No Winterlude on New York Times list

The canal is open, the snow is falling and Ottawa looks a winter wonderland. Still, we get no respect, from the New York Times anyway.

Friday's Times lists five winter carnivals it says are among the best, but you won't find Winterlude.

Quebec City is the only Canadian destination on the list. But it wasn't the bonhomme that impressed the Times, it praised the city's high winds and merciless cold. It also liked the people running around in the snow in bathing suits.

Apparently Anchorage and St. Paul know how to embrace the chill of winter. The Times also liked Durango Colorado's outhouse-stuffing contest.

And the Times says the carnival in Saranac Lake, New York has something special.

George DeChant, the town's public information officer, says people love the small-town feel. "We're probably on the small side. We're a little hometown, 6,000 people. It's all community involvement. Almost everything is done by a volunteer at our winter carnival."

So what about the capital of Canada? What about the world's longest skating rink? How did Ottawa get forgotten?

Maybe it's the promotion. The National Capital Commission says it leaves U.S. advertising to the Ottawa Tourism Authority.

Keith de Bellefeuille-Percy, the agency's president, says he's trying, but it's hard to stand out when other destinations are spending more money.

"If we were just able to grow our budget, we'd have more money to grow the city. My colleagues in Gatineau have a larger budget than I do. Meanwhile I have to limp along with a minuscule budget."