Jun 8 - A Visit to the US Embassy
We had a few minutes before our appointment at the embassy this morning so after parking Alfie, we walked into the Byward Market for a coffee; into the very café that Barack Obama visited, some years back.
On the way to the embassy we walked past this plaque.
Well, that was interesting. As you may remember, our research indicated, and a border guard we spoke to some months ago confirmed, that if we wanted to visit the US for longer than 6 months, we needed a visa. There are various categories of visas: business, education, diplomatic, etc. We picked the one we thought that applied to us: B1/B2.

We completed the form online and submitted it along with our $160 US fee each. We booked our appointment for 10:15 this morning. We showed up at 10:00 as instructed. After various security checks, we were allowed inside to check in. That meant we could officially join the interview lineup. I suggested to Jen that she wait against the wall rather than try and negotiate the "snake" of a waiting line. A few minutes later, ahead of everyone else, Jen was called into the "diplomatic" interview room and I joined her. We explained the purpose of our request for an extended visit to the US and were told there is not a visa for visits over 6 months. Or in other words, we visit for 6 months or they may regard us as US citizens. The staff member we dealt with was very pleasant and understood our request, but that was it. 

We debated whether to continue with the visa process and I suggested as we had already paid our fees, we should finish and get our visas. They may make it easier to get into the US when we're at the border. Having said that, having a visa does not, as described on the various US Embassy web pages, guarantee entry into the US. More on this subject later.
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Back at the van, we decided to go for a walk. Jen wanted specifically to see the Centennial Flame.
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In front of the National Art Gallery, we saw Maman.

Across Sussex Drive and through a park near the Chateau Laurier, we gazed at the Ottawa River at the entrance to the Rideau locks.
We walked to the Centennial Flame and I took these pictures of it, the East Block and the West Block of the Parliament buildings.
And on the way back to Alfie, we walked past some excitement in downtown Ottawa - a sinkhole! This even made the national news which you might have seen.
This picture does not show the scores of emergency vehicles, police motorcycles, etc. dealing with this emergency. The people across the street, on the left, are watching things happen. I should have gone across and taken a picture - not.
So that's about it for today - an interesting mix of events. 
     
Til next time...
Maman