Wing// Personal
Hi all, I apologize for the absence! It’s been so busy and I haven’t the inspiration to write lately.
I would like to get back into it by writing about our weekend getaway to Ottawa a couple weekends ago!
I don’t think this recap should act as a travel guide, but perhaps a way to rouse interest for our country’s lovely capital city! Without further ado, some highlights:
Friday:
We left Kingston after a lab meeting and took the Greyhound to Ottawa. When we arrived, the first thing that hit us was how cold the city was!!! It was much colder than Kingston as there was actually still snow on the ground and we could very clearly see our breath as we spoke. At that moment, I had appreciated wearing extra layers!
We went to my sister’s place in Nepean for dinner and catch up! After dinner, we decided
to check into our AirBnB to drop off our luggage. Despite the many complaints that we’ve heard about OCTranspo, I found the bus system to be very well connected in comparison to that of Kingston’s bus system. It was, however, very expensive. (A single adult ride costs $3.40 CDN.)
Once we go
t to our AirBnB, we realized that we were right beside the infamous Byward Market! We dropped off our luggage, rested a bit, and decided to take another walk.
Byward Market is really a food lover’s paradise! The menus of each restaurant looked amazing! Unfortunately, as a couple living on a student budget, we decided to go for cheap eats. After a long 30-minute wait surrounded by underdressed undergrads, we were inside the El Furniture Warehouse restaurant. This hip bar/ restaurant featured a variety of delicious dishes — all at an affordable price of $5. (Chains available in Toronto as well!)
Despite having a large dinner at my sister’s, we ordered 3 dishes (Braised Beef Spaghetti, Chicken Fingers and Fries, and Fish Tacos) and 2 drinks. My experience leads me to three conclusions.
- First, I should have known, but the drinks were almost double the price of the food! Our bill blew up because of this. Also, the restaurant was filled with drunk and under-dressed students dancing to very, very loud music. We had to shout to talk. Haha.
- Second, since each dish were only $5, I thought the serving sizes were really small. However, they are quite reasonable and I realized that we should have only ordered two! We couldn’t finish our food in the end.
- Third, the braised beef spaghetti is REALLY good. The beef was succulent and the sourness of the tomato sauce pasta complemented the sweetness of the beef really well. It was great.
Our total bill was around ~$33 CDN.
Saturday:
Okay, so to note, our trip came together through a mesh of poor planning and weird timing. In the week we were leaving, we had heard that the Ottawa Canal was closed because the weather had been warm and that it would be unsafe for skating. Resultantly, we did not bring our skates.
As we left for Ottawa, we found out that the Canal was to open on Saturday! It really was a pity. Also, the moment we woke up on Saturday, we also found out that the Parliament was closed for the weekend! Haha. We decided to get dressed and see the sights anyway.
Despite the gloomy day, we had lots of fun taking pictures of the Parliament building. It only lasted 2o minutes, though. Admittedly, my toes were feeling frozen and I needed to warm up.
We stopped by the Rideau Shopping Centre before heading over to Castle Shawarma for lunch! (I went because of Reddit reviews!) Despite my sister’s distaste for the restaurant, I had actually really liked it. We shared a chicken shawarma platter and I had gobbled up the garlic sauce without hesitation. The chicken was soft and silky smooth. The garlic sauce was almost like a garlic cream and complemented the pita, tabouleh, and salad so well. Our meal cost $19~ CDN.
After lunch, we went to the Canadian Museum of History. Many of the indigenous artifacts were preserved very well. However, it seems unfortunate that the legacies of colonization were downplayed. Further, although the artifacts were nice to see, they should really be used and practiced, and not exhibited. We paid $11 CDN each as students.
As we concluded at the museum, we hung out at a bakery called “Moulin de Provence” before meeting up with my sister and her roommate Hanna for dinner.
As it was my sister’s birthday month, my sister had chosen to spend her birthday dinner at Zak’s Diner. It’s retro, neon-coloured decor characteristic of the 50s makes for a fun and family-friendly food joint. Despite the cozy decor, our breakfast for dinner dishes failed to impress and it came at an expensive price! Breakfast food is great, but I felt that I could replicate the food at half the price. The milkshakes were really creamy and tasty though! Nguyen and I shared a chocolate banana milkshake and my sister had the orange creamsicle-like shake. For the four meals and milkshakes, we spent ~85 CDN.
After a bit more walking, we went back to our AirBnB and watched Whiplash. (Great movie!!!)
Sunday:
We woke up, packed up, and went to my sister’s church. After that, we went for lunch at a restaurant called Pho Bo Ga La. The serving sizes were a bit small for the price (total = ~$24), but we had fun and were surrounded by good company. After lunch, we went to a gourmet donut shop called Suzy Q and were treated to a most delightful Earl Grey Donut.
My sister’s friend, Joe, dropped us off at the Greyhound station for our trip back home!
So that does it! Our weekend at Ottawa was filled with food, fun, and family! We look forward to do more travelling and perhaps, returning! Nguyen has his sights on an all-you-can-eat mussels place that he did not have the chance to try for our next visit!
Total Budget for 2 people (with tax):
Greyhound [Kingston to Ottawa]: $102
AirBnB: $94
Local Transportation: ~$20
El Furniture (3 dishes and 2 drinks): ~$33
Castle Shawarma (Chicken shawarma plate): ~19
Zak’s Diner (4 dinners and 2 milkshakes): ~$85
Pho Bo Ga La (2 large phos): ~$24
Canadian Museum of History (Student pricing): ~$24
Snacks: $10
TOTAL: ~$411 ($205 per person/weekend)
So, in my standards, our trip was kind of pricy. But, if you have the chance to cook some meals and not pay for your sister and friend’s dinner, it may be considerably cheaper!
