Ottawa

Holy. Crap. It's COLD! We should've listed to the concierge this morning. When we asked the best way to walk to the Byward Market, he said, "walk to the corner, then hail a cab." We laughed and said we'd be fine walking. Problem was, with the wind chill, it was -30. Yes, that's celcius. When converted to farenheit, that's a balmy -22. Yes, MINUS 22. Oh. My. God. I think my legs are STILL numb... 12 hours later!!

Other events of the day included a lovely lunch at Tucker's and a fun "friendly game" with a local team on which there is a kid who used to play at the rink Keeper Boy currently plays at. Pretty cool. Some people from the teams have kept in touch, and this is the second year we've played this team in a pre-tournament "friendly game." Appropriately, the game ended in a 3-3 tie. And we all had dinner together afterward at a nice restaurant in the rec facility (which was amazing).

The Marriott we are staying in is great. Great location, great rooms, great ammenities. There are two kids zones on the fourth floor (along with an indoor pool and a very well-equipped workout room). This is a place that is obviously used to hosting youth hockey teams. The kids zones are stocked with gaming systems, sofas, a foosball table, a giant slide, and toys for younger kids. A separate kids zone boasts a six-hole mini golf course, an air hockey table, tabletop shuffleboard, and an area set up for shooting hockey... complete with a net, goalie equipment, sticks, and tennis balls. Guess where Keeper Boy has spent most of his free time?

Tomorrow we have a busy day... game at 11:15 against a team from Finland. How cool is that? Keeper Boy will be in net for that one. Another game at 4:45. And then we're going to the Senators/Avalanche game tomorrow night. Busy day...