Yesterday I met up with my friend Rebecca for dinner and to explore Winterlude. We came prepared with sweaters, snowsuits, snow-pants and winter accessories galore. We decided to dine at the Milestones in downtown Ottawa and we probably looked ridiculously under-dressed and goofy in our snow gear. However, it was well planned because we spent several hours outside that evening.
It was the night of a huge snowstorm and as a result downtown Ottawa was deserted. For once, there were no large crowds of tourists at Winterlude. There were no lineups anywhere, and Rebecca and I actually had the opportunity to pose at photo op stations.
As usual, I much preferred the amateur ice sculptures over the ones in the professional competition. I think I just find it more impressive that locals create these sculpture out of such small pieces of ice. In my opinion, the amateur sculptures also seem more personal than the larger, competitive sculptures.
However, there were some gorgeous competitive sculptures this year! We went in the evening, so the ice sculptures were all lit with various colored lights. It really added to the presentation and allowed you to see all the intricate details.
This is the first time I've been to Winterlude at the beginning of the festival. Usually by the time I make it to see the sculptures, they've all melted in the heat and sunlight.
Before leaving, Rebecca and I got some cute, couply pictures at a heart setup. You have no idea how hard it was to get these pictures of us; when I said earlier that Winterlude was deserted because of the snowstorm, I meant it. Thankfully, we managed to barter with a young couple from russia and they agreed to take our picture if we did the same for them.
How romantic, right?Labels: Friends, Life in Pictures, Reflection
