One of the popular social media activities right now is for people to post pics of places that have made them happy. You know the pics, the ones you look at and you get that feeling of calm and happiness inside. I've decided to do that for this week's edition of Travel Tuesdays.
This is the 8th edition from my self isolation.
One of the popular social media activities right now is for people to post pics of places that have made them happy. You know the pics, the ones you look at and you get that feeling of calm and happiness inside. I've decided to do that for this week's edition of Travel Tuesdays.
This is the 7th edition from my self isolation.
Paul and I met 20 years ago Friday. For years we celebrated our Anniversary on May 18. 2 years ago (18th Anniversary on May 18th) we made things legal and got married. This means Friday was both our 20th Anniversary and our 2nd Anniversary.
Our first trip together as a couple was to Ottawa. We drove up, stayed in a room at the Lord Elgin hotel, and figured out if we could manage to spend an entire weekend together - yes, we even had our first fight here. :-)
For those wondering why I am going through this relationship history . . . patience . . .
Last fall we were invited to a wedding in Ottawa this weekend.
We decided to make it a bit of an Anniversary/wedding weekend.
We drove up on Friday. I always forget how much I hate a really long drive until I am past the point of no turning back. You can fly to Ottawa in less than an hour for about $300 return. It really might be worth it in then. Mind you, after our shopping spree on Saturday . . . perhaps not. :-)
Anyways, on the way up we stopped and visited with our friend Pat for a bit. Pat lives in a new subdivision and the location was not in the GPS. Yes, we got lost. I am happy to report that I did not get as cranky with the navigator as I might have done 20 years ago.
It was about 5:30 when we got to the hotel. Our financial situation has improved a touch in 20 years so we were given a beautiful Executive room with a lovely view of the park across the street. Those of you who know me understand that I loathe spending a lot of money on a hotel room. . . I'd rather spend on a great meal or an adventure or a piece of art. . . and not on a place where I just plan on sleeping or showering. Nonetheless, this was a special weekend so we splurged a bit (not a lot, as I booked a good deal through orbitz last fall :-) )
We decided to have a nap for a bit.
Not long after I had laid down there was a knock at the door - the hotel delivered a cheese tray. With the champagne we brought up this will be a lovely night!
My foot was really swollen and sore for some reason . . . it might be time to recognize that I am old and invest in orthotics. SIGH It was so painful that I could barely walk. Needless to say we did not go far for dinner. A few blocks from the hotel was a beer pub we had enjoyed when I was in Ottawa for meetings last summer. It was seemed to be the perfect destination.
I started off with an amazing beer brewed with cherry - called a Cherry Bomb for good reason. MMM
We wanted the duck wings but they were sold out so we ordered chicken wings to start. They were frenched (meaning the bones were scraped a bit to give you something to hang on to). It was an interesting premise but you still got messy. LOL
They tasted great though.
For my main course I ordered the pock schnitzel. I felt a bit like a fraud since I had enjoyed it in the summer as well. It was yummy then and it was yummy now. It was served with braised red cabbage and spaetzel with emmenthal cheese. MMMMM With my foot being as it was I was in the mood for some comfort food and this delivered beautifully.
Paul ordered a chicken and pesto flatbread but I think he coveted my schnitzel.
OK. I know he did because he kept asking for a taste until finally I gave him the rest to finish off.
It was a slow walk back to the hotel (bloody foot).
I was tucked into bed when there was a knock at the door. Another delivery. This time a half bottle of red wine and a lovely card from the hotel. It seems our conference manager at the office must have some connections here! It was a sweet gesture and really made the day complete.
As I struggle to achieve life balance travel becomes more important. I do not get to travel as much as I would like, that being said, I know I travel far more than most people are lucky enough to do so I shan't whine . . too much.
I've already shared some of my plans for 2018 on my Travel Tuesdays posts. But here are the details.
I am spending 8 days in Rome in March. This was a bit of an impromptu trip. It had been 4 years since I was last in Italy. There was a huge sale on airfares on Black Friday. It just sort of came together. Unfortunately Paul is not coming. Even though I'll be back before Easter he feels that they won't let him have time off since Easter is a food holiday (he works for a grocery chain). He didn't even bother to ask so whatever. While I will certainly miss having him along on the adventure I am also not adverse to traveling on my own.
I've rented a fabulous apartment about two blocks from the Pantheon. It looks as if it is behind St Maria Sopra Minerva Basilica, one of my favourite churches in Rome. St Maria Sopra Minerva Basilica is famous for its medieval tombs, Michelangelo sculpture & elephant obelisk out front.
I also found a great Black Friday sale on tours with one of my favourite tour companies so I booked two. The first is a tour of a preserved Roman house Case Romane del Celio. Located under the church of Saints Giovanni and Paolo this really is a collection of 2nd and 3rd century Roman houses in which Christians worshiped with a number of well-preserved frescoes. After that we will wander parts of the Colosseum and Roman Forum that are generally off limits to tourists.
The second tour that I have booked is a out of hours tour of the Vatican. Actually, I think only the Sistine Chapel portion of the tour is out of hours but the opportunity to be alone (or relatively alone) while viewing Michaelangelo's masterpiece is exciting.
We also tour the museums and St. Peter's Basilica. One of the things I hope to do is to actually go back and see more of the Vatican museums. Any time I have been there before I have been stuck in a huge group that raced past things that I wanted to see.
The rest of my time in Rome is unplanned but I know will involve amazing food, art, history, shopping, and people watching.
All good.
Next up on the trip front is a long weekend in Ottawa. Paul and I celebrate the 20 anniversary of when we met on May 18. It is also our second wedding anniversary. We've been invited to a colleague's wedding in Ottawa that weekend so we decided to make an extended trip of it. Our first getaway after we started dating was a weekend away in Ottawa. it seems sort of fitting that we return. We'll stay at the Lord Elgin hotel once again but I found a great deal on an upgraded room so we'll have a bit more luxury than we had 20 years ago. :-)
Other than the wedding we have no significant plans for our time in Ottawa although I'm sure we'll find many interesting things to do.
In July we head to Edmonton. I'll be in a meeting for most of our time there but I know Paul will have an interesting wandering the capital city of Alberta.
As soon as the meeting is finished we'll be taking a short flight to Kelowna to hang out in BC's famous wine region for a week. We had a taste of the region (pun intended) when I was there for a work function a few years ago but it was off-season and many of the wineries were closed or had reduced hours. We managed to get in enough tasting to know we wanted to go back.
Paul did the research for this trip. He found a beautiful house on a vineyard for us to rent.
I am looking forward to sitting at the table with my morning coffee and taking in that amazing view!
We will visit wineries, visit some farm-to-table restaurants, do some hiking, shop, and relax. . . a perfect way to enjoy wine country.
I am sure a few more things might come up over the course of the year but these three getaways are set in stone at this point.
I was in Canada's capital for meetings all of last week. Sadly I did not have much free time so i wasn't able to go and see the various things which were a part of the Canada 150 celebrations. Paul on the other hand . . .
Thursday was the only day where the sun came out. After the meeting finished at 4:00 we drove across the river to hull and visited the MosaiCanada150 display. This exhibit featured giant 3D horticultural sculptures which were meant to represent the Canadian identity, history, or myths. It was one of the more fabulous exhibits I have been to in awhile.
We are in Ottawa this week for the Canadian Teachers' Federation Forum on Public Education followed by the Annual General Meeting. We had hoped for some nice weather so we could get out and enjoy ourselves during the free time. So far our hopes have been a bit dashed. :-(
Anyway, I wont let some gloom and rain stop me!
Yesterday morning, while Paul was still asleep, I got up and wandered around Parliament Hill (well, as much as I could wander with all of the construction underway).
I'll be heading to the capital in a couple of weeks for the Annual Meeting of the Canadian Teachers' Federation.
I am sure that the city will be all fancy for the celebrations of Canada's 150th birthday.
These shots are from a less-celebratory time but equally as impressive.
Today for Travel Tuesdays I'm revisiting various memorials to the victims of war. It seems timely given that Wednesday is Remberance Day.
We had a great weekend in Ottawa. Here are some of the shots . . .
While I was working yesterday Paul spent the day walking across the bridge to Quebec and visiting the Museum of History. He got the better end of the deal.
After I finished I lounged in the room waiting for Paul to return. Once he did we headed out to do some shopping. As we wandered we walked past a BBQ joint I've noticed on my many trips to Ottawa (how could you miss the smells of smoking meat . . . .) but have never been in to eat. WE decided to head back there for dinner.
Located down in the Bytown Market, Fatboys seemed like a family friendly biker bar. Yes, I know that sounds contradictory, but that's what I thought. Inside is a big open space that has a mix of sports memorabilia, motorcycle memorabilia, and BBQ memorabilia. A fun addition was the taps in the washrooms were motorcycle handles on a barrel.
Dinner - from the Southern Fried Popcorn Chicken served with white Alabama BBQ sauce . . .
. . . to Paul's fried chicken and waffles . . .
. . . to my smoked ribs . . .
. . . was great.
Some have criticized Fatboys for not being real southern BBQ. Well, we are in Ottawa, not the south. If this is as good as we can get where we are than I am a happy guy!