In Ottawa, it doesn’t rain, it pours. You barely get any warning at all: one minute, the sky is grey and you feel a drop of water, the next one you are as soaked as if you had taken a shower. Similarly, thunderstorms can be quite impressive in the area: flash floods and power outages are not that rare. It’s part of our severe weather-prone country, I guess.

The Byward Market is somewhat of a fixture in Ottawa. It is located downtown, close to the Rideau neighborhood, between Sussex and Rideau St. There is a main market building (very similar to Kensington Market in Toronto or to The Forks in Winnipeg), surrounded by an open-air market on George, York, ByWard and William Streets.

On a warm summer night, I grabbed my camera and headed to downtown around sunset. I hadn’t been around the Byward Market area at this time of the day in a while. It was close to 10 pm and the sun had barely set.
I stopped by to see my favourite sculpture in Ottawa, “Maman” the huge spider by artist Louise Bourgeois, stuck between Notre-Dame church and the National Gallery of Canada.

A year ago, I stumbled upon this magical place, by the Ottawa River, where John Ceprano is working on the art of balance. Last year’s work has probably been dismantled naturally during the winter, but the sculptures currently on display just blew my mind. They are taller, bigger, and there are dozens of them.

Last week, in the Greyhound from Montreal airport to Ottawa, I stared at the window for the two hours’ long trip. I couldn’t peel my eyes away from the scenery. We drove that road many times, and yet it still appeals to me: Canada is beautiful.
Such a vast land. Such empty places between cities. Such as wild place at times. The light, the sky, the colors, everything looked vivid and alive. It was like being in a painting.