Scenes from Ottawa's 1st U.S. presidential visit since 2016

Joe Biden addressing Parliament, attending gala dinner

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Caption: U. S. President Joe Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau participate in an arrival ceremony at Parliament Hill on March 24, 2023 in Ottawa. (Andrew Harnik/The Associated Press)

U.S. President Joe Biden is in Ottawa Thursday and Friday for meetings, to address Parliament and attend a gala dinner.
He is the first sitting American president to visit Canada's capital since Barack Obama in June 2016. Biden came to Ottawa later that year, toward the end of his time as vice-president.
These in-person visits have been rare since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic more than three years ago. A U.S. president stopping by is one of the more high-profile — and disruptive — foreign dignitary visits to the capital.
Here's what this visit looked like.

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Caption: Work crews set up security fencing on Parliament Hill in Ottawa Wednesday in preparation for Biden’s visit. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press)

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Caption: A person walks in front of police vehicles as they block the area around Parliament Hill on Thursday. (Lars Hagberg/Reuters)

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Caption: A person waves a U.S. and Canadian flag in front of protestors outside the U.S Embassy Thursday ahead of Biden's visit. (Patrick Doyle)

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Caption: Air Force One arrives on a foggy Thursday evening in Ottawa. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press)

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Caption: Security forces look out from a turret on the first day of Biden's visit. (Lars Hagberg/Reuters)

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Caption: Biden's motorcade passes the Rideau Centre mall in Ottawa Thursday evening en route to Rideau Hall. (Lars Hagberg/Reuters)

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Caption: Canadian police officers on horseback watch as the motorcade for the Bidens passes Thursday. (Andrew Harnik/The Associated Press)

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Caption: U.S. and Canada flags are shown on shortbread cookies at Le Moulin de Provence bakery in Ottawa, which famously sold a cookie to Barack Obama in 2010. (Lars Hagberg/Reuters)

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Caption: The Bidens are greeted by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife Sophie Grégoire Trudeau at Rideau Cottage Thursday. (Andrew Harnik/The Associated Press)

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Caption: The Trudeaus hosted the Bidens at Rideau Cottage Thursday night. (Adam Scotti/Prime Minister's Office/Reuters)

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Caption: People line Wellington Street in downtown Ottawa Friday morning, when Biden was expected to make his way to Parliament Hill. (Rosalie Sinclair/Radio-Canada)

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Caption: Jill Biden visited the Rideau Curling Club in Ottawa with Sophie Grégoire Trudeau on Friday morning. (Spencer Colby/The Canadian Press)

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Caption: Police watch a closed section of O'Connor Street in downtown Ottawa as U.S. President Joe Biden visits Parliament Hill on March 24, 2023 (Olivier Plante/Radio-Canada)

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Caption: Jill Biden, second from left, shakes hands with curator Sarah Milroy as she visits the National Gallery of Canada Friday. (Lars Hagberg/Reuters)