Rideau Hall, National Art Gallery of Canada and National Science and Technology Museum.
I had a really good night's sleep for the first time in the last 6 nights. Not that the hotel room was not comfortable, but i would always wake up in the middle of the night, and fall back to sleep only 30 min later. Last night, i did not wake up at all. Probably bcos i walked so much the day before.
The night before, i had planned to go 3 places for today - Rideau Hall, Science and Technology Museum and National Art Gallery, using the OC Transpo Travel Planner online to plan my trip by bus. H/e i had difficulties navigating my way by bus, as you'll see later in the post.
Walked over to Mac's for breakfast before i headed over to the bus stop near the Notre Dame Basilica. After waiting for about 10 min, i find it weird that no buses seem to be coming my way at all. Looking at the bus schedule, i then realize that the earlier bus had just left when i came, and the next one is 1 hr later!! The long gap in bus arrival times is due to the fact that it was a Sunday. I decide to walk over to Rideau Hall, since it was not that far, and i had walked over there the day before.
It was slightly after 9 when i reached Rideau Hall entrance. The security guard informed me and another couple who were there to visit that the Hall is opened for visiting upon reservation for group visits during this period of the year, and as there're no staff today, we're not able to enter the Hall for visits. Nevertheless, we're welcome to visit the grounds.
Slightly despondent, i still entered the place to visit the grounds.
Rideau Hall is the home and workplace of every Governer-General of Canada since Confederation in 1867.
The grounds of Rideau Hall - 32 hectares of rolling lawns, winding paths, forests and gardens -were originally modelled on the style of an English country estate. The grounds reflect in their evoluation a very Canadian environment. Landscaping elements, such as the totem pole and inuksuk, are uniquely Canadian; evergreens are more prominent and sugar maples make up most of the wooded areas. In fact, tapping the sugar maples to make maple syrup has become a spring tradition at Rideau Hall.
After that, i wanted to make my way to the Science and Technology Museum. h/e i was caught in a dilemma as i missed the bus (again!) and it would be another hour or so before the next one came. I was feeling cold also as it was only about 4-5 degree celsius then, and i sought temporary refuge at the bus stop. In the end, i decide to walk back to the National Art Gallery and visit there first, before making my way to the S&T Museum later.
I arrived at the National Art Gallery at about 11 am. The entrance fee costs CAD$15 (~S$18) for entrance fee to the Art Gallery's permanent collections, as well as the temporary collection "Caught in the Act: The viewer as the performer" on display at the moment.
Felt really hungry after depositing my bag and jacket at the baggage counter (a requirement for bags bigger than A4 size in surface, which is good actually as you wont need to carry your bags or your winter jacket around the galleries), and decide to have sandwiches at the cafe here. The cafe offered a nice view of the Ottawa River and the nearby Parliament Hill.
(From here on, the post would be short as no photos were allowed in the galleries, and i know it'd be boring to read long posts w/o photos!)
I first went right to the top level to look at the Canadian Aboriginal Contemporary photography, which was there on temporary display as the photography museum was closed temporarily for renovations. The photographs and videos see the Aboriginal people's lives through the Aboriginal artists' eyes.
Next was the temporary exhibit "Caught in the Act: The viewer as the performer". The artists hope to engage viewers in the artistic process through their sculptures, immersive environments and installations.
This gadget is "activitated" when visitors push the door which is connected, causing the disco-like ball to move down to the other side of the balance:
They were pretty interesting exhibits, as visitors are no longer just viewing the exhibits from a third-party pov, but are active participants in the artistic process. There were also interesting gadgets for kids, such as the microphone that alters voice at varying frequencies.
Went on to the European and American Art exhibits.
The European and American galleries integrate painting, sculpture and decorative arts ranging in date from the early fourteenth to the late twentieth century. This was probably my favourite section, and i was intrigued by the intricate details put into the oil paintings, esp those during the Medieval and Renaissance periods, which were heavily inspired by Christianity and/or Jesus.
Some of the paintings (out of the perhaps thousand pieces there) that have left an impression on me:
Eve, Death and Serpent (by Hans Baldung Grien). Lust and death are linked, as an enticing Eve, apple in hand, grasps the tail of the serpent while casting a veiled glance at a fallen Adam, who, in a decomposed state, has been transformed into the figure of Death:
Vulcan and Aeolus (by Peiro di Cosimo). It is thought to represent the dawn of civilization, with man's discovery and utilization of fire (Vulcan, god of fire, at the anvil together with Aeolus, master of the winds, wit the bellows) and the domestication of animals (the unidentified youth astride a horse):
Claude Monet Jean-Pierre Hoschedé and Michel Monet on the Banks of the Epte:
Vincent van Gogh Vase with Zinnias and Geraniums:
Next was Asian Art.
A selection of exquisite eighth- to thirteenth- century Indian stone sculptures from the Max Tanenbaum collection are currently on display. Mainly architectural elements carved in deep relief, these works depict Hindu, Buddhist and Jain deities.
Went on to Canadian Art section.
Early Aboriginal art works and paintings and sculptures of the 1970s are installed in the spacious Canadian galleries.
Sister Saint Alphonse (1841) by Antoine Plamondon:
Sunrise on the Sanguenay, Cape Trinity (1880) by Lucius R.O'Brien:
The Jack Pine (1916-1917) by Tom Thomson:
The Red Maple (1914) by A.Y. Jackson:
As i need to make time for my next destination, i did not spend as much time as i wanted to at the Canadian art galleries, and left the place at about 2:15pm.
I wasnt sure what bus to take to the Science and Technology museum, so i decide to take a taxi instead, since it's only a 10 mins' ride from downtown Ottawa. You only need to make a toll-free call on the phone inside the gallery, and a taxi would come within 10 min. The taxi fare cost me about CAD$12+ (~S$15).
The entrance ticket to the museum is CAD$7.50 (~S$9).
The place is very suitable for families with kids to come, as there're many interactive gadgets for kids to learn more about the inventions by Canadians, and other aspects of modern technology - communications like satellites, phone, e-mail, space travelling, etc. The place also explores past and modern day transport like railway trains, bicycles, aeroplane, etc.
The first stop was a look at canoes, and how it shaped lives of the Aboriginal people and the European inhabitants during the 18th century:
Next, life-sized trains which look operational and looked like they had run on actual railways before:
The toddler looked so small compared to the train, keke:
Space travelling and astronomy section.
Doesnt this remind you of Star Wars?:
Some real-sized satellite thingy:
Life-sized rocket:
Antique cars:
This section talked about how the bicycle transformed to how it eventually looks like now:
The museum did not turn out as interesting/engaging as i'd have expected, although the exhibits themselves were done pretty well. They probably lost me at some of the more technical details, which i do not have a particular interest in. I was still very fascinated and awed by the life-sized trains, as well as the old bicycles and photographs of the aurora.
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