Vacation Relaxation

Vacations can be stressful for me. I like everything to be planned. Absolutely everything. I make myself an itinerary to make sure I do everything everything on my list.

Most of the time, I get it all done and feel satisfied with the outcome but in no way do I come back to work relaxed enough.

This year, my vacation was mainly for appointments. I think I must have had an appointment or a blood test every other day.

As the weekend was approaching, I contacted a friend and ask if she would like to see the Tulip Festival in Ottawa. I thought about doing a group thing first but I realized how busy or broke my other friends were.

My friend said yes! 

We woke up early and drove to Ottawa listening to a roadtrip playlist I had assembled the day before, especially for this occasion.

When we arrived, we realized we had parked 45 minutes walking distance from the tulip gardens. My friend had the idea to rent bikes. We rode along the Rideau Canal and took in the fresh smell of lilacs. 

The tulips were beautiful! I always believe tulips to be graceful and seeing all those different colours made me so happy! 

We were hungry but didn’t want to spoil our lunch. Besides 5$ hotdogs, no thank you. We ended purchasing smoothies and drank them out of pineapple and watermelon shells. Yum! 

Things were done so spontaneously and I loved it! I think my friend appreciated it too.

Afterwards, I brought my friend to a diner I ate at during university: Zak’s Diner. Some excellent food for a great price. However, it seems that in the 4 years I had last been in Ottawa, the diner had gained tremendous popularity... who knew? We were too hungry and settled on their affiliated cantina. Food was great and the drinks we chose were flavourful as well. 

We walked around Byward Market. Honestly, it’s not that amazing. It’s mostly a tourist-trap. 

We decided to go to a bookstore: Chapters. Our idea was to get a bargain book and read it on the Parliament hill.

It was a good time to relax and soak in the sun with a good book. It’s not every time I get to read on the Parliament Hill.

Afterwards, we went to the National Gallery of Fine Arts to see the Impressionist exhibition. 

My friend suggested we just see that. I felt hesitant at first because I wanted to get as much as I could from my ticket. I decided to go with the flow. 

——————————-

I believe that really taking time to enjoy one thing is better than squeezing a lot of things in a day. 

So what if you can’t visit the whole city? I’ve learned through this trip that the most important thing is living in the present — enjoying the present. 

What type of person are you?

Do you like to get most of your trip?

Do you like to enjoy just a few things at your own rhythm? 

Let me know in the comments down below!