Around the world, there are a number of cathedrals with the name “Notre Dame,” and we’ve had the pleasure of visiting a number of them; including the most famous in Paris; ones in Montreal and Quebec City; and now, Ottawa. Originally, the site on which the Ottawa cathedral is built was home to a small wooden church, known as St. Jacques (built in 1832). This was demolished in 1841 to make way for a larger church. By 1847, the partially constructed structure was designated as the “Cathedral of Bytown” ( as Ottawa was called back then). Twenty years later, two gothic spires were added and covered in tin, according to French-Canadian style. This is the oldest, and largest church in the city, and serves as the seat of Ottawa’s Roman Catholic archbishop. Each year, during December, the diplomatic missions of the European Union stationed in Ottawa sponsor a concert featuring European Christmas carols and songs. In 1990, the Cathedral was designated a National Historic Site. It is truly an impressive structure!
Situated on Ottawa’s Sussex Street, across from the Art Gallery and just a block past the U.S. Embassy, is Notre Dame Cathedral, the oldest church in the city. The beautiful workmanship of this building, in our estimation, rivals anything we’ve seen so far. As in every Roman Catholic Cathedral we’ve visited, the stained glass windows are exquisite... ...especially the rose windows. Everywhere we looked was equally amazing. Painted to resemble the night sky with stars overhead, the ceiling is designed to give an open-air feeling. This carved wooden pulpit was one of our favorite pieces.
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Carl and Lorraine Aveni are two retirees planning on traveling through Europe for at least one year.
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