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 awakenThursday at 8 p.m. and slowly descendthe cathedral's faade.

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 giantsdrew a lot of attention from passersby Thursday morning who then shared photos on Twitter.

The rector for Notre-Dame Cathedral, MonsignorDaniel Berniquez, said theArchdiocese 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 ofthe 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'sstorylineis thatKumohasstolenLong Ma's wings, which are lying onthe front lawn of theSupremeCourt of Canada on Wellington Street.

Long Ma, which will be awoken Friday at10 a.m. at city hall, will crawl along Ottawa roads in search of its missing wings.