Blimey!

It is cold here now. Today it is -20*C, topping at -16*C. With wind chill it is -30*C. This is about a 50*C difference between Ottawa and Sydney!!

Zoom in on this one to see the ice formations on the tree!

Apparently Ottawa can reach 40*C in summertime, making it the capital city with the largest yearly temperature variation in the world (according to Ottawans anyway, who take a perverse pride in saying 'You haven't seen anything yet' when talking to us about the weather).
We've pretty much topped out on the clothing we brought with us, but it's serving us adequately. The trick is to avoid being outside for long lengths of time. Some people here barely spend any time outside in the winter, moving from house to car to workplace to pub with as little time in the elements as possible. Then there are those that go jogging in snowstorms, or ride their bicycles on days like today.


You need a much better camera than ours to capture the intricate little frost formations that are currently gracing our windowpanes.




Last night we went out to the Senators ice hockey match. They had a 2-0 win and it was a fun match to be at. We went with our landlords, and Ric is the unofficial mascot for the team. It is an interesting experience to wander around the stadium with a huge red shaggy 'Sens-quatch'.