At the hotel in Oshawa, Canada,...
At the hotel in Oshawa, Canada, we were greeted by members of the Motor City Car Club. This year they had special goodie bags made up for all of the tour participants.
From London it was a two-and-a-half-hour drive to Oshawa. In 2007 we made a stop in Oshawa and met the members of the Motor City Car Club. When they heard we were traveling to Burlington they again rolled out the red carpet. We were greeted at our hotel by about 15 members of the club and made the short drive to the beautiful new Oshawa City Hall. There we were formally greeted by the Mayor of Oshawa who welcomed us to their city. It was then onto the Armory where we were treated to a delicious dinner provided to us by the City of Oshawa, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Motor City Car Club. The setting was the Officer’s Dining Room at the Armory and it was a very classic and historic setting for a get together. After dinner we were joined by many of the members of the Motor City Car Club for a meet and greet back at our hotel.
After a visit to Oshawa City...
After a visit to Oshawa City Hall and a special greeting from the mayor we made the short drive to the Armory in downtown Oshawa. We were treated to a delicious meal provided by the City, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Motor City Car Club. The Officer’s Dining Room provided a very lavish setting for our evening.
The CanadianClassicCars.ca Tour continued on Tuesday in Oshawa, Ontario. Members of the Motor City Car Club again joined us at the hotel in the morning. After our drivers’ meeting we made the short drive to downtown Oshawa to visit the Canadian Automotive Museum. Privately owned and funded, this museum contains a huge and varied collection of automobiles and motorcycles dating from the earliest examples up through the modern era. The second floor of the museum is filled with autos that were manufactured specifically in Canada. With almost 100 vehicles on display the hour that we spent at the Canadian Automotive Museum went by very quickly.
By 11 a.m. it was time to head for Ottawa. We had many stops planned for the day and it was a four-and-a-half-hour drive from Oshawa to Canada’s Capital of Ottawa. After checking in at our hotel we were met in the parking lot by our tour guide and host in Ottawa, Larry Way. Larry worked in the public relations department in Parliament for many years and now has an advertising and promotions agency in Canada. He organizes car events and works closely with our tour sponsor Canadian Classic Cars. Larry had arranged a special tour of the Parliament building for our road tour group for later Tuesday evening. From the hotel we headed out at about 5 p.m. to make a stop at a cruise at the Hazeldean Mall in Ottawa. This cruise is held weekly and our visit coincided with the final cruise of the summer. Our 35 vehicles made a nice addition to the regular group. There was even a cake to celebrate our visit and the end of the summer season. It was a short stop but it was fun to meet some of the local enthusiasts.
Tuesday morning our first...
Tuesday morning our first stop was the Canadian Automotive Museum. This privately funded collection has a wide variety of vehicles, including these classic Rolls-Royces. On the second floor there’s an area dedicated to cars that were manufactured in Canada.
Wednesday started with our daily drivers’ meeting and then a drive to the Canada Science and Technology Museum. Larry Way again worked some magic and we were treated to a tour of the restoration and preservation section of the museum. Not open to the public, this area is where the work is done to preserve and in some cases restore the museum-owned transportation vehicles. The term transportation in this case covers everything from locomotives to some of the earliest examples of two- and three-wheeled bicycles. It was an extremely interesting two hours that we spent behind the scenes at the Canada Science and Technology Museum. Thanks to everyone who helped make this special visit happen. After a brief lunch were made our way to the Canadian Aviation Museum. The equivalent to the United States Air and Space Museum, the Canadian counterpart houses some of the earliest examples of Canadian-manned flight, the bush planes that helped the earliest explorers and adventurers and covers the supersonic era in Canadian air history. Canada’s part in both World Wars and the men and women involved in those heroic efforts are duly honored in the museum. It was a very educational 90 minutes at the Canadian Aviation Museum.
Our next stop was at the Canadian...
Our next stop was at the Canadian Aviation Museum in Ottawa. Displays include some of the earliest examples of Canadian aircraft and the contribution that Canada made in both World Wars.
On our way to the Canadian...
On our way to the Canadian Classic Cars facilities we made a brief stop at the home of Larry Way. He was responsible for the planning that went into our Ottawa area visits. Collector automobiles and memorabilia fill his garage.
We visited the Canada Science...
We visited the Canada Science and Technology Museum where we were invited to see the restoration area and storage facility not normally open to the public; another case of the Road Tour getting behind the scenes.