A few visits in and I’m getting a little used to my surroundings in Ottawa…finding a few favourite restaurants and spots I like to visit.
With Emily graduating from Ottawa University, my folks joined us for six days away to take in the celebration and enjoy the sites and sounds of O-Town.
On arrival, we headed to the spa for a quick Mani and Pedi at Smudge Beauty Bar...a sweet little spot filled with fabulous vintage finds, huge comfy wing back chairs and lovely staff.
The next day, a visit to Tiffany set the mood as I “dragged” Emily in, wearing our sneakers and flip-flops no less…to pick out her graduation gift. (A fabulous necklace from the Return to Tiffany collection.)
A lovely brunch at The Albion Rooms (best Eggs Benny EVER) and a trip to the Museum of Nature rounded out our day.
Mom and Dad? Oh…we’d dropped them off to the Casino in Gattineau!
But…they joined us again as we headed out to the fabulous new Sutherland Restaurant just down the road from Emily’s…where we had one of the best meals I’ve had in quite some time.
Father’s Day had us going back for seconds and thirds at the amazing buffet put on by the folks at Ottawa Westin.
After our delicious meal, I had the chance to meet the newest member of the #WestinWags program, Grem, a sweet little girl waiting to meet her Forever Home (which, if I’d stayed any longer, may have been me!) Westin has partnered with Ottawa Dog Rescue to showcase precious dogs in need of homes…right in the front lobby of their hotel!
From there, we dropped the folks off at the casino for Round 2…
Then, we headed out to do a little shopping and walking around The Glebe where I discovered a fabulous shop, The Papery, that had so many wonderful things I could have perused for hours!
A HUGE shoutout to the staff at The Papery for helping me find some graduation decorations while I “sort of” secretly purchased them right in front of Em!
With shopping and gambling out of the way, we headed home to put our feet up and just as we’d settled in to watch a little baseball, we heard the delightful sounds of an ICE CREAM TRUCK…making our day that much more fantastic!
And then…THE BIG DAY WAS HERE!
With one degree from St. FX already hanging on the wall, I was super proud to be there as Emily walked across the stage, Magna Cum Laude, to receive a second degree in Translation Studies. The day was made special by the fact that Prime Minister Trudeau gave the address to the grads, something that hadn’t been done at Ottawa U since his father was Prime Minister in the 70s.
Our celebration continued into the evening with a lovely meal in Byward Market, a quick afternoon nap, then out with friends that evening at Social for drinks and fabulous conversation.
The following day found us in Montreal as we stopped for lunch with friends at Wienstein & Gavinos, then continued on to Old Montreal to walk the streets and pop into galleries along the way. (Including Gallerie LeRoyer where I found these two amazing pieces by Ole Aakjaer and Marco Grassi.)
AND, L’Affichiste…a FABULOUS poster store filled with Graphic Design posters that had me absolutely overjoyed and leaving the store with a brand new Mads Berg piece…that likely won’t be my last!
A stop for an afternoon Mimosa at Tommy’s Cafe completed the day, as we loaded up the car and headed back to Ottawa full of adventure and tired feet!
Our final day had me working ALL DAY to catch up on everything I’d missed and get ready for a Twitter Party that evening with President’s Choice. Em tore me away for a quick bite to eat at Red Door Provisions, one of my favourite little coffee shops around the corner, while Mom and Dad visited with family. I continued to work through the afternoon as Ikea bags and grocery items arrived and that evening, we had a quick bite to eat before packing our bags to leave the next morning.
All in all…our visit was brief but jam-packed with two celebrations, two trips to the casino, a visit to the spa, fabulous meals, a tour through the museum, a trip to Montreal, a few shopping adventures and time spent with family and friends.
It was a too fast…not enough…I’ll be back soon…kind of vacation.
Ottawa is starting to grow on me…Montreal has always held my attention…both need A LOT more exploring!
I’m exhausted just reading this!
It was a busy trip for sure!!! (And that’s just the stuff I wrote about!)
Beautiful trip.While reading I felt like I was with you.Colleen you write like your Mom. When she first moved to Halifax she used to write to me and I always felt I was right there with her while I was reading her letters.Love always .Aunt BettyP
How sweet Aunt Betty! Mom always did pen a good letter. I think we should bring letter writing back!!!!