"Hull - across the river from Ottawa" a Hull Travel Page by Carmanah

I'm not really sure if Hull is still Hull, or if Hull is now Gatineau. The maps that I looked at showed this Québecois city, located north of Ottawa on the other side of the river, as "Gatineau". Yet, it was obvious that while driving and walking through Ottawa, the signs pointing north said "Hull".

So I'll forever be confused. Right now let's just assume that the city's name is Hull.

[Brief side note: Apparently Hull's name switched to Gatineau on January 1, 2002!]

On Friday, May 2, 2003, I flew from Vancouver to Ottawa, but I had to connect flights in Calgary, Alberta, and in Hamilton Ontario. It wasn't too bad, but it can be a tiring day, visiting three Canadian provinces and three time zones in one day.

On the evening that I arrived, friends of mine decided that we should do a bit of night-time exploring, more importantly, on the search for a "casse-croute" - a snack shack diner type place that generally serves poutine.

Now poutine is a Québecoise snack invention. Some people say it's a "Canadian delicacy", but the further away you get from Québec, the less popular and available it becomes. Most people will readily admit that poutine is greasy slop - as much a delicacy as a Scottish deep-fried Mars bar. Poutine is perfect for when you're drunk after a night of clubbing and you want something to snack on... or ideal when it's cold, rainy, and you feel like some gooey, warm, comfort food.

Poutine is French fries covered in gravy and cheese curds. The heat from the fries and the gravy melts the cheese, creating this messy glop that would certainly give you a heart attack.... but man is it ever tasty. Some restaurants serve it with a side of ketchup, and some will even include a side of mayonnaise, but traditionally you eat poutine as it is.

They say that when you're in Québec, you have to try poutine. And since I was in Ottawa, which was right across the river from Québec... and since I had never ever been to Québec before... my friends thought it would be fun to drive over to Hull in search of a Québecoise casse-croute for poutine.

And what a great excuse to visit a fourth Canadian province in one day, eh?

We drove over to Hull, and it was probably well just before midnight. We were in the land of Québec! Where smoking cigarettes is not looked down upon, and where the legal drinking age is 18! Where (stereotypically speaking of course) people know how to party!

So we were quite disappointed to find that practically every restaurant in Hull was closed. We drove up and down the streets, and nothing close to a casse-croute could be found. And those that we did find, were closed.

So we drove back into Ottawa to Banks Street and visited a corner store, and devoured 2 gigantic extra large paper cups full of poutine, covered in salt, pepper and vinegar.

Yum yum.

How's that for a first introduction to Hull?

Seriously speaking now, Hull is like a part of Ottawa, as it's right across the river, however, the river seperates the province of Ontario from the province of Québec, so Hull has completely different government, laws and taxes than Ottawa. But the biggest notice once you cross into Hull is that every sign - whether road signs or restaurant signs - are in French.

Welcome to Québec!

Later in my visit, on Wednesday, May 7, I decided to visit the famous Canadian Museum of Civilization (or la Musée de la Civilization). This is an amazing museum focusing on the history of the people of the world - including amazing exhibits on the history of Canadian people - both the natives and the immigrants, from the Inuit, to the Haida... to the first Viking visits hundreds of years before Jacques Cartier sailed ship.

I walked along through downtown Ottawa and over the Pont (Bridge) Alexandra. It was a cold and rainy day... probably no more than 8 degrees Celsius. It was the perfect day for a museum visit.

The staff at the museum are all bilingual because it's a major tourist destination, but you'll notice in Québec that French is the language of choice, and rightfully so. Because I took French Immersion in high school, I have a fairly good knowledge of French. I was quite excited to finally use French in my own country of Canada. I even had one woman come up to me, asking me if I knew where the main entrance was... and it made me all gleeful to know I was able to understand her, and respond back to her in French. Yay!

Silly story aside, back to Hull.

The biggest attraction that would make people visit Hull, besides being on a scenic river looking over to Ottawa, and besides the Museum being there, is that Gatineau Park is located there.

Gatineau Park is a gigantic forested park, complete with rocky hills, small ski runs, cottages, caves, trails, campsites, lakes (including the historically-significant Meech Lake) and the Mackenzie King Estate - home to the former Prime Minister who held the position for 22 years - the longest term in Canadian history. It's a huge wilderness reserve that spans north of the city; an ideal day visit or a weekend retreat away from the city.

I was lucky enough to visit Gatineau Park on the afternoon before flying back home. I visited both Pink Lake and Meech Lake. It's quite a gorgeous park and I would love to return and explore more.

All in all, I enjoyed my brief moments spent in Hull... but maybe next time, I'll try to explore more of the actual city!