Some times, it takes a friend visiting your home town to remind you of the fun that you can have without going far beyond your doorstep.
My friend and fellow blogger/amateur photographer/food-lover Katie visited me during the holidays, and I had so much fun on our adventures! We hit the ground running, indulging in our passion for food by baking gingerbread cookies and roasting chestnuts (sadly it was not by an open fire). Fun fact: it was Katie's first time eating chestnuts!
If you'd like to bake the cookies yourself, you can find the recipe here: http://www.ilovevegan.com/perfect-vegan-gingerbread-cookies/
These cookies require rolling out the dough, which to me, is a big deterrent (it takes so much loooooonger). But I will admit that it's way faster with a friend to help and the shapes are exponentially more fun that basic round cookies. Also, if you're ever wondering what to do with the final bit of dough that you can't roll out, we found the perfect solution: make a poop dollop! It's even more realistic with gingerbread because it's brown! #classy
My friend and fellow blogger/amateur photographer/food-lover Katie visited me during the holidays, and I had so much fun on our adventures! We hit the ground running, indulging in our passion for food by baking gingerbread cookies and roasting chestnuts (sadly it was not by an open fire). Fun fact: it was Katie's first time eating chestnuts!
If you'd like to bake the cookies yourself, you can find the recipe here: http://www.ilovevegan.com/perfect-vegan-gingerbread-cookies/
These cookies require rolling out the dough, which to me, is a big deterrent (it takes so much loooooonger). But I will admit that it's way faster with a friend to help and the shapes are exponentially more fun that basic round cookies. Also, if you're ever wondering what to do with the final bit of dough that you can't roll out, we found the perfect solution: make a poop dollop! It's even more realistic with gingerbread because it's brown! #classy
We spent one day walking around the downtown core, looking at the Christmas lights and visiting popular landmarks. Of course, with it being the end of Canada150, the city was doing its best to impress. We happily did all of the free touristy things (i.e. mainly take selfies at the photo stops set out for visitors). Katie's shoes were unfortunately no match for the Ottawa slush and snow, and her feet were pretty soaked from walking. We stopped in a hotel restroom for a rest (did you catch that?) and she took the opportunity to dry her socks a bit using the hand dryers. It was hilarious and I had to snap a photo of it. My friends are great, aren't they?
We also made a stop in the National Arts Centre, where there was a giant reading chair and book. It was a nice place to stop to warm up (and yes, we did read the story in the book!).
We also made a stop in the National Arts Centre, where there was a giant reading chair and book. It was a nice place to stop to warm up (and yes, we did read the story in the book!).
Our love for food took us to a number of delicious stops; we were eating probably 50-75% of our time in Ottawa. Our first foodie outing was at my favourite local eatery, Grow Your Roots Cafe. It's owned by a young woman from Lanark Country who started selling her products at the Carp farmers' market before opening her own cafe in Kanata at 25 years old, so I love supporting the place!
Our second food stop was a bakery called Little Jo Berry's about which I've heard wonderful things but had yet to visit. When Katie and I visited, we had an extremely difficult time choosing what to order, but we eventually settled on matcha cheesecake ice cream and marble eggnog cake. Both were great, but Katie and I both agreed that the marble cake was our favourite!
On our last day, we treated ourselves to high tea at Vani-tea. High tea is what I imagine the Queen has every afternoon when she meets with royalty, delegates, and other high-profile people. It's the epitome of "classy".
It's also expensive.
But wow, it was fun! Katie and I wore dresses to play up on the dainty nature of it, although we kept some whimsical Christmas elements like themed earrings and my go-to Christmas sweater, complete with jingle bells.
Some things we particularly loved:
It's also expensive.
But wow, it was fun! Katie and I wore dresses to play up on the dainty nature of it, although we kept some whimsical Christmas elements like themed earrings and my go-to Christmas sweater, complete with jingle bells.
Some things we particularly loved:
- The tea timer, letting you know when your tea has properly steeped
- The striped and polka dot tea set
- The decor, including the hand-painted murals and Pintrest-worthy upholstery
- The three-tiered plates (so cute!)
- The coconut bacon and chive scones. They were actually good. Like, really, really good. And I've never said that about scones. These were game changing.
The last thing we did before Katie left was visit the newly renovated Canadian Science and Technology Museum. I love science museums, especially ones that have been carefully designed to promote visitor engagement. It was definitely a fun way to spend our afternoon, although we lost track of time a bit and found ourselves rushing back to get Katie to the bus station in time for her departure!
Reflecting on our adventures, I think we managed to fit quite a bit into two and a half days! It was lots of fun, and I'm glad to have had a friend to explore the city with!