I was the only one from my grad program to participate, and I must say the others definitely missed out. I got to see Parliament, Bridgehead Coffee, Canadian Space Services Ltd., and the Diefenbunker all in one day.
Parliament
Canada is similar to the United States in a way. While the US Congress is made of the House of Representatives and the Senate, the Canada Parliament is made of the House of Commons and the Senate. There are 338 members in the House of Commons, elected through simple plurality in each of the country's electoral districts. Seats are roughly distributed based on the population of each province and territory. The Senate has 105 members, all appointed by the Governor General on the advice of the Prime Minister.
This painting of Queen Victoria in the Senate foyer was saved from fire four different times. The night of the 1916 fire, the painting was cut out of its frame in order to fit it through the door (that’s why the crown on the right-hand side of the painting is not fully visible). There were only four provinces when Victoria was queen; there are now ten*. *Provinces: Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, Québec, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island. | The History of Canada frieze* (left) in the House of Commons Foyer was created by Eleanor Milne (left below), the first female Dominion Sculptor**. She was selected over twenty other applicants, all male, and served in the position from 1962 to 1993. Milne also oversaw the restoration of the House's linen ceiling. *frieze: a broad horizontal band of sculpted or painted decoration **Canada's Dominion Sculptor is responsible for carving statues, portraits, and decorative pieces to commemorate Canada's history, people, events, and character in Parliament Hill's Centre Block and other government buildings. |
Of the original Parliament buildings, the Library of Parliament is the last remaining structure. During the fire of 1916, everything burned expect the library because the head librarian had previously insisted on metal doors that separated the library from the rest of Parliament. Seven people died in the fire, two of whom died because they returned for their coats. So far, two thirds of the Library has been digitized.
The next stop on our tour was Bridgehead Coffee. While I know it was enjoyable for some people, the fact I had to smell coffee for an hour was not the most pleasant experience for me. However, the information about the place was interesting!
Now based in Ottawa, Bridgehead Coffee was originally formed in Toronto in 1981 under the name Bridgehead Trading by two United Church ministers and two social activists who were concerned with small-scale coffee farmers in Nicaragua. The company was acquired by Oxfam Canada in 1984, but unsound business practices led to its failure in the 1990s. However, after being acquired by Shared Interest in 1998, the first Bridgehead Coffeehouse opened in Ottawa in June 2000 and has since grown to 19 locations in the Ottawa region. | Our host explained that there is more soil acidity at higher elevations, which, in addition to warm, humid climates, is good for coffee beans. That’s why so many coffee beans come from 25 degrees North and 30 degrees South of the equator, where all these conditions are met. |
The original program said we were going to the Canadian Space Agency, and I was thrilled!! But then we found out it was a typo and we went to Canadian Space Services instead. I was disappointed, but this place was still cool.
The Canadian Space Services Ltd. (CSS) began operations in 1970 under founder, P.J. (Joe) Coghlan, but transferred to its current owners Allan Duncan and Robert Valiquette in 1989 (Duncan is who gave us the tour). CSS specializes in radomes, or weatherproof enclosures that protect radar antennas. Duncan explained CSS radomes are made from fiberglass, and only require 12 hours of downtime for refurbishment each year. The radomes can be as small as 2 meters (6.5 feet) all the way up to 48 meters (157 feet), and withstand winds of up to 200 kilometers per hour (124 mph). |
In addition to seeing inside one of the radomes, we also got to see a painting done by Duncan's nephew in 2011. Duncan said he asked his nephew to paint this to keep his nephew from doing graffiti (read: "vandalizing") on the local buildings. Cool, huh??
Our day ended with a visit to the Diefenbunker. Never heard of this place? Well, you're about to!
During the escalating tensions of the Cold War, Canada figured it would be wise to prepare a safe house for government personnel in case a nuke was launched their way. So in 1959, under the commission of Prime Minister John Diefenbaker, the construction of the Diefenbunker (code name Project Emergency Army Signals Establishment, or EASE) began.
The entire construction process took less than 18 months, and resulted in a bunker that is 100,000 square feet (9,300 square meters) over four levels. It is made of 32,000 cubic yards (24,466 cubic meters) of hand-poured concrete and 5,000 tons of steel, and can supposedly withstand a 5-megaton nuclear blast from a little over a mile (1.8 kilometers) away.
The site began operation in 1962, and remained in continuous operation until it was decommissioned in 1994, at which time it was given National Historic Site status. The building remained empty until the foundation of the museum in 1998.
Post again soon(er)!