Discovering a Pinch of Heaven’s Taste in A Long Icy Road

By Rizki Sulistya

Rideau Canal during winter

e sun shone brightly, beamed upon my face as I gazed the cloudless, blue sky while shuffling down an empty street packed with snow with my hands stuffed in my pockets. My face went numb as the icy breeze whispering over my skin and painting my cheeks red. The squeak and crunch noise of my winter boots against the snowy road fills the sound in my head as I walked through the snow heavily.  

Not realizing as I step forward I suddenly slipped. I felt a different road down my boots; hard, slippery, icy road with a touch of sprinkle snow on it. That is when I realized, I arrived at the world’s largest skating rink: Rideau Canal Skateway in Ottawa, Canada.

The Rideau Canal connects the city of Ottawa to the city of Kingston. It is 202 kilometers in length. In winter, a section of the Rideau Canal passing through central Ottawa becomes officially the world’s largest skating rink. The cleared length is 7.8 kilometers and has the equivalent surface area of 90 Olympic ice hockey rinks which later it was added to the Guinness Book of World Records in 2005 for being the largest naturally frozen ice rink in the world.

When I stepped my foot on that frozen ice rink for the first time, I was amazed. I kept starring at the ground, while falling on my knees, trying to knock the ground numerous times from side to side as the wet, cold ground absorbed through my jeans and it felt to my knees, a sudden shudder of chills sent down to my spine. I got up quickly and brushed off the wet, icy snow from my knees with my bare hands and for a second I thought, this used to be a waterway. I would not be able to step on it if it wasn’t for the cold, freezing, under minus ten degree weather. I would probably drown, deep down into the river by then.

I walked on the icy road carefully, trying not to fall with my hands out of my pocket, spread a little, balancing between my body and feet. The crunch of metal against the ice was a sweet sound of music to my ear. I stopped and stared at people flying past by me then I continued walking on the side with my un-bladed boots, walking faster and faster, almost running, trying to keep up with the skaters. I slipped and fell on my butt really hard, it was one cold pain.

As I was trying to get up, I suddenly smelled something good, sweet, and unfamiliar. I sniffed my stuffy nose really hard as I enjoy the unusual sweet smell of heaven. I followed the smell and came to this kiosk that said Beaver Tails on it with other snacks and beverages being sold along with it. All I could think of was to try that food but the line was like a ten deck train full of people, it was really long. I couldn’t help myself but to wait patiently in the line in one cold, freezing weather with my frozen hand which I sometimes rub it together and breathe into it, trying to make them warm.

The famous Beaver Tails

I could hear everyone’s excitement in front of me as they got closer and closer to the shack of beaver tails. As I got closer, the smell of the beaver tails grew stronger, one of the best aroma in the world, sort of like a sweet peppermint scent. I got to the front of the shack and a lady in red apron with her name tag on it that says Maggie greeted me in a really friendly way. The thin lady was probably around early thirties at that time, with a typical westerner look, blond curly hair, high bridge nose, light blue eyes and rosy red cheeks. I ordered the beaver tail, and voila! There it was in my hand a huge piece of bread that literary looked like a tail of a beaver drizzled with cinnamon powder and sugar.

I could see why people were willing to wait in line for so long because the taste was to die for, the experience of the unforgettable combination of cinnamon powder and sugar. The moment I took a huge bite, I could hear the crunchy of it, the cinnamon powder and sugar melted in my mouth, the taste was a little bit sweet, sort of spicy, and gave a sense fresh mint in my mouth. I took another bite and each bite delights with rich flavor of sweetness. My stomach was satisfied. I went home with a hunch of happiness waiting to come again next time.

The most interesting part of it all wasn’t the feeling of walking on ice for the first time or eating beaver tail but the little laughter I had every time someone slipped and fell in front of my face. It was hard for me to restrain my laughter since it was hilarious each time they fell which I shouldn’t have done it because the next time I tried skating for the first time, I fell on my butt really hard and the pain wouldn’t go away for days.