The capital of the second biggest country on the planet, OTTAWA struggles with its reputation as a bureaucratic labyrinth of little charm and character. The problem is that many Canadians who aren't federal employees - and even some who are - blame the city for all the country's woes. All too aware of this, the Canadian government have spent lashings of dollars to turn Ottawa into "a city of urban grace in which all Canadians can take pride" - so goes the promotional literature, but predictably this very investment is often resented. Furthermore, the hostility is deeply rooted, dating back as far as 1857 when Queen Victoria, inspired by some genteel watercolours, declared Ottawa the capital, leaving Montréal and Toronto smarting at their rebuff.

In truth, Ottawa is neither grandiose nor tedious, but a lively cosmopolitan city of 330,000 with a clutch of outstanding national museums , a pleasant riverside setting and superb cultural facilities like the National Arts Centre, plus acres of parks and gardens and miles of bicycle and jogging paths. It also possesses lots of good hotels and B&Bs and a busy café-bar and restaurant scene - enough to keep the most diligent sightseer going for a day or three, maybe more. Here too, for once in English-speaking Ontario, Canada's bilingual laws make sense: Québec's Hull is just across the river and on the streets of Ottawa you'll hear as much French as English.