Ottawa: Canada’s Fun And Welcoming City
One of the things I often find myself doing when I visit a city, town or village is looking for what is different, unique or distinctive. In Halifax is was the abundance of blade signs, in Vancouver the barber shops and in Lacombe their back alley murals. While in Ottawa (Canada’s capital city), I was impressed with how the entrances made the city feel very welcoming, especially the older buildings.
Here is a photo essay of some of Ottawa’s welcoming entrance and doorways.
One of my best flaneur finds in Ottawa was The Calgarian apartments. Yes they are in need of some repair, perhaps a metaphor for Calgary/Alberta/Ottawa political relationship.
The Victoria Memorial Museum now the Canadian Natural History Museum is a must visit if you are in Ottawa.
I love it when retailers put things out on the sidewalk for pedestrians to browse.
Coffee shops the spill out onto the street are the most welcoming.
It is also important to design buildings so they are attractive at night.
More and more cities are enhancing stairways with murals like this one.
Love plaques with background stories.
Old vs New On the left is the original entrance to this heritage school. On the right is the modern entrance to the addition.
This entrance is just too much fun.
Last Word
Having fun and welcoming entrances to buildings helps create a pedestrian friendly experience. Today’s architects, developers and landlords should pay more attention creating welcoming entrances to make their buildings more attractive. Too often the entrances to modern buildings are almost hidden - it’s as if they don’t want you to go inside.
Here are some other fun Canadian city blogs:
Halifax: The Blade Sign Capital of Canada