such a cheer that it made the previous days cheering seem like a whisper. People strained to get glimpses of them, cameras raised above their heads hoping to get a photo even from this distance. A woman next to me commented that Kate was wearing “one of those funny little hat things”. I told her the correct term was a fascinator. A few people in the crowd near me picked up on my accent. I was asked if I was over here for the Royal Family. I said that I had started my trip before they started theirs so it was more likely to be the other way round.

I got chatting to one very friendly woman next to me. She asked where in Canada I had been so far on my trip. I said “Toronto, Montreal and now Ottawa”. She asked if I had been to Halifax. I said “No. Toronto, Montreal and now Ottawa”. She asked if I had been to Quebec. I said “No. Toronto, Montreal and now Ottawa”.

Wills & Kate (look closely)

Following some speeches and performances from a string of Canadian artists I had never heard of, there was a rendition of God Save the Queen. I think I was the only person who sang along. After that came Oh Canada. I think I was the only person who didn’t sing along. In my defence the only part of Oh Canada that I know are the first two words - Oh Canada. We waited around in the jostling crowds and increasing temperatures until after Wills had done his speech. He got a great reaction from the crowds.

Gray and I were joined by Tim (he had missed joining us for brunch but managed to get himself out of bed for the Noon Show) and the three of us headed to Michael’s. We had lost Drew who had gone to seek some shade on account of his slight gingerness. As we were walking along, me in my white t-shirt in between Gray & Tim in their red t-shirts, some guy who was clearly drunk despite the sun not long being over the yardarm shouted at us, telling us we looked just like the Canadian flag. After a drink at Michael’s I headed to meet my gay from Chicago, Bob, and his man, who was now his fiancé. We had a few celebratory drinks before I headed back to D&G’s place.

Gray was having a power nap so we left him to go to a BBQ somewhere out east. The party was in full swing when we arrived. Within two minutes of us arriving I had a beer in one hand and a burger in the other. I have to admit that the Canadian hospitality is amazing. Drew and I did a scan of the room for any talent, me spotting one guy who I thought was cute. A while later when the guy was in the kitchen getting a drink, Drew practically pushed me at him. We chatted for ten minutes or so before he excused himself so he could go check on his friends. Drew asked me what had happened. I explained. Drew said he couldn’t believe how bad at chatting people up I was.

Fly past

From the BBQ we headed to Centretown Pub, which lived up to the billing D&G had given it in the welcome pack. We had a couple of beers while sat outside with a whole patio full of would nots. Various friends came and went over the couple of hours we were sat there. Drew said he needed to head home for a while so I joined him, using the time to pack my bags ready for leaving early the next morning.

Early evening saw us head up to Confederation Square for the big fireworks display. I’d been up to Confederation Square on my first day in Ottawa where a tourist information woman had handed me a map, letting me know where everything was located and apologising for the fact that Confederation Square was actually triangular.  The firework display was stunning, you could feel the explosions from some of the fireworks. I pointed out that a lot of the fireworks seemed to just be red and white and that maybe they could have used more colour. Fireworks are brilliant for making you feel like a child again. The huge crowds all ooohed and aaahed at the display like a bunch of five year olds, me included. An impromptu rendition of Oh Canada started at the end of the display, and I again managed the first two words before falling into silence.

After the fireworks ended the huge crowds dispersed, we (D&G, me & Tim) made our way to The Edge, a bar with an large outside roof terrace (and breeze) which was a welcome relief after the heat of the day. We had a couple of drinks there, during which time Bob and his man joined us. I introduced everyone & soon Bob and Gray were swapping stories about me, which I found a little unsettling. Just after midnight I suggested that bed might be a sensible option as I had to be up at 5am for a flight to Boston. Gray said that Dan had invited us round for a nightcap. I wanted the chance to say goodbye to him so we headed over to Dan’s. The nightcap was a very large G&T and it was nearly 1:30am before we left. I said goodbye to Dan and thanked him for the tour guidery. I finally got to bed at 2am.

After a mere 3 hours sleep I was awake again. I showered and dressed on autopilot. I didn’t feel hungover but it is quite possible I was still a little tipsy from the night before. I had no choice with the flights as this was the only direct flight from Ottawa to Boston and I needed to be in Boston in good time to make the 2pm ferry over to Provincetown. I could have got a later flight via somewhere else but I didn’t want to take the risk of being delayed and missing the ferry. Gray was kind enough to give me a lift to the airport. The roads at that time in the morning were deserted, some of them still littered with the aftermath of the Canada Day celebrations. My Ottawa hosts had certainly earned their title of hostesses with the mostesses and I left Ottawa having made several new really good friends. Not bad for a few days work.

I checked in for my flight, pleased to note that it was on time. As I headed through security I saw the US immigration desks. In Ottawa you clear US immigration before the flight. Remembering the problems I had entering Canada from the US I braced myself for some questions. Tired and conscious that I might possibly still smell of gin I approached the desk. I was asked quite a lot of questions – where I was from, what I did for work, how long I was going to be in the US, where I was staying, how had I managed to get a year off work. The immigration officer said that the people in Britain were crazy if they could just take a year off to go travelling. I agreed.

Once through immigration I found the nearest place that served coffee and ordered some breakfast. I knew that I needed to keep awake & not miss my flight. There was a short delay but we soon boarded the tiny plane that would take us to Boston. As soon as I got into my seat I fell asleep.


“Oh it’s a jolly holiday with Mary”Lyrics from Jolly Holiday from the musical Mary Poppins