Photo Credit: NCC/CCN

Join us as we celebrate our country’s birthday in Canada’s Capital Region! A myriad of free activities take place throughout the day on both sides of the Ottawa River — including street entertainers, games, ceremonies and performances — all culminating in a breathtaking fireworks show in the night sky. Don your red and white, and take part in the festivities, as we proudly celebrate our country’s history and our Canadian traditions.

Festival Information:

General information: 613.239.5000 ● 1.800.465.1867 ● 613.239.5090 (TTY) ● 1.866.661.3530 (toll-free TTY)
General information email: info@ncc-ccn.ca
Location:   Parliament Hill, Jacques-Cartier Park, Major’s Hill Park &  Confederation Park, Ottawa, ON

On the Web:

Website:  www.canadaday.gc.ca

Map:

View Canada Day in a larger map

Michael Kaminer, Special to The Washington Post

In fact, if anything now characterizes the city, I’d say it’s an unselfconscious cool. There’s a proudly indie aesthetic in its neighborhoods, but without the hipster posturing of Toronto. Unlike language-obsessed Montreal, the city has a relaxed attitude toward bilingualism — everything here comes in both official languages — that lends Ottawa an easy cosmopolitanism.

Oh, yes: Ottawa also boasts Canada’s Parliament, along with the National Gallery, the Royal Canadian Mint, the Canadian War Museum, Rideau Hall, the Canadian Museum of Nature, the Canadian Children’s Museum, the Canada Aviation and Space Museum and the Canadian Museum of Civilization. They’re all gleaming, serious attractions, with collections often lauded as some of the world’s best.

They used to be the reason for a visit to Ottawa, with restaurants and shopping an afterthought. These days, don’t be surprised if you find the opposite to be true.

Read the full article in the Washington Post: O Ottawa. When did you get so hip?

Ontario House offers free admission to the general public in order to experience Ontario. With a daytime capacity of 450 people, visitors to Ontario House will be able to change the nightly illumination of three of the province’s major tourism icons—the CN Tower, Niagara Falls and Ottawa’s own Parliament Buildings—utilizing innovative new thought-controlled computing technology designed by Toronto-based firm InteraXon. After donning special headsets, guests will be taught to use their brainwaves to control the three light shows taking place in Ontario, over 3,000 km (1,864 miles) away.

“We’re excited to have this exposure at the 2010 Winter Games,” says Noel Buckley, President and CEO of Ottawa Tourism. “The world is coming to Vancouver, but they will have a chance to experience Ottawa at the same time.”

Other special Ottawa programming at Ontario House includes entertainment by Aboriginal Experiences, offering interactive experiences of First Nations culture and history through storytelling and dance performances. Aboriginal Experiences is also the official caterer at the Four Host First Nations Aboriginal Pavilion.

Le Cordon Bleu Ottawa Culinary Arts Institute’s award-winning chefs, Chef Armando Baisas and Chef Christian Faure, will delight crowds at Ontario House with ice carvings in the shape of iconic Ottawa landmarks, fruit and vegetable carvings, ice wine chocolate demonstrations, tastings and more.

The National Capital Commission has awarded a $574,000 contract to a Quebec multimedia company to produce the next edition of its popular summertime sound and light show, officials say.

Moment Factory, which designed the interactive set for rock band Nine Inch Nails’ 2008 tour, has been tasked with developing and technically planning the Parliament Hill show, which will launch next summer.

The NCC received four bids and evaluated proposals on value, preliminary concept designs, past experience, and the applicant’s understanding of the show’s objective, which is to showcase Canada and build national pride by encouraging appreciation of its history and culture.

Full story on the OBJ website: NCC hires Montreal firm to fire up the Hill

“The Sound and Light Show has attracted Canadians and international visitors from all walks of life because it tells a compelling story about our collective history and achievements,” says Marie Lemay, Chief Executive Officer of the NCC. “We hope those who experience the show on Parliament Hill leave with a sense of pride and a better understanding of who we are as Canadians.”

This major milestone comes somewhat fittingly at the end of a very successful run for the show which debuted in 2005. A renewed show is in development and scheduled for release next summer.

Canada: The Spirit of a Country is a 30-minute free multi-media production with original music, giant images and spectacular lighting effects which transports the audience from coast to coast to coast through a unique experience of the story of our nation. The majestic setting of Parliament Hill serves as a backdrop for the show as the Parliament Buildings become bathed in lights and images.

Presented by the NCC, this bilingual show is offered twice nightly, 7 days a week, from July to September.

Show times:
Until August 9 – Nightly at 9:30 pm and 10:30 pm
August 10 to September 13 – Nightly at 9 pm and 10 pm

For more information on the Sound and Light Show on Parliament Hill, the public can contact the NCC at 613-239-5000 or 1-800-465-1867, TTY: 613-239-5090 or 1-866-661-3530, visit the NCC’s website at www.canadascapital.gc.ca/soundandlight, or stop by the Capital Infocentre, located at 90 Wellington Street (across from Parliament Hill).

Mosaika – Sound and Light Show: Canada through the eyes of its people

Mosaika is the story of Canada – our story. A powerful narrative set against the spectacular backdrop of Parliament Hill, Mosaika takes the audience on an unforgettable journey of sound and light, as we explore Canada’s physical, historical and cultural landscapes.

Don’t miss this free, bilingual show. Presented nightly in Canada’s Capital Region. From July 8 through September 12, 2010.

Festival Information

General information: 613-239-5000 ● 1-800-465-1867 ● 613-239-5090 (TTY) ● 1-866-661-3530 (toll-free TTY)
General information email: info@ncc-ccn.ca
Location: Parliament Hill

On the Web

Website: www.canadascapital.gc.ca/soundandlight

Cassandra Drudi, Brendan Kennedy and Katie Daubs, The Ottawa Citizen

On Canada Day, there is no place Melissa Dawe would rather be than on Parliament Hill handing out small paper Canadian flags to the people who pass by.

“Who needs a flag?” she called out to the passing groups of families and friends, many similarly decked in red and white. “It’s cool. Everybody’s doing it.”

By 1 p.m., she had been through nearly three large bags of the bundled flags. She started on the Hill at 8 a.m. and kept her enthusiasm at a steady clip throughout the morning.

Dawe, 29, has been volunteering with the NCC for three years, ever since she moved to the capital from Petawawa.

Wearing a white volunteer T-shirt printed with red maple leaves, a white visor with red maple leaf and a red-and-white brooch of a maple leaf, Dawe said there’s a euphoria to being on the Hill for Canada Day.

“The Parliament Buildings give off this power,” she said. “Dude, you’re in Canada – rock it out. It’s awesome.”

More on the Ottawa Citizen website: ‘You’re in Canada — rock it out’

Every year, Megan Wilson and her friends arrive prepared to fight the Canada Day crowds.

“Over the years, I learned to not wear flip-flops,” said Toronto resident, who is originally from Ottawa. “Even if it’s super hot, there are just too many people pushing and squeezing and you have to protect your feet.”

Also, bring your own water, because can be difficult to find water when you need it, and a cell phone, because it’s easy to lose track of the people you came with, she added.

Sounds like a lot of effort, but for Wilson, it’s worth it, she said.

Full story on the Metro Ottawa website: Parliament Hill celebrations ‘the place to be’