Having fun in Ottawa!

Ok so I made it to Ottawa! The first 2 nights I stayed in a house of 4 lds girls I'd never met. Let's call them..Meg, Beth, Jo and Amy. ( again the names do not necessarily match the personalities). So I got to their house and was welcomed by a very sleepy Beth, who had just gotten home from a road trip, and then Jo came to chat with me. She had arranged everything with my friend Dawn who is a friend of mine from Edmonton who lives in Ottawa now. Jo is really smart and organized, she's a sweetheart too. I really appreciated her taking care of me. So I went to bed the first morning and woke up late then went to Byward market, I was having trouble getting excited about Ottawa after leaving Toronto, and the Byward market on a Monday wasn't really doing much for me, so I went home and watched netflix and started to get addicted to that show heartland? I think it reminds me of home, even though Edmonton isn't known for its cattle ranches and mountains. That night I met Meg, who is also a sweetheart, we got along really well. All the girls in that house were awesome. Amy came home with her sister Mary-Anne, they were so funny and made me feel right at home. :)
The next day I decided I wanted to try something else, so I went back to parliament hill, wandered around, did a little shopping bought a tour bus pass and then went on a canal tour that left something to be desired, it was an hour long trip and the guide only spoke for 20 minutes so we sat in silence while we passed all these buildings. It was very odd.
That night I went to see the Dark Night Rises, with meg, Meg's boyfriend and his roommate, Meg's sister, Dawn and Mary-Anne. It was a good movie, very intense, but I had some trouble with the violence because I kept thinking about the real violence that occurred in Colorado at that movie. I feel for those people affected by the shooting, and I'm so impressed at how people have stepped up to show support to the victims, including Christian bale. That's my Jack Kelley!
On a lighter note, why do there have to be 4 million batman and superman movies made and no wonder woman?
That night I stayed at Dawns, she is so awesome and sweet I really appreciate all the work she did to find me a place to stay this week!
On Wednesday Meg had the day off and she offered to show me around. So we went for schwarma with Mary-Anne, Amy and Amy's boyfriend Laurie. Schwarma is so good! It's kind of like a donair but so much better because I don't like donairs. And it comes with these garlic potatoes mmmm.....
After lunch Amy and Laurie went off to do their own thing and Meg, Mary-Anne and I went for a hike around lac pink . This really neat lake in Gatineau, it's really deep and the bottom half of the lake has no O2 so theres only certain types of life down there including some of the earliest forms of life.
Then Meg took me to her boyfriend John's house and he took me to this taco night some of their friends were having, they were all really nice and fun. I really enjoyed that night. I think the best part about ottawa was the fantastic people I got to meet.
The next day I was determined to make a success so I grabbed the earliest tour bus I could find, and went on my way. My first stop was the war museum, it was by far my favorite place. It made everything so real the way they had it set up, and I felt a little embarrassed but I was on the verge of tears a few times as I made my way through the exhibits.
Then I grabbed another bus and went to the museum of civilization which was pretty neat too. They had all sorts of exhibits set up in a very interactive way. Then I grabbed another bus- can I just say these buses have the best tour guides? They are so funny!- on my way to Rideau hall, now that is a beautiful house. There's a room there that looks like you're in a circus tent. It's really neat, and they have the guards with the big black hats like the ones at buckingham palace. I got a pic with one. :)
Waiting for the bus there I met this really nice. Couple and we got along really well, so we went on the parliament hill tour guide together. I'm glad I went with them because the tour guide we had was awful! She talked to the group like we were in preschool I kept waiting for he to tell us all to grab a hold of the rope. Haha the three of us had fun though, thankfully we all had the same sense of humor.
That night Dawn and I went out for dinner at the Byward Market, it was really good but dessert was my favorite. Beaver tails! YUM! It's was great to spend the night catching up /getting to know her better.
The next morning I woke up early and made it to parliament hill to see the changing of the guards. I felt do bad for those guys it was so hot out and they have to stand there with furry hats, long pants and coats on. One of the guards fainted, I'm guessing from heat exhaustion, but I'd be open to accepting the fact that I make him weak in the knees.;)
Then I met up with my friend Lorelei and her baby. Her baby is so stinking cute! She showed me the cats of parliament hill this place for stray cats to live, and then we wandered around, got caught up and went to the museum of nature which was cool but it didn't even compete with the war museum in my opinion. Then we went back to byward and did a little shopping and said our goodbyes.
That night I went to a potluck/institute class with Dawn and met some more amazing people, including a guy who served his mission in Edmonton. I thought that was really neat.
The next day Dawn and I spent the day shopping on Bank St. It's like a big whyte ave with more affordable prices. I loved it! And we tried pho too which was interesting because I'm bad with eating in the first place, but when the food is made for chop sticks? Fo Getta bout it! I was a mess, and Dawn is from Korea so I was definitely schooled.
I spent the rest of that night packing and getting ready for my train ride while watching heartland. I was so tired I think pei will be a nice place to rest.
Sunday morning we got up and made it to church. It was a great missionary themed service I was so happy to get to church. It just feels like home.
For the record I have not felt homesick yet, however I do miss everyone and wish they could have come with me.
I arrived at the train station really early to get everything figured out. Then I waited, and waited, and then the train would be 15 min late, and then it was 45, and then it was over an hour. The train finally arrived 2 hours late. But the arranged for us to make our connecting train so now I'm on my way in my private cabin. It's like a hotel on wheels I love it!
While waiting for the bus I met this guy who's a pastry chef and was very friendly, he told me his life story, he was fun, and this awesome girl who I rode with most of the way to
Moncton. She kept me from getting bored. It was awesome!
O, and yes I showered on the train, all though it's a very interesting set up you turn on the water and stand in the bathroom and shower. It's very interesting trying to balance yourself on a wet floor on a moving train with a toilet you could fall onto or worse into. But I survived and I definitely recommend train travel. I woke up to the most beautiful view of the Chaleur Bay in new Brunswick! And the beds are really comfortable.
Well that's about all for now!
Those are the F.A.C.T.s!