Giant creatures of La Machine set Ottawa abuzz

Commuters and tourists in downtown Ottawa encountered a couple of unusual creatures inhabiting the city Thursday morning.

It's all part of an Ottawa 2017 event called La Machine, which will see the two robots crawl along downtown streets beginning Thursday evening until Sunday evening. 

The first creature is a giant spider "sleeping" Thursday morning on the roof of the Notre-Dame Cathedral on Sussex Drive. The spider is being held up by a crane to avoid overloading the cathedral's roof.

The spider, called Kumo, will awaken Thursday at 8 p.m. and slowly descend the cathedral's façade.

The second is a horse-dragon named Long Ma, resting in Marion Dewar Plaza in front of Ottawa City Hall. It will wake up on Friday morning.

Both mechanical giants drew a lot of attention from passersby Thursday morning who then shared photos on Twitter.

The rector for Notre-Dame Cathedral, Monsignor Daniel Berniquez, said the Archdiocese of Ottawa gave its blessing to the cathedral's participation.

"We encourage people to participate, as a church, in all the dimensions of the life of the city and in the world," said Berniquez. "So we said it's a good occasion for the church to participate … and make people happy."

La Machine's storyline is that Kumo has stolen Long Ma's wings, which are lying on the front lawn of the Supreme Court of Canada on Wellington Street.

Long Ma, which will be awoken Friday at 10 a.m. at city hall, will crawl along Ottawa roads in search of its missing wings.