So, the holy foreskin, eh? How did you find yourself studying such a bizarre footnote to Christian history?

I sometimes asked myself the same question—especially during the periods of self doubt. But having studied European history in college and grad school it seemed like the perfect subject for me: this unusual relic has been looming about the periphery of various historical periods and movements, from the Middle Ages to the fury that inspired the Reformation to the 19th-century Romantic movement. It was a fun challenge in writing the book to put the relic into a historical context for each period.

Your book actually began life as an article in Slate, right? At what point did you start thinking there was a full-length travel narrative in the making, and how did you make that transition from article to book?

Actually, a book was my original intention. But writing the article was a great first step. Plus, in the back of my mind, I had hoped the article would get enough attention that it would help me sell the book. And, in fact, that’s exactly what happened. The blogosphere went crazy over the article, people were talking about it on the radio, and people from the publishing world were emailing me asking if I’d sold the book yet. I often tell my writing students that the easiest way to sell your book is to write an article on the subject in a high-profile publication.

Was it a tough balancing act over there, between making friends, researching your book, learning Italian, and, I assume, writing for a living as well? Any advice on how writers can balance all their commitments while tackling something like a book project?

It wasn’t so difficult. I had fully absorbed myself into the village and into the history of the relic and the area. It all pervaded me to the degree that nearly everything I did could have been part of the narrative that would become my book.

As for magazine and newspaper assignments, they came much easier than when I’m back in New York. One fast-track way to getting assignments is to move to a country often featured in travel publications—like, say, Italy. You’ll get story ideas and angles much easier, you’ll appear “an insider” to editors because you’re living there, and you’ll come delightfully cheap since no one has to pay for you to fly across an ocean to get there.

The rolling hills of Calcata, home of the Holy Foreskin / Photo: draks

When you were still in Calcata, were you thinking ahead to the writing, and going, “Man, I need a dramatic climax to this story,” or were you too wrapped up in the mystery itself to think that far ahead?

I was hoping to have a conclusion that was less speculative, but I didn’t know what. Until I heard (from a Vatican insider) what happened to the Holy Foreskin, I had no idea how the book was going to end. So, not only I was I jump-up-and-down excited that my efforts had finally produced a conclusion on the relic, but I was also happy I was going to have an ending to the book, too.

There’s some pretty meaty religious history worked into the text. Could you give us an idea of the breakdown between research and writing time? Was it difficult to find a balance between the two?

I was—and still am—so obsessed with the history of the Holy Foreskin that it never felt like work to me. It was great going the Vatican Library and doing research and then spending the next day writing about it.

The most challenging part was actually balancing historical exposition and writing about my present search for the relic in the narrative. The transition between the two, while writing an accessible and comprehensive (and generally chronological) history of the relic, was almost like putting together a huge jigsaw puzzle in my mind.

What’s been the hardest thing about writing and publishing your first book? And the most fun, or satisfying?

The only way into Old Calcata / Photo: paulspace

For most people, the most difficult aspect is getting a publishing house to want to publish your book. As I mentioned above, I didn’t really have that problem. So for me one of the most difficult aspects was being able to shut out distractions while I was writing the book.

I wrote the first two-thirds of the book—60,000 words—in three months in Calcata, where I didn’t have very many modern distractions (like TV and the internet) and I wrote the last one-third of the book—30,000 words—in six months in New York City. If I had tried writing the entire thing in New York, I’d probably still be working on it. Now I understand the importance of writing colonies and retreats.

Finally, the inevitable question: What’s next for David Farley? Another book? Another weird town? Perhaps some well-deserved rest?

Trying to get the word out about An Irreverent Curiosity. Also, I’m just starting on another book project, but it’s in the very early stages, so I don’t want to go into much detail yet. I will say that it’s far from a travel narrative and will have much more consequence than stuff I’ve written in the past.

Community Connection:

Matador members know that there are plenty of memorable travel stories available on the web , but an old-fashioned anthology of essays can also be a great place to look.

For budding travel writers, anthologies are also a great way to sample a wide variety of styles and voices, rather than learning from just one writer.

Whether you’re looking for travel inspiration, mentors to model your writing on, or simply a good read, look no further:

10. Hyenas Laughed At Me and Now I Know Why: The Best of Travel Humor and Misadventure, edited by Sean O’Reilly, Larry Habegger and James O’Reilly. One in a series of humor titles from travel publishing giant Travelers’ Tales, this little book is packed with awkward situations and hilarious consequences, from writers known and unknown.

9. Tales from Nowhere, edited by Don George. A rare literary offering from guidebook publisher Lonely Planet, this collection features dispatches from “nowhere” – and the tales the writers come up with from that vague starting point are all fresh and often funny.

8. The Best Travelers’ Tales 2004, edited by Sean O’Reilly, Larry Habegger and James O’Reilly. All of the Travelers’ Tales annual collections are worth a look, but 2004 was a particularly fine vintage, including work from Mark Jenkins, Rolf Potts, and the excellent (but relatively hard to find) Jeff Greenwald.

7. The Kindness of Strangers, edited by Don George. Another Don George collection from Lonely Planet, with an introduction by the Dalai Lama. Features all the big names, and just might get you a little emotional about the wonder and goodness of the world.

6. Jaguars Ripped My Flesh, by Tim Cahill. One of several collections from founding Outside editor Tim Cahill, filled with his trademark stories: classic man-vs-nature adventure, with a healthy injection of humanity.

5. The Best American Travel Writing 2000, edited by Bill Bryson and Jason Wilson. Any of the Best American anthologies will be worth your while, but the inaugural edition is one for the record books, with impossible to forget stories featuring everyone from Dave Eggers to the Dalai Lama.

4. Wanderlust: Real-Life Tales of Adventure and Romance, edited by Don George. Salon.com’s “Wanderlust” travel section was a ground-breaker in quality online travel writing, and its demise was a huge loss. The 40 stories in this collection, including heavyweights like Isabel Allende and Simon Winchester, and the early work of Rolf Potts, will make you sad it’s gone all over again. (The online archive might console you, though.)

3. Video Night in Kathmandu, by Pico Iyer. Anthology? Debatable. But I’d argue that the essays in this book are distinct enough to warrant inclusion here. And even if Iyer’s collection of observations from a rapidly-changing 1980s Asia aren’t technically an anthology, they still make a remarkable read. (My favourite is the painfully poignant essay on the sad music-makers of the Phillippines.) A classic.

2. The Best American Travel Writing 2006, edited by Tim Cahill and Jason Wilson. I’m a little biased here because this is one of the first travel writing anthologies I ever read, and it got me hooked. But the stories in this book, originally selected by series editor Jason Wilson and then winnowed down by guest editor Tim Cahill, are top-notch.

Stand-outs include Ian Frazier’s retrospective “Out of Ohio” and a fantastic collaborative piece on the anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War, “After the Fall” by Morgan Meis and Tom Bissell.

1. The World: Travels, 1950-2000, by Jan Morris. Widely considered to be the greatest travel writer of our time – and one of the best, ever, period – Jan Morris always offers lush descriptions of the places she visits, and remarkable insight into their deeper character.

This anthology runs from her first major break, covering the Hillary expedition from Everest Base Camp, to the hand-over of Hong Kong by the British. The essays are organized by decade and region, and are occasionally marked by more personal milestones as well – such as the powerful piece on Morris’ sex change in Morocco in the 1970s, completing her transition from James to Jan.

A must-read, and a great introduction before diving into her 30+ full-length books.

More reading

For more recommendations from the Matador Community, check out the outstanding selections in Eva’s South Africa Reading Guide, and the “Books” section in Julie Schwietert’s Before You Go Guide to Cuba.

Halifax, Haligonia, Halifornia, HFX, or simply Hali – fiercely beloved by its residents, this is a city of contradictions: steeped in naval history and lined with stately Victorian and Edwardian homes, it’s also home to a hip student population and some of the kickingest nightlife in Canada. With a potent local music scene and a growing reputation for fine dining, Halifax has something for everyone – whether you want to chow down on cheap vegetarian sushi, do the drunken jig at a traditional Maritime pub, or hit an all-ages hiphop show. Good eating and hard drinking are a big part of life here, and with this guide it’s easy to stay green and still join in the fun.

PRACTICAL INFO

Halifax is located on Nova Scotia’s southern shore, on a narrow peninsula between Halifax Harbour and the Northwest Arm, both inlets of the North Atlantic. The city has merged, for administrative purposes, with neighbouring communities on the opposite side of the harbour narrows and around the inner basin, but Halifax proper is where you’re likely to spend most of your time.

Halifax International Airport receives direct flights from several US cities as well as major cities in the UK, and trains come in a few times a week from Montreal. There are also ferry services from Portland and Bar Harbor, Maine, to Yarmouth, Nova Scotia – from there, you can reach Halifax by bus or car. The nearest land crossing from the US is at the border between Calais, Maine, and St. Stephen, New Brunswick.

GET OUTDOORS

Point Pleasant Park is a sprawling green space on the very tip of the peninsula, laced with paths for jogging, cycling, or just plain walking along and enjoying the views of the ocean or the leaves changing colour in the fall. The park was devastated by Hurricane Juan in 2003 – 12,000 trees were destroyed – but it is still a beautiful, peaceful spot for people-watching, exercise, or relaxation. Follow South Park Street or Tower Road to the park entrance.

The Public Gardens were also hard-hit by Hurricane Juan, but have been largely restored. Bounded by Spring Garden Road and South Park, Summer, and Sackville streets, the gardens are a manicured respite from the busy downtown streets. Open from May 1 to November 1, they’re beautiful to walk around – but stick to the paths: this is a Victorian park, and the grass is strictly for looking at, not for lounging on.

The Halifax Common is another large green space in the heart of the city, stretching between Robie and North Park streets. It’s played host to such big-name acts as Pope John Paul II and The Rolling Stones, but most days you’ll find high school football teams training, people jogging, and kids tossing a Frisbee or kicking a soccer ball around. There are baseball diamonds, a skate park, a couple of fountains, and a city wading pool, all for public use.

Fort George, more commonly known as the Halifax Citadel, is a Victorian-era fortress, designed to protect the city from attack by those darn Yankees. It’s open seasonally for tours, but if theater students in period costume aren’t your thing, the real attraction is the ground the fortress is built on: the imposing Citadel Hill. A climb to the top offers unbeatable views of the harbour and the city; in winter, it’s also a killer tobogganing spot.

Halifax Harbour isn’t all that easy to get out on under your own steam – it’s a major, working industrial harbour, and tourists aren’t allowed to just paddle out and about as they please. There are a number of boat tours that operate out of the waterfront area, from tall ships to amphibious vehicles to your basic booze cruiser – the greenest and most interesting, when it’s in town, is probably the Bluenose II, a replica of the legendary Grand Banks fishing schooner that is featured on the Canadian 10-cent coin. For a cheap look at the harbour and a good view of the waterfront, take the ferry across the narrows to sister-city Dartmouth and back.

There is limited, basic camping on McNab’s Island, a 1000-acre provincial park located in the mouth of Halifax Harbour. Come here for hiking, bird-watching, or to explore the military ruins – no fires permitted, and everything that comes on to the island with you, should leave with you too.

If you have a car, there’s a gorgeous stretch of beach a half-hour west of the city at Crystal Crescent, and good (cold) surfing at Lawrencetown, just east of Dartmouth on Highway 207. Also, again if you have access to a car and have the time to get out of the city, check out one of North America’s greenest road trips, a great loop that begins and ends in Halifax.

ARTS AND CULTURE

Check out The Coast, Hali’s excellent free alternative weekly, for the latest word on live music, gallery events, theater, movies, readings, and more.

GREEN EATS…

Bob and Lori’s Food Emporium should be your first stop for green-friendly eats. It’s a funky old place on Gottingen Street, near the Common, and the food is cheap and memorable. Bob buys his veggies from local Annapolis Valley farmers, and his coffee from Just Us! Coffee Roasters Co-op, Canada’s first fair trade operation. Almost everything – from the fresh bread and oatcakes right down to the hummus, mayonnaise, and soynaise – is homemade on site. The sandwich and soup combo is a hearty meal – all of Bob’s soups are mind-blowing, and try the tofu salad sandwich. The vegan chef salad is also a great fresh option, and the veggie burger is to die for. In fact, pretty well everything on the menu is fantastic (except the perogies, which come from a frozen bag). It’s not all vegetarian, either – the ham and cheese sandwich is a crowd favourite, as are the traditional Newfoundland fishcakes (served with “chow,” a green tomato relish) on Fridays. Open for breakfast and lunch, this hippie haunt is highly recommended.

After over a decade as Halifax’s go-to pay-by-weight veggie buffet, the Heartwood Bakery and Café has recently renovated and gone to a set menu with table service. Check it out on Quinpool Road.

A couple of other vegetarian/organic/local-friendly options include Satisfaction Feast Restaurant, on Grafton Street, or The Wooden Monkey on Argyle Street. For green-friendly groceries, try the fantastic Halifax Farmers Market, in the atmospheric old Alexander Keith’s brewery building near the waterfront, or Great Ocean Natural Food Market, on Quinpool Road.

…AND DRINKS!

How better to go green in a drinking town like Halifax than by supporting your local microbrewery? Halifax boasts two genuine craft microbrewers, Propeller and Garrison. Look for their products in pubs throughout the city, and if you’re with a large group, arrange a tour (and tasting session) at the breweries themselves. Two larger brewers also got started in Halifax, the mid-sized Oland, and the giant Alexander Keith’s, whose signature IPA is on tap across Canada.

For more green-friendly bakeries, restaurants and grocers in the Halifax area, check out HumaneFood.ca’s Halifax listings. Also, feel free to wander in to almost any downtown eatery or pub that catches your fancy: almost all are locally owned small businesses that are worth supporting.

For more restaurant and pub recommendations in Halifax, see my Matador Guide to Budget Dining and Drinking in Halifax.

ACCOMMODATION

Halifax Backpackers Hostel is a friendly indie hostel on Gottingen Street, near the Common. Halifax Heritage House Hostel, near the train and bus stations, is the city’s Hostelling International location. The YWCA on Barrington Street is a good cheap option if you’d like your own room (women-only, though), and also a good cause to support: the place also houses a battered women’s shelter. The YMCA near the Public Gardens welcomes both genders to its single rooms. In summer you can also rent dorm rooms at St. Mary’s University, Dalhousie University, or my own alma mater, University of King’s College. (Hint: Kings campus is the prettiest!)

TRANSPORTATION

Unless described as being out of town, everything in this guide is within walking distance. The city and surrounding area is hilly, but biking is a popular option and a great way to get out to some more far-flung sites: rent your own at Pedal and Sea Adventures. Metro Transit runs buses and ferries in the area.

Eva Holland is a historical researcher and freelance writer living in Ottawa, Canada. She blogs about travel for World Hum and Vagablogging, and her writing has appeared in The Ottawa Citizen, The Edmonton Journal, and Matador Travel.

Photo by Hughes Leglise-Bataille

Cocktail parties, foreign dignitaries, expense accounts – the stereotypical life of a diplomat hardly meshes with the Matador philosophy of greener, sustainable travel and of honest interaction with the local culture.

But when you’re thinking of jobs that allow for a lifetime of travel, it’s a tough one to ignore. And as it turns out, the reality is both less glamorous and, perhaps, more in keeping with your goals and principles than you’d expect.

I recently asked Doug Holland (my dad), who is currently serving as a Canadian Foreign Service Officer in Barbados, what life in the diplomatic corps is really like. Read on to see if you have what it takes – and if the job’s for you.

What does a diplomat really do, anyway?

Most countries’ diplomatic responsibilities are divided up into three main categories: political, trade, and consular services.

So, “a political officer, in a small mission like ours in Barbados, is a generalist who reports on local developments and advocates for support for Canadian interests,” such as a Canadian-supported motion at the United Nations or a similar multilateral international effort.

“A trade officer promotes the interests of Canadian companies, by introducing them to useful contacts, making them aware of commercial opportunities, providing guidance for visits and basic information they can use.”

A consular officer deals with day-to-day travel problems like lost passports, and in an emergency, “provides essential services to Canadians in need.”

On an average day, a political officer might write a speech for a visiting high-ranking politician from back home or attend a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

A trade officer might put an engineering firm from their home country in touch with a local government, to help them land a contract setting up the new light rail system.

A consular officer might have to sort out the case of a visiting national accused of a crime, or contact family members back home in the case of an injury or death.

There are also more specialized roles for development experts, police or military attachés, and more, but the bulk of the work falls into these three main categories.

What are the perks?

Salaries vary across different governments and across different roles, but a rough spectrum might run from $35 000 to $100 000 per year, not including upper management. Other benefits include extra vacation time, “family reunion” flights, subsidized (and sometimes flashy) accommodation, duty-free goods, and more.

And then of course, there’s the travel, which “can range from the mundane and limited to exotic and too frequent.” For example: since arriving in Barbados, “I’ve been to Antigua twice, Dominica twice, Grenada, St. Kitts, St. Lucia twice and St. Vincent, all within less than 5 months – but I’ve not seen much of any of them,” thanks to meetings and report-writing.

Still, living and working as a diplomat, contrary to stereotype, can lead to a great deal of knowledge and insight about a country. Between invitations to cultural events and celebrations, endless briefings about local customs, and the simple immersion of everyday life, “you can get to know things about a country that few others would.”

Can diplomats ‘make a difference’ in the world?

Diplomats go where the average traveler can’t, from full-on hot zones like Iraq and Afghanistan to (marginally) more stable, impoverished places like Haiti or Chad.

While most development and aid work is done by more specialized staff, diplomats in these areas nevertheless have the opportunity to help repair a fractured economy, spread the gospel of electoral accountability, or get involved in the refugee claims process.

Even in calmer areas, there are still ample opportunities to effect positive change: “I like to think I am making a difference by promoting Canadian training for police, military, etc. and by encouraging regional institutional development so the good guys can better compete with the organized criminals.

Or making a difference by fostering Canadian standards for government procurement that will reduce corruption and old boys’ influence/control.” In other areas, “a trade officer might say she makes a difference by increasing a company’s sales so it employs more people.”

And a consular officer makes a difference for at least one stressed-out traveler when they arrange a replacement passport quickly, or, in a worst-case scenario, “when they send the body bag home promptly.”

Sounds pretty sweet – what’s the catch?

Some of the big-picture downsides can include social, cultural and linguistic isolation, or even physical danger. And of course, moving around the world every three years or so can take a heavy toll on families, as spouses are forced to sacrifice their own careers and children hop from school to school.

On a day-to-day basis, there are also the inevitable expat frustrations, when “things don’t work they way they ‘should’ like in Canada.” Then there are the financial challenges in the pricier cities of the world, “where our salaries don’t match up to what the locals get, so you’re in this really interesting place but can’t afford to go to a restaurant.”

How do I sign up?

Competition is fierce for a relatively small number of positions: baseline requirements generally include a bachelor’s degree (though a masters is increasingly an ‘unofficial’ requirement), and tough-to-quantify characteristics like judgment and intelligence. Language skills are an asset, as is prior international experience.

Expect an extended testing process rather than a straightforward resume-and-cover-letter, interview-and-offer type of scenario. You might be tested on your writing skills, your knowledge of world events, logic, or aptitude for languages.

In the latter stages, expect to have to pass a serious security screening: this may include exams relating to your physical and mental health, extensive police background checks, and the accumulation of a fair bit of your personal information in a file folder somewhere in your government’s intelligence branch.

For more information, try the US Department of State, the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, or the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Feature Photo: Mikey G Ottawa

Eva Holland is a historical researcher and freelance writer living in Ottawa, Canada. She blogs about travel for World Hum and Vagablogging, and her writing has appeared in The Ottawa Citizen, The Edmonton Journal, and Matador Travel.

Photo by Joseph Brody

As we all make efforts to minimize our carbon footprint, the Traveler’s Notebook presents the first of our series on the greenest road trips in North America: Nova Scotia. These trips offer maximum activity options with a minimum amount of driving. And as opposed to interstates, which usually avoid local communities (and thus deprive them of the economic support they’d otherwise receive from travelers), the roads you’ll travel here traverse some of the best towns and terrain you’ll find anywhere.

Nova Scotia is “Canada’s ocean playground” – a land of salty old towns, friendly locals, and heartbreaking coastal scenery. This short loop begins and ends in Halifax.

Heading west out of Halifax, avoid the divided Highway103, and opt instead for the winding coastal Highway 3.

Your first stop has got to be the wave-lashed, glacier-scarred, lobster fishing village of Peggy’s Cove. Nova Scotians love to complain about how touristy this tiny community has become, but the reality is that development in the area has been strictly controlled. The only amenity for tourists is a restaurant/gift shop combo specializing in seafood chowder and bright yellow, plastic Sou’Westers. Sunny summer afternoons will see some tour buses coming and going, but on a foggy morning or evening you’ll have the place to yourself.

Just west of the village you’ll find the haunting, somber memorial to Swissair Flight 111, which crashed into the bay in 1998 killing everyone on board.

Stop in Mahone Bay for herb and cheese bread (or any other baked goodie that catches your eye) at the Lahave Bakery, which also doubles as a hostel in peak season.

Lunenburg is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, home port of the legendary fishing schooner Bluenose (as seen on the Canadian 10-cent coin), and a small town packed with postcard views and local history. It also attracts more than its fair share of artsy types and old hippies: look for folk art galleries and veggie-friendly cafes scattered between the seafood restaurants and tiny B&Bs.

From Lunenburg, cut inland via Bridgewater to Kejimkujik National Park. Keji is a canoeist’s paradise in the heart of Nova Scotia’s largely uninhabited interior, and offers a mixture of drive-in and backcountry sites, accessible by foot, canoe (rentals available), cross-country ski, or snowshoe.

Follow Highway 8 north from Keji until you emerge at Annapolis Royal, founded by the French in 1605 and one of the oldest European settlements in North America. There are some beautiful heritage buildings, gardens, crafty shops, and the usual Victorian B&Bs, but the area’s economic troubles, and its relative isolation from the tourist beaten path, mean that none of it feels trite or overdone – this really is a sleepy old colonial town, not just a modern re-enactment.

Detour west along the Annapolis Basin to Bear River, a village known for its eclectic community of artists, and for its riverside houses built on stilts to withstand the famous Fundy tides, the highest in the world. Browse the studios, galleries and craft shops, wander the riverside paths, and check out the Bear River First Nations Community Heritage and Cultural Centre, an interpretive centre showcasing the traditional Mi’kmaq way of life.

Heading east again, stick to Highway 1 as it shadows less-interesting Highway 101. In Kingston, get off the highway entirely and ask a local for directions to the village of Morden, also known as French Cross, on the Bay of Fundy. Here you’ll find a powerfully bleak stretch of coastline and a lonely monument to the Acadians who were forcibly expelled from the region by the British in 1755 – eventually becoming the Cajuns of Louisiana and the Gulf Coast.

Back on the 1, head east to Kentville and then north to Cape Split for a classic day hike. After you’ve had your fill of the view, Highway 1 will take you back east and south to Halifax.

Practical Notes:

Public transport options are few and far between. Salty Bear Adventure Travel offers a variety of hop-on/hop-off options, and Acadian Lines serves the major centers. Hitching is still relatively common in rural Nova Scotia, and biking is a great option as well if you don’t mind a lot of hills.

Camping Nova Scotia lists camping options around the province.

This loop could be extended by following Highway 3 west from Lunenburg all the way to Yarmouth, on the western tip of the peninsula, where it connects to Highway 1. Tourism Nova Scotia offers further detail about both routes – check out The Lighthouse Route (south shore) and The Evangeline Trail (Fundy shore).

For more on Halifax, see my Matador Guide.

And finally, keep your eyes peeled for any village, historical site, or quirky roadside attraction that catches your eye as you go. There is far, far more to see than I have been able to cover here.

Ciad mille failte!

Eva Holland is a historical researcher and freelance writer living in Ottawa, Canada. She blogs about travel for World Hum and Vagablogging, and her writing has appeared in The Ottawa Citizen, The Edmonton Journal, and Matador Travel.

Do you have a great itinerary we should include in North American’s Greenest Road Trips? Click here to contribute.

Canada’s national capital doesn’t get the travel attention that its flashier cousins, Toronto and Montreal, receive. But Ottawa, a mid-sized city on the border between Ontario and Quebec, has a lot more to offer visitors than just the chance to rub elbows with politicians and bureaucrats. In Ottawa you can see Canadian tax dollars at work–funding a brace of high-quality museums, galleries and festivals, public transit to reach them all, and possibly the best network of designated cycle paths and bike lanes on the continent. The capital is also, thanks to its small size and relatively isolated location, a lot closer to nature than most major cities. Ever loaded your snowshoes onto a city bus, hopped off outside a nature preserve, and headed off-trail for the afternoon? No? Welcome to Ottawa, the city where your urban-outdoor travel dreams can come true.

PRACTICAL INFO

Ottawa’s international airport has direct flights to a few major US cities as well as to London – otherwise, expect to connect through Toronto or Montreal. Amtrak connects with the Canadian rail network (Via Rail) in Toronto and Montreal as well, so you can change to an Ottawa-bound train in either city. The nearest border crossings are at Brockville and Cornwall, roughly an hour west and east of town, respectively.

GET OUTDOORS

The outdoorsy type is faced with an embarrassment of riches in Ottawa, all year round. The main hubs of activity are Gatineau Park, The Greenbelt, the Ottawa River and the Rideau Canal.

Gatineau Park is a 361-square kilometer preservation area, managed by the NCC and hovering on the edges of Gatineau, Ottawa’s conjoined-twin city on the Quebec side of the river. In summer it’s home to hiking, mountain biking and camping (not to mention some major National Historic Sites, a handful of amazing lookouts, and some unique, fragile flora and geology as well), but it’s in winter that it really shows off, with 10km of maintained winter hiking trails, 20km of snowshoeing trails, and 200km of groomed cross-country skiing trails available for public use. There are also winter camping sites and a selection of winterized cabins and yurts for rent within the park. Equipment rentals are available at the visitors centre; the ski trails will cost you (about ten bucks for a day), but the snowshoeing and hiking trails are free. There’s also a private downhill skiing facility, Camp Fortune, located within the park.

The Greenbelt is a 20,000 hectare preserved green space located in what used to be the western edge of the city, though now the suburbs extend well beyond it. It’s either a stroke of eco-genius or an urban planning nightmare, depending on who you ask, but either way it offers hiking, cycling, snowshoeing, toboganning, and cross-country skiing, all free to the public and all within the boundaries of the city. There’s also camping within the park at the Ottawa Municipal Campground (May to October only).

The Ottawa River and the Rideau Canal are both lined on either bank by designated bike paths (rollerbladers, joggers, and pedestrians also welcome), connecting to a larger network of pathways and reserved bike lanes throughout the city. Most of the big sights – Parliament Buildings, the Supreme Court, the National Gallery, and so on – are visible from the river and the north end of the canal, and a ride along either is the perfect way to see the city. Bikes can be rented in summer at RentABike, at the intersection of Rideau Street and Colonel By (where the canal meets the river), and at the Dows Lake Pavilion, on the southern end of the canal.

As for getting out on the water, the Dows Lake Pavilion offers canoe and paddleboat rentals in summer for use on the canal. The Ottawa River is a trickier proposition since there’s been substantial hydro-electric development along almost its entire length, including a major dam within sight of the Parliament Buildings. But if you have the means to get right out of town (read: a car) there is some serious whitewater action to be had on the river about an hour west of the city. Wilderness Tours has been a major player in keeping this last stretch of “unharnessed” water preserved, and they offer rafting, kayaking, and other adventure fare like bungee jumping.

And of course, if you can make it to Ottawa in January or February, no visit is complete without a skate on the frozen Rideau Canal, the world’s longest skating rink and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Skate rentals are available at NCC shacks at regular intervals along the canal’s 7km length. Ottawa’s Winterlude festival takes place on the first three weekends in February, with ice sculpting, skating shows, concerts and more.

ARTS AND CULTURE

Art-lovers should start at the National Gallery of Canada, which features big-name traveling exhibitions as well as a permanent collection of Canadian and Aboriginal artwork. The gallery is located above the river, just behind Parliament hill; nearby, below the Chateau Laurier Hotel, is the Canadian Museum of Contemporary Photography (temporarily closed for construction at the time of writing). Just across the bridge in Gatineau is the Canadian Museum of Civilization, a must-see if you’re at all interested in Aboriginal culture and history. The museum also has an IMAX movie theater and features traveling exhibits, usually on major archaeological finds from other cultures. The National Arts Centre, at the intersection of Elgin and Wellington Streets, across from the Chateau Laurier, is home to an orchestra, a variety of theatre productions in English and French, concerts, dance, and more. Just west of downtown, overlooking the river, is the recently-opened Canadian War Museum, a wonderfully thoughtful look at just over one hundred years of Canadian military history. The museum manages to combine respect for Canada’s veterans with a serious consideration of war and its impact on servicemen and civilians alike; there is a lot more than dusty old medals to see here. A little further west again, on Wellington Street, you’ll find the Great Canadian Theatre Company (GCTC) which has just moved into a spankin’ new space in the bottom of a high-rise of “luxury eco-condos” – whatever that means.

Summer means outdoor festivals, and lots of them. July 1 is Canada Day, when the city loosens its collective necktie and throws a red-and-white maple leaf street party in the downtown core. The next three weeks of July belong to Bluesfest – believe it or not, the second-largest blues festival in North America, after Chicago. Headliners tend to come from a range of musical backgrounds (this past summer I saw Bob Dylan, The White Stripes, Van Morrison, George Clinton and Manu Chao within days of each other) while the smaller stages feature more authentic blues acts from around the world. In August the Ottawa Folk Festival and the Ottawa Jazz Festival hit town – the jazz fest has in recent years attracted names like Branford and Wynton Marsalis, Sonny Rollins, and Diana Krall.

ABORIGINAL OTTAWA

Famed explorer Samuel de Champlain was one of the first Europeans to lay eyes on the stretch of river that now runs through the nation’s capital – he called it la grande riviere des algoumequins, after the Algonquin people who lived on its shores and traveled up and down its length. Today, Aboriginal Experiences offers a taste of that heritage, with a variety of packages aimed at showcasing native storytelling, crafts, food, song and dance. The events take place from June to September on Victoria Island, easily accessible from the Portage Bridge just west of downtown.

GREEN EATS

Local coffee chain Bridgehead is the place to go for fair-trade lattes, free wi-fi, fresh soups and sandwiches (try the spicy thai tofu!), and a good range of herbal and caffeinated loose-leaf teas. There are locations scattered around the city, including one at Bank and Albert near the Parliament buildings, one near the GCTC on Wellington (west of downtown) and one on Elgin Street, south of the National War Monument and not far from the canal.

For self-serve, pay-by-weight vegetarian buffets, try The Table (across from the GCTC on Wellington) or The Green Door (on Main Street, near the Pretoria Bridge over the canal). Both serve a mix of Asian fusion and veggie takes on old comfort food favorites like lasagna or ratatouille – think Moosewood Cookbook. They make an effort to use local and/or organic produce, and have at least some vegan options every day.

The Byward Market isn’t just for bar-hoppers and buskers – there really is a market here too, though it’s more touristy than your average farmer’s market. For less maple candy and more fresh produce, try the Parkdale Market, on Parkdale near Wellington (again, near the GCTC just west of downtown), open every day of the week from May to November. Herb and Spice is a local grocery chain emphasizing organic options and locally-produced foods – not just fresh produce but prepared meals from local caterers, baked goods from small-scale bakeries, and so on. There’s a location downtown on Bank near Somerset, and another – you guessed it – on Wellington near the GCTC.

ACCOMMODATION

Ottawa’s hotel scene is primarily geared towards the government conference/convention scene, but that does mean some serious deals are sometimes available on weekends. There are two hostels right in the heart of downtown, the Ottawa Backpackers Inn and the Ottawa Jail Hostel, eerily located in the old Carleton County Jail, and there are also a number of Couchsurfing hosts based in the city. (I know of at least one who’d be happy to have you!)

TRANSPORTATION

The city’s public transit – much as Ottawans love to complain about it – is really pretty good. There is one light rail link in addition to a large fleet of buses. Ottawa’s OCTranspo connects with Gatineau’s STO at the Rideau Centre, in the heart of downtown. There are regular, fast connections to the airport and the train station. Also, most Ottawa city buses are now outfitted for “rack and roll”, meaning that you can cycle around downtown and then load your bike onto the front of the bus and ride out to the Greenbelt for some more pedaling.