Red Cross debriefings are like family reunions: we are all connected in some convoluted way. After hours of hard work for a Saturday, we could have easily slipped back into hotel rooms for a snooze. Instead, some of us head to the world heritage designated Rideau Canal for a skate to Dow’s Lake. I do need to work off the 2 pastries, cake, and ice cream consumed. More food is yet to come.
Multiple readings of Hans Brinker during childhood has etched in my mind the romance of skating on canals surrounded by windmills. Frozen canals in Amsterdam is now a rarity. Here in Ottawa, the windmills might not grace the quays but gliding down the Rideau is thoroughly exhilarating. There is even a Dutch connection to the city. Princess Margriet (sister of current Queen Beatrice) was born at the Ottawa Civic Hospital. As continuing goodwill between the countries, Ottawa receives 20,000 tulip bulbs from the Netherlands each year. The resulting showy blooms are in full display each May during the Festival of Spring/Printemps.
I slide off the ice past the giant reverse snow globe: DJ inside, snow outside, no shaking required.
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