March 10th Top Ten....

Things to do in Ottawa....

1. Have a picnic We've really adopted picnics as our new favourite thing to do, clocking up four in the past fortnight (interestingly fortnight is an underused word here and I've been asked t explain it a couple of times). Winter/Spring picnics generally involve home-made soup and cheese sandwiches. Today we sat in a tree with the leftover carrot soup from last night and watched the ice float down the river . Lovely Jubbly.

2. Visit the Gallery. On the third Thursday of the month we head to the National Art Gallery and tour round the permanent collection. One of my favourite pieces is the whale skeleton made of garden chairs and I adored the Daphne Odjig exhibition over the Christmas holidays.

3. Go for a Bike ride. We've hired bikes a couple of times now, and either headed along the river path to Remic Rapids, or up into Gatineau Park. As ever I struggle to get in the right gear, but nonetheless we're hoping to make the most of Sunday mornings in the summer when the council closes some of the roads just for cyclists.

4. Knitting Be it knitting at home, at the folk festival, on the bus or at knit-nights.

5. Heading to the Mayfair for a film. I love this place, particularly the silent films with live music accompaniment - and the matinee of Home Alone at Christmas.

6. Enjoying the Cafe Culture. Paul loves his coffee. And I am very fond of a Mocha myself, especially with a ginger cookie. So many coffee shops, so little time. introduce to 'Raw Sugar' at the weekend, fifties tables and tasty cake - we'll be returning.

7. Watching the boats go through the Locks on the Canal Many a summer afternoon was spent lying in the shade, spotting groundhogs and watching the boats go up and down the locks. Add an ice-cream from Piccolo Grande and an English Newspaper - bliss.

8. Helping at the Wildlife Garden. Back to the grindstone on Friday, potting seeds in preparation for the plant sale in June. Gradually developing my green fingers, but still safest when someone makes it very clear which are the weeds and which we want.

9. Brunch brunch brunch My personal quest to find the best Eggs Florentine in Ottawa goes on. Current top three: Fraser Cafe, Hamie's Diner and The Mayflower Pub.

10. Eek - there are not enough numbers from 1 to 10! Cross-country skiing, watching Paul play ice-hockey; wandering round New Edinburgh during Halloween and Christmas looking at the decorations; browsing the stalls in the market.....so many things!