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While all of us in Toronto are tickled pink that our fair city has popped
up on the list of desirable future locations, I've got to tell you that the
local chapter, ARLIS/Ontario, is supporting the proposal of Ottawa as a
site in the near future.
Ottawa is a fantastic conference city, with all of the facilities and
cultural attractions that anyone would expect to find in a national
capital. Check it out on Destination Guides on the Internet, at
<http://dest-excite.previewtravel.com/DestGuides/0,1208,EXC_260,00.html>.
Ignore the first (historical) comment that it's inconveniently located;
Queen Victoria, who was responsible for choosing its site, wouldn't
recognize it! Today's Ottawa has a first-rate, recently rebuilt
international airport, freeways that lead straight to upper New York State
(and elsewhere), and trains and buses to get you there.
Canadians tend to be a bit blase about their capital city (unlike the
enormous pride Americans take in Washington and its monuments) so on behalf
of Canadian members of ARLIS/NA, let me sing its praises. It is
picturesquely located on the Ottawa River; the Rideau Canal is the site
each year of Winterlude, a carnival held in the dark of winter but hardly
dark in disposition. It is cosmopolitan, being anglo and francophone in
equal measure, spiced with the internationalism brought in by numerous
foreign embassies. It is architecturally intriguing, ranging from the 19th
century neo-Gothic (I don't know what else to call it) Parliament buildings
and the Chateau Laurier (yes, another fabulous 'railroad hotel', sister to
the Hotel Vancouver which we all adored at this year's conference), to the
contemporary landmarks of the National Gallery of Canada and the Museum of
Civilization. Our national archives has just opened a state-of-the-art
facility. A new national War Museum is on the drawing boards. The
National Arts Centre houses an internationally-known orchestra, and would
be a fabulous venue for our Convocation. Every spring, Ottawa is awash in
thousands of tulips, donated by the government of the Netherlands as thanks
for wartime sanctuary given to the Dutch royal family in the 1940s. For
those with a hankering for things royal, there is Rideau Hall, residence of
the Governor-General, the Queen's representative, with its 19th century
rooms (including an indoor tennis court decorated as a tent room). And
it's a short hop by plane to either Montreal or Toronto.
It's nothing like Vancouver, Montreal or Toronto, and I know everyone would
thoroughly enjoy its unique qualities. My heart's on my sleeve!
Karen
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Karen McKenzie
Vice-President/President-Elect
ARLIS/NA
Art Gallery of Ontario
317 Dundas Street West
Toronto, CANADA M5T 1G4
Phone (416)979-6660 Ext. 389
Fax (416)979-6602
E-Mail [log in to unmask]
http://www.arlisna.org
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