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I talked with the other cyclists in the morning while packing so I could get an early start to get out of the campground before anyone noticed I hadn’t paid. My route this morning followed some very scenic areas along the Rideau Canal/River and I stopped at a couple lock sites along the way. At one of them I got to watch as the Parks Canada staff worked the hand operated locks for several small boats.

I had an early lunch at the Rideau River provincial park before biking into Ottawa to my friend’s apartment. When I got there I found he had a copy of “Frommer’s Ottawa” which I found useful in planning my stay here. After my planning I walked downtown for dinner and then to the parliament buildings where I wandered around the grounds. When it got dark I watched a sound and light show projected directly onto the front of the entire center block building which was quite impressive.

On my way back to the apartment I stopped to watch one of the buskers in the street (International Busker Festival was going on) and was picked from the crowd to hold one of several ropes anchoring a pole upon which the performer would stand. He was actually quite choosy and swapped a couple people out who he felt he couldn’t fully rely on while risking his safety. Once he was done I was finally able to continue walking back to the apartment.