Claude Bonnet of Le Moulin de Provence bakery in the Byward Market prepares a window display in preparation for the Royal visit of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in Ottawa on Wednesday, June 29, 2011.Sean Kilpatrick / THE CANADIAN PRESS
They were whacking weeds, chopping vegetables and tuning guitars Wednesday as Canada's capital city put the finishing touches in place for the arrival of Prince William and Kate on their first official tour as Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.
The newlyweds start their nine-day Canadian tour Thursday in Ottawa, where they will lay a wreath at the National War Memorial before attending a reception at Government House - William and Prime Minister Stephen Harper are scheduled to speak - followed by a barbecue in the garden.
The royal couple is also scheduled to travel to Quebec, Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories and Alberta before leaving July 8 for California.
In Ottawa, the streets are abuzz with last-minute preparations.
At the Silver Rose flower shop, Gerry Arial was preparing the bouquets that will be presented to Kate throughout her visit to the capital city. Arial has provided the floral arrangements for every royal visit since the repatriation of the Constitution in 1982.
Kate's first bouquet, to be handed over Thursday afternoon by a small child at the Ottawa airport, will include thistles, a symbol of Scotland.
"I know the varieties of flowers that she likes and she likes dainty flowers, so the bouquets that we're making are all made out of tinier flowers, and she likes specific colours like purples and pinks," Mr. Arial said.
He cited spray roses and lisianthius as two examples.
"I know for a fact that she loves pastels, so I'm doing mostly pastels, nothing strong. The other thing about that is they're a very mellow couple, and laid back themselves, and giving her strong flowers like reds would only take the attention to the flower, not to her."
At Rideau Hall, gardeners were beautifying the grounds, while chefs sliced and diced mountains of vegetables and prepared heaps of pastries for the reception. Security barricades were up around the National War Memorial.
On Parliament Hill, the Canada Day stage was being readied for the big show, with TV hosts testing their perches and workers erecting fences around the perimeter.
The royal landau went for a test run Wednesday as dozens of police officers in motorcycles lined their bikes up to the west of the eternal flame on Parliament Hill. Bands performing at the Canada Day show performed sound checks as workers nailed up tourist signs.
Oddly, even though the royal visit is expected to draw massive crowds, there was only one store along the Sparks Street pedestrian mall hawking William and Kate merchandise Wednesday.
Owner Tony Kano was as surprised as anyone else to find there were no major suppliers offering keepsakes. In the nation's capital, Canada Day is bigger than Christmas for souvenir peddlers.
"We were waiting for the suppliers to come up with an item and they didn't, so we came up with our own T-shirt and our own mug," Mr. Kano said.
"Ever since the wedding, everyone was asking for anything and nobody provided it - you have the major players, the major department stores and nobody made anything for them."
There's little doubt Canada is in for a close-up of royal proportions.
More than 1,300 journalists have been accredited for the tour. Foreign journalists in town ahead of the royal couple milled around the downtown core Wednesday, their "Royal Tour" credentials swinging from their necks.
Heritage Canada is spending $1.2 million on the tour, not including security costs.
At one news conference at the Museum of Civilization in Gatineau, Que., across the Ottawa River, an Australian reporter asked Immigration Minister Jason Kenney whether Canada would be a better host than her native country.
Mr. Kenney laughed and offered a history lesson by way of response.
"We never get into any one-upmanship with our Aussie friends down under," Mr. Kenney said.
"We both share the same traditions, the same institutions, the same constitutional monarchy and same Westminister parliamentary democracy ... Canada is proud that this is a tradition and institution that connects us deeply in our past."
Mr. Kenney was unveiling the new royal flags for Prince William and Prince Charles, which will be flown while the royal couple is in Canada. The standard for the Prince of Wales has feathers in the centre surrounded by maple leaves, while his son's flag features his royal cipher - a symbol composed of the letter "W" with a crown above it.
Protocol dictates, however, that the Queen's flag - or that of her representative in Canada - fly over Parliament Hill during royal visits. That's why Gov. Gen. David Johnston's standard will wave atop the Peace Tower while William and Kate are in Ottawa.