New moves and new friends: Fiona finds a second home at Dance with Alana

Fiona Tapp is a British Elementary School Teacher, who has called Ottawa home for the past 5 years. As a native Londoner, she tries to explore and enjoy Ottawa as a tourist, and so far is pretty impressed with this “tiny but brilliant” city!

Dance with Alana is located at 1800 Bank Street

This past Sunday night saw me putting on my glad rags and heading on over to Dance with Alana studios at their fabulous — and still somewhat new — digs at 1800 Bank Street for an evening of dance. The night involved both performance and viewing pleasure, plus some yummy treats and possibly the nicest people in Ottawa!

I have been attending classes at DWA for a year-and-a-half now, and as well as learning the basics of Jazz, Bollywood and my all-time favourite, Burlesque, I have also grown in confidence, sass and made the most amazing friends.

When I first signed up for classes, I was looking for a new hobby, some exercise and the chance to learn some feather boa tricks. I did not expect it to grow into one of the most important and pleasurable activities in my calendar. But as I quickly learned, when you dance with a person, you come to know them in a way quite unlike any other.

I have learned so much in the last year-and-a-half, including how to bump, how to remove stockings without falling on your face and a host of other parlour tricks. But possibly the most important and life-altering skill that has been bestowed upon me by my fellow dancers and our amazing teachers, has been how to feel so sick — so stomach-churningly nervous — at the thought of going out onto a stage, in front of a crowd, and then doing it anyway and loving every minute of it. That dancers’ high cannot be beat!

On this particular evening, students showcased what they had learned in the previous semester in an amazing set of performances. The breadth of dance genre was apparent as dancers from Burlesque, Flamenco, Hip Hop, Salsa, West Coast Swing, Bollywood, Tap and Bellydance demonstrated their moves, stage presence and personalities.

The dancers showed such unbridled enthusiasm and sheer love of dance that I found myself mentally noting down the different dance styles I wanted to try out, come winter registration time. I especially enjoyed the hip hop routine led by the charismatic Frank Shapcott, the whole group just looked like they were having a blast!

Photo credit: One_Glass_Eye, via Flickr

There were also some performances from children, and it was touching to see their confidence and joy.

After I enjoyed the plethora of potluck goodies, it was time for my group to present their routine. As a group, we have really grown and have danced at quite a few venues, so our nervousness was not as piqued as it has been in the past.

We danced an energetic little number wearing pink and black fringe which we had all painstakingly sewed in the weeks running up to the party — Burlesque, as I have learned, is not for the craft shy!

After our routine, it was a quick change for me to prepare for my solo — a burlesque number I had designed myself to Kings of Leon’s  “Be Somebody.” My alter ego was a secretary/librarian finishing up for the day, and the routine involved a lot of humour, including madly typing on an invisible typewriter and removing and then retying a necktie.

I felt amazing while I was performing and somewhat insanely altered some of the choreography whilst dancing. The reaction of the wonderful dance community at DWA — and my husband’s huge smile — were the main reasons I felt so empowered. They really supported me and loved me up!

Dance with Alana is a great place to come to learn to dance or to perfect your moves if you already dance and if that where it ends for you then you have still won, but for me it is so much more.

DWA is where I found the most amazing women who have greatly enriched my life in the last year or so, from Alana, the most gracious owner and namesake, to the amazing teachers and everyone of my fellow “saucy posse” bombshells. One of our beloved bombshells is moving away, starting a new life far from us, and I think I speak for all of us when I say we are more than a little heartbroken.

It was a night of laughter, applause and dance — does life get any better??

Thanks, Fiona! Dance with Alana’s winter schedule is now up, with classes starting on January 9th.

Harvest Noir, Take II: Fiona finds it a great chance for the city to shine, if a bit hectic

Inside the Grand Hall of the Museum of Civilization for Harvest Noir

Fiona Tapp is a British Elementary School Teacher, who has called Ottawa home for the past 5 years. As a native Londoner, she tries to explore and enjoy Ottawa as a tourist, and so far is pretty impressed with this “tiny but brilliant” city!

I often scour the “cool kids’” Facebook pages to scoop out all the fabulous happenings in our little city, and a few weekends ago I happened upon Harvest Noir. (The cool kids are basically just friends of mine that I am in awe of!) So when an opportunity came up to eat a picnic en masse dressed in your finest, followed by a party afterwards, it sounded too good to be true.

Local Tourist Fiona Tapp (right) with friends at Harvest Noir

Slowly the anticipation built: I “liked” their Facebook page, saw articles in the Citizen and even here on LTO. I then decided that it was something I needed to be a part of. After recruiting some equally adventurous ladies, co-ordinating our picnics and outfits, we made our way to the secret location, which turned out to be the Museum of Civilization — one of my favourite places in Ottawa, as it turns out.

I chose an ensemble of a floor-length black velvet dress, jewelled bolero, black fake fur coat and black patent rubber boots — not to mention my peacock-feather fascinator, My friends were dressed beautifully and everyone really took the dress code seriously. It felt almost clandestine, spotting other folks dressed completely in black and following them along a path to our assigned meeting place.

We sat down next to a lovely, humorous trio, who treated our obnoxious cackling and dirty jokes with real aplomb and warm welcome. After setting up our table places with real china, glasses, silverware and some black roses, and unpacking our picnic of portabello mushroom quiche, caramelized sweet potato pasta salad, bread and veggies and a dessert of marshmallows and chocolate fondue, we tucked in, purchasing a rather expensive bottle of wine to accompany our meal.

Huddled up when the rain (briefly) hit Harvest Noir

The weather lurched between compromising chilly but bright, and mocking severe winds that launched hats and candlesticks into the air. A few showers did not deter us picnic diehards and a sea of umbrellas sprang up over the tables. After the picnic portion was over, we were supposed to parade together following the marching band into the museum, however it had become very chilly and some lacklustre organization meant that the band left without most of the guests. It also seemed that sparklers were given out to some guests — but not all, which created a little “ahhh no fair” mentality amongst my group. The loud speakers were not working well, and we couldn’t hear the organizers, which added a bit to the sense of disorganization.

Once inside we warmed up and deposited our coats and picnic baskets and swapped rubber boots for dancing shoes. The party was held in the museum’s Grand Hall and the lights beautifully illuminated the massive totem poles. The space was quite captivating and the excitement was palpable. The music started off very promising with an eclectic mix of Sinatra and the Scissor Sisters, and then we watched a very talented lady spinning around in a giant hula hoop. I had expected for the $42 ticket price to see more performers.

Fiona's dining companions at Harvest Noir

For some reason they had a system where by you had to line up for a ticket and then line up at the bar to exchange your ticket for a drink, this may have been to slow the consumption of alcohol but the clientele was quite a sophisticated bunch and this measure seemed unnecessary, especially as it meant I waited almost 40 minutes for one gin and tonic!

The organizers then took to the stage to congratulate us for all coming out, and a fashion show of sorts took place, as well as prizes being awarded to the best decorated table and the guest who recruited the most people.

After this, the DJ began his set and this is the only time my group really felt the event hit a low point. The same bass continued through multiple seemingly different songs, which gave the feeling of an annoying hammering rather than music and for some unknown reason the vocals were incredibly high pitched. Also the songs were unfamiliar to everyone I asked and only a handful of people danced; it’s a real shame they didn’t keep to music that’s more universally enjoyed. However after an hour or so of this, my group left — so who’s to say the music didn’t improve after our departure. We finished the night with a trip to Bridgehead and a delicious latte.

On reflection, I felt Harvest Noir was a fabulous idea that was executed quite well, the picnic portion of the evening was especially enjoyable, I would return in future years, hopefully some of the teething problems would have been worked through.

One of the goals was to dispute the recent tag that Ottawa was the eighth-worst dressed city in the world, and looking around at the beautiful outfits and creative headdresses, jewellery and hats that myth was challenged in style!

Thanks for your description, Fiona! For some great shots of the night, check out the Ottawa Citizen’s photo gallery.

Taste of Wellington West: Part III!! (Plus a little Papanack Zoo)

Zebra!!

Fiona Tapp is a British Elementary School Teacher, who has called Ottawa home for the past five years. As a native Londoner, she tries to explore and enjoy Ottawa as a tourist, and so far is pretty impressed with this “tiny but brilliant” city!

Saturday was the sort of sunny, but crisp late summer day, that beckons you to step out for one of the last chances of the season, to go without a jacket or a coat.

After my very energetic Bollywood Dance class at Dance with Alana Studios, I had worked up quite an appetite and was lured by the promise of free food samples, so headed out with two good friends to the neighbourhood between Island Park and Breezehill, to enjoy the fifth annual Taste of Wellington West.

Barrel Car at a Taste of Wellington West

More than 30 restaurants and food shops offered free samples as well as a vintage car show, live music and children’s play areas. There was a really nice festival feel to the event and the volume of crowds proved it had been a successful venture in bringing people out to appreciate the neighbourhood. I was pleased to see a few businesses I had either read about or seen on the internet, such as the alternative branch to the (now closed after a fire) Allegro in the Byward Market, and also The Wellington Gastropub.

My friends and I admired the cool cars, including a strange tandem motorbike made from barrels, met a giant Panda advertising martial arts classes and then decided to join the very long line of people hoping to get a free tasty treat from The Royal Oak.

We waited just 10 minutes or so and were rewarded with a delicious mini pulled pork sandwich with coleslaw, this was a first for me, a vegetarian since the age of 11, I recently started eating meat and have never eaten pork before, it was delicious, sweet and tangy, soft and sticky-I am a convert!

Yum.

We took our sandwiches over the street to the line up for Absinthe restaurant, a restaurant all three of us had heard of but never tried. The wait here was longer, about 30 mins but there was plenty of people watching to partake in, as well as a marching band to bop to. Once at the front of the queue we were handed a cup

Fiona Tapp at the zoo!

of spicy homemade lemonade, I was about to ditch mine, thinking it had cigarette ash in it, when my friend discreetly informed me that it was a mix of spices, and perfectly edible-it was really tasty, refreshing and quite different, we were then ushered along to the next stand and handed a mini house made beef burger, there were a variety of relishes and toppings you could choose to adorn your burger with, I chose mushrooms, a tangy salsa and a grainy mustard, my pals went with the house special “baconnaise”- we all agreed these were some very fine burgers indeed, and as my first burger in almost 20 years, it certainly was worth the 30 minute wait! We all agreed to head back to Absinthe for dinner one night, if their burgers are that good, the rest of the menu is sure to impress.

We were hoping to grab a free dessert also, but we took a wrong turn and the free samples were put away by the time we righted ourselves. So we popped into Truffle Treasures instead and although we had to pay for them, we really enjoyed our sweet goodies.

I had to head home as I had a date with my hubby; we drove out to Wendover to visit Papanack Zoo. It may just be our GPS, but we found the zoo quite hard to find, especially as there seem to be two “County Road 19s”, so leave with plenty of time to avoid the map/GPS argument!

Every Saturday night between Labour Day and Thanksgiving, the gates are reopened at 6.30pm and then closed at 7pm when the Night Safari tour begins. Visitors are encouraged to bring their flashlights, so that they may see the animal’s secret night time behaviour.

Lion at the Papanack Zoo

Our guides helpfully split the crowd into two groups, those with little children and those on a date (or with older children who could control themselves) This was a marked improvement to last year when we went out as a large group and I had to bite my tongue, to stop reprimanding naughty children, whose parents conveniently disowned them the moment they became a problem!

We were told the rules; be quiet and calm and the animals will come to investigate you, do not mimic the animals noises and if the Wolves start to howl-listen very quietly.

First of all we met a very curious lynx, it was quite startling to note how alike our little kitty at home was to this wild animal, they made some of the same little noises and shared quite a few characteristics. Next we moved on to a wild boar, some lemur monkeys, donkeys, antelope and two beautiful zebras. They came very close to the fence and licked my husband, one of them breathed heavily and wetly on my hand and I realised this was the closest I had ever been to these strange yet beautiful animals.

The Zoo’s large cats are very popular and we met a siberian tiger and a jaguar, who was quite old and having put on a little weight had the look of a large bear to him, he was very affectionate with the keeper and looked quite the big softie, although I am sure if the opportunity arose his wild side could rise to the surface.

We had a break for hot chocolate, snacks and a chance for the children to use the washroom before headed over to the lions’ enclosure, where we had the opportunity to see the lions feeding. The male’s roar was really impressive and quite intimidating. The guides were very knowledgeable and easily switched from English to French to describe the animals, and to answer questions.

My favourite part was the eerie howling of the wolves which rose up from the Zoo and increased in volume and excitement and was then magnified by the coyotes joining in-it was really creepy and atmospheric.

We headed home, stopping to pick up dinner from Boston Pizza, a great end to a day full of tasty treats and amazing wildlife!

Wow, thanks Fiona – great post!

Dance with Alana, Bollywood style

 Fiona Tapp is a British Elementary School Teacher, who has called Ottawa home for the past 5 years. As a native Londoner, she tries to explore and enjoy Ottawa as a tourist, and so far is pretty impressed with this “tiny but brilliant” city!

If like me, you use the ad break during So You Think You Can Dance to prance around your living room pretending you are Canada’s favourite dancer, and enjoy shouting rhythmically “5,6,7,8” along to 80’s power ballads, then perhaps you should head on over to Ottawa’s friendliest dance studio, Dance with Alana, and throw some serious shapes out there.

For more information on Dance with Alana, visit: dancewithalana.com

One of the things I love most about Dance with Alana is the opportunity (if you dare) to perform; at socials held at the studio, at dance festivals and even venues such as nightclubs and bars. The two-headed dragon of performing for an audience is the nausea and palm sweating before you take to the stage and the euphoria after you leave, the latter always makes you forget the former….until next time.

Dance with Alana has recently moved to more fabulous digs at suite (lucky) 13, 1800 Bank St, there are two large studios, a comfy lounge area and free parking!

On Friday night a friend and I headed over to the studio for a trial of a new class, which may become permanent- Bollywood.  I have always been interested in this energetic dance style after studying “Bollywood- Alternative Cinema” in college, and having enjoyed many a four hour Hindi epic on a Saturday morning.

The response was encouraging as the studio was full, and surprisingly there were quite a few men in attendance. The instructor introduced herself and allowed us to call her by her nickname, Beans, she warmed us up and began teaching us some basic moves and showed us how to hold our fingers in a Bollywood style. It’s amazing how the simple placement of a finger or turn of a wrist can embody an entire dance style, perhaps even an entire culture.

Beans was encouraging and gentle and reminded us constantly of how well we were doing. With lots of repetition we managed to master a short piece of choreography, which she extended at the end of the class to showcase some moves which hopefully we could learn next time. Despite only learning a short piece, we were all quite worn out by the end of the class, due to the repetition and energy required- it certainly was a good workout! The atmosphere was light-hearted, fun and relaxed; the music was uplifting and set the scene perfectly for my friend and me to yell “Jai Ho!” at each other for no reason in particular. We enjoyed the class, and definitely would like to learn more.

Dance With Alana studios offer classes in swing, tap, belly dance, ballroom, burlesque, hip-hop, salsa, dance fusion, yoga and zumba, as well as offering private dance lessons, bachelorette parties and more.

All the instructors at DWA are genuinely kind, fun people who want you to succeed and simply love to dance, the owner Alana, attracts positive people like moths to the flame and her exuberant and welcoming personality permeate the studio and immediately make newcomers feel at ease and regulars feel at home. She has succeeded in creating a happy, safe space for your inner bombshell to shine, and who knows maybe you are the next SYTYCD champion!

Amazing Fiona — you’re quickly becoming one of our most adventurous Local Tourists! 

Paddlers not rowers: Fiona competes and cheers at the RCC Dragonboat Festival

Photo credit: Jessica @ flickr

Fiona Tapp is a British Elementary School Teacher, who has called Ottawa home for the past 5 years. As a native Londoner, she tries to explore and enjoy Ottawa as a tourist, and so far is pretty impressed with this “tiny but brilliant” city!

Warming up at the RCC Dragonboat Festival

I have been involved in dragonboating for the past four years; I originally joined a city crew after perusing Ottawa’s recreation guide, looking for a new sport to keep me entertained and as a way to meet new friends. I had just moved here from the U.K. and was feeling the “new city blues” quite strongly. I was in danger of becoming a Facebook creeper, jealously following my old mates’ exploits back in Blighty and feeling left out.  So I signed up for my first season of Dragonboat. However, I soon realized it’s a little difficult to make friends when you are all sitting in a boat looking at just the back in front of you; so the following year I brought along an established friend and together, we became more sociable and actually, God forbid, spoke to the other paddlers!

I quickly learned the cardinal rules of Dragonboat: we are “paddlers” not “rowers”; keep in stroke; never stop paddling unless asked to (even if your arm feels like it might drop off); and take everything in stride — steersperson or coaches falling into the water, near-boat collisions and paddling in torrential rainstorms are all part of the fun!

I have competed at the famous Ottawa Dragonboat Festival three times (one year I was sick with the flu) and have experienced the highs, winning a medal, and the lows, not having enough paddlers to compete. I have also had the chance to compete at the Carleton Place Festival, which is much smaller but has a lovely atmosphere and a nice course to race on.

I didn’t think I was a particularly competitive person until I started paddling, but when you are in the last stretch of a race — every muscle in your body is crying out for you to stop and the coach yells “Give it everything you’ve got!!”, pulling ahead of the other boat in a gruelling, grunting fashion — is about as good as it gets.

The Rideau Canoe Club at Mooney's Bay

Last weekend my team competed in the Fourth Annual Rideau Canoe Club’s Dragonboat Festival. This was a first for me even though the RCC, at Mooney’s Bay, is where we practice twice a week throughout the summer. Perhaps because the RCC already feels like home, we especially enjoyed this race day. We were guaranteed four races: two of 250 M and two of 500 M. Despite a heavy wind and rain storm, we completed all four. Participants usually bring tents and potluck contributions to share with their team, which lends a festive feel to the event; however the very well appointed clubhouse offered a variety of food for those wishing to pay a small fee and most importantly, washrooms!

The party atmosphere was completed with the great selection of music played throughout the event, my teammates of the same age especially appreciated the late 90s tracks and danced joyously between races!

Everyone cheered enthusiastically for all participants, however, special kudos was giving to “Dragons for All” and “Team Tamir” who competed in the “Paddle For All” heats, designed to introduce paddlers with disabilities to the sport. The strength, determination and team spirit these tenacious paddlers demonstrated was an example to us all. One shining moment was when my team came third out of three teams in one heat — i.e we lost — however a Dragons For All athlete informed us that “Third means bronze; Good for you!”

The RCC is frequented by a friendly bunch who love paddling in all forms and enjoy sharing this passion with newcomers. The clubhouse has recently been refurbished and is looking better than ever. I strongly recommend anyone with a penchant for something challenging, new and different to sign up for the variety of programs offered at the RCC. And for those looking to be a spectator at a competitive, exciting, yet small and friendly event, check out the RCC Dragonboat Festival next year.

Fiona is quickly becoming our local adventurer! Best of luck next year!

Learning to switch, dunk and ‘get down!’: Fiona goes white-water rafting on the River

Rafting on the Ottawa River with Wilderness Tours

Fiona Tapp is a British elementary school teacher, who has called Ottawa home for the past five years. As a native Londoner, she tries to explore and enjoy Ottawa as a tourist and, so far, is pretty impressed with this “tiny but brilliant” city!

Looking for a little weekend adventure and encouraged by a half price offer from Livingsocial.com, my husband and I travelled about an hour and a half from Ottawa to Forester Falls on the Ottawa River, to experience a weekend of white-water rafting, camping and adventure sports at Wilderness Tours.

We arrived in time to put up our tent, but after a lengthy, rather disorganised check in — weekends are very busy here — we found it too dark to put up our tent and had to rent a cabin at a cost of $97. We were not expecting this cost and it would be an understatement to say we were more than a little grumpy! Our rafting trip was scheduled to be the first in the morning at 7.30 am, and so we settled down for an early night. Drunk “teendults” (combination of a teenager and young adult) woke me at 2am, 3am and 5am, screaming and running around the campsite (my hubby slept through it all), so by breakfast on Saturday morning we were ready to pack up our stuff, head home to our cat and mark the weekend up as lost. After a little discussion about the money we had already spent we decided to go on the rafting trip, and if we still felt the same way, we would leave as soon as we got back.

Paddling hard through the rapids

After a briefing in the amphitheatre, our group boarded three school buses and drove the short trip to the river, where we were kitted out with helmets, life jackets and paddles. I was a little nervous, especially about falling out of the boat, and counteracted this by chatting inanely with the other paddlers. Our raft consisted of two friends, who had both rafted before, and a group of eight novice paddlers on a stag weekend.

Once we set off, I realized we were not going to get far fast as the group were out of stroke using different paddling techniques and stopping for numerous breaks; as a dragon boat enthusiast for the past four years, I found this a little frustrating and my competitive streak felt wounded as other boats passed us. But I decided to relax and go with the flow, once we got to those rapids we would move with or without paddling effort!

On approaching every rapid, our guide, Joe, gave very detailed instructions on how we would proceed: “paddle hard”, “level 2”, “level 3” “switch” or my favourite, “Get down!” And then we would feel the pull of the current and away we went. Approaching the rapids was much like the clicking noise heard when you ascend a rollercoaster, the inevitability of the ride that awaits filled me with fear until we popped out the other end unscathed.

Rafters on the Ottawa River get dunked

On the first rapid, the raft after us lost 10 paddlers to the river, leaving only two lonely paddlers blindly clutching for paddles and bodies! Luckily no one was injured and our boat alone collected four paddles, a helmet and two (non-matching) shoes, highlighting the importance of securing your safety gear correctly and wearing sensible footwear.

The rapids have names intended to intimidate: Butchers Knife, Bus Eater and the Garbarator to name just a few. The river guides tell stories about these rapids with a tough guy persona that includes berating paddlers (usually just the men) yelling and instilling fear. However, this is all part of the river shtick and they are very professional, safety conscious and fundamentally nice people. My favourite of this theatre was when asked why he worked at Wilderness Tours, by a paddler, our guide, Joe, answered: “Well, I love people: Not you people, but people!”

We had a quick stop along the river for a snack — people paddling later in the day have a full lunch on their break — and then paddled down river to a spot where the brave could cliff dive into the water. I left this activity to my husband and waited with a few other scaredy cats in the raft.

Our last rapids looked innocuous and Joe explained that we might not even feel the pull of the current, however using his guide paddle, he managed to turn the raft up on its edge so that half of the boat were underwater and then switched so the other side could experience a dunking!

Fiona relaxs at the camp site after a long day on the river

Paddling the short distance back to the bank was tough; we were tired from about five hours out on the water and everyone needed a nap. Once back to the buses, we were given a much needed drink and driven back to camp.

Our mood had indeed been lifted by this morning of high action adrenaline pumping adventure and we decided to stay. Now that our grumpy mood had lifted, we were able to see Wilderness Tours for what it is: a very well-appointed resort with lots of activities and resources; kayaking at the beach; a swimming pool; hot tub; games; mountain biking — you name it!

We enjoyed our lunch: meals here are served cafeteria-style and simple but tasty. We then moved on to the dreaded task of erecting our tent. A true test of teamwork, engaged couples should be forced to complete before being allowed to marry; we managed to put the tent up in under 30 mins without killing each other! Now that we had a place to lay our head (and weary river-battered bodies), we could really enjoy our mini vacation.

In the basement of the main building I enjoyed a hot shower and change of clothes before dinner, which was a yummy BBQ chicken with baked potato and apple crumble for dessert. The entertainment that evening was based on the theme of “The Wild West.” (Every summer weekend has a different theme.) The rain that evening dampened the party atmosphere a little, but the live musician’s rendition of “Use Somebody” by Kings of Leon was truly electrifying.

With heavy eyelids, we returned to our campsite and before my husband, J, had returned from brushing his teeth, I was fast asleep with an open book lying across my sleeping bag. Very heavy rain and thunderstorms woke us a few times in the night, as did a small leak into the tent which soaked my sleeping bag and forced me to snuggle up closer to J!

The next morning we enjoyed a hearty breakfast, relaxed and enjoyed the resort facilities. We didn’t get a chance, due to more rain showers, to take out a kayak so we are already planning next summers trip to ensure we experience all Wilderness Tours has to offer.

 

Wow! Despite the ups and downs (literally), sounds like quite the weekend. Thanks for sharing!

Local Tourist Fiona Tapp takes her first tour of the NCC bike paths

Her first NCC bike path adventure, Fiona Tapp rented her bike for four hours at a cost of $25, including helmet, lock and map.

Fiona Tapp is a British Elementary School Teacher, who has called Ottawa home for the past five years. As a native Londoner, she tries to explore and enjoy Ottawa as a tourist, and so far is pretty impressed with this “tiny but brilliant” city!

I am not exactly what you would call a born cyclist, in fact I haven’t owned a bike in years, and unless you count one hour’s rental a year, usually because its included in a resorts activities, I don’t bicycle at all, and am ashamed to admit I have never used the NCC bike paths.

So with the day stretched out in front of me, and glorious weather to boot, I thought I would go ride a bike, and spent the morning looking into rental choices. There are numerous bike shops in Ottawa, but after a few quick calls, I was informed that there are basically two options available, to those who do not own their own bike. Rent a Bixi from various locations or take a trip under the bridge at Colonel by Drive and Rideau to “Rent-a-Bike”.

Safety first...

Safety conscious as always, I wanted to be able to rent a helmet, lock and map-the availability of these items at Rent-a Bike helped to sway my decision. I was met by a very friendly and helpful young man who got me all set up and put my seat down to the lowest possible setting, without laughing- pesky short legs!

I started out along the Canal in a convenient straight line from the tunnel bike shop-it amazed me how natural bike riding felt even though we have been absent friends; it’s a true adage that you really never forget how to ride a bike. After a little while I noticed I was smiling, and realised the girlish thrill of my hair blowing in the wind and the straps of my backpack flying out behind me was quite intoxicating.

Soon I reached Dow’s Lake and marvelled at how much quicker cycling was than my other pastime, running, in terms of actually getting somewhere promptly- there is no contest!

After passing some locks I arrived at Hog’s Back Falls and Park and stopped for my picnic lunch. I absolutely adore picnics, other picnic spots I have visited this summer and would recommend are Pink Lake in Gatineau Park, Lake on the Mountain near Picton and The pick of the bunch;  the NCC Arboretum, where my husband and I enjoyed a champagne picnic to celebrate our fifth wedding anniversary.

Groundhog!

I sat by the lookout enjoying the view of Ottawa, while I ate my lunch and happened upon a group of very friendly squirrels, chipmunks and a big fat groundhog-I find groundhogs very comical and I really enjoyed watching him busy himself unconcerned with my presence.

Ottawa's Rideau Falls

After lunch I felt like challenging myself more than the 8km return trip along the canal, so I decided, upon studying the map, to cycle along the paths past Vincent Massey Park and on the route towards Rideau Falls. I have run part of this route before so felt confident I wouldn’t get lost, and as long as you keep to the paths which are well sign posted, you shouldn’t either.

The bike that I was loaned was a Giant Pathway Comfort, and was great fun to ride, the gears were easy to operate even for a novice and the seat was about as comfortable as a bike seat gets. I had the bike for four hours at a cost of $25, including helmet, lock and map. An hours ride will cost you just $9.

I arrived at Rideau Falls, and enjoyed the beautiful view until I realized the bike path had finished and I still had to get back to the bike shop-being somewhat directionally challenged I chose to head in the wrong direction down Sussex and ended up at Rideau Hall- where very friendly staff pointed me down the road to my destination.

I must admit I was slightly nervous to now be riding on the street, all be it in an assigned bike lane, but felt rather proud of myself when I managed to arrive around the back of the art gallery and suddenly without warning knew exactly where I was.

Bike path in Ottawa

When returning the bike I had to descend into the tunnel down a flight of stairs but there is a nifty little channel running down the middle of the stairs that allows you to guide your bike down without any trouble at all.

I really wasn’t sure I wanted to return the bike, I had enjoyed riding it so much, and was informed that for $260 it could be mine- Mmm, I’ll have to think about that….

All in all, I cycled 24km travelling alongside the Rideau Canal, the Ottawa River, through parks, forested areas, some streets and urban areas, all on bike paths, and as Rent-a-Bike’s website explains: “Canada’s capital has been good to cyclists. We have over 250km of paved pathways, with more to come.”

Another reason to love Ottawa!

Thanks for sharing your adventure Fiona!

Fiona Tapp spends a perfect day in Ottawa

Fiona Tapp is a British Elementary School Teacher, who has called Ottawa home for the past five years. As a native Londoner, she tries to explore and enjoy Ottawa as a tourist, and so far is pretty impressed with this “tiny but brilliant” city!

On the last day of school, before the summer vacation started, amongst the “Best Teacher” mugs, Starbucks cards and boxes of chocolates that littered my desk, a very generous parent of a child in my class had given me a gift of an “Essential Facial” at York Street Spa.

I decided to make a day of it and build a spa/shopping trip around my appointment.

Fiona at the Chateau Laurier pool

First up was a visit to the Chateau Laurier — and for a $20 fee, I was able to use the gym and art deco swimming pool. The gym is fairly well equipped as hotel gyms go, sporting an array of cardio and resistance machines, as well as free weights and a rowing machine. 

After I had worked up a sweat, I retired to a lounger around the edge of the pool and admired the 1912 geometric designs and architecture, including an unused fountain.

The water was warm, and apart from a family, ironically enough all the way from England, I had the place pretty much to myself. It really is quite a unique swimming pool, and seemingly in a time warp, the monogrammed brass door knobs, wooden benches and sunburst motifs ferried me away to a time of jazz, Charleston dancers and talking pictures!

Art deco details at the Chateau Laurier pool

Next up, and just as a light drizzle of rain started to fall, I walked down to Dalhousie to check out three boutiques all in a row: Victoire, Workshop and Milk.

I really enjoyed browsing the one-of-a-kind jewellery in “Victoire”, especially a selection of gold heart necklaces with rather saucy secret messages engraved on them! This store has a wonderful sense of design and whimsy and displays their wares on cake stands, retro furniture and mirrors, which all gives the illusion of having found the jewellery while snooping around a fashionistas bedroom.

Shopping on Dalhousie Street

I moved next door to Workshop and fell in love with a beautiful soft red jacket with a stripy print on the underside of the collar, which the wearer could pop up to reveal, sadly it was slightly out of my price range, but beautiful nonetheless.

Onto Milk, where a fabulous sale was taking place, with great bargains to be had.

What I love about all three of these stores is that you can find something truly unusual or unique that people will ask you about, and of course the customer attention and personal greeting.

I astounded myself by not buying anything, shopaholics can be tamed after all!

The Tea Party

Feeling peckish, I headed to The Tea Party on York Street, and enjoyed a pot of “Windsor Castle” tea and a cucumber sandwich, I loved the cosy feel of this tea shop with its eclectic mix of furniture and dainty china cups and saucers, a trip to the washroom, revealed a claw footed bathtub, which completed the home away from home experience.

Cucumber sandwich from The Tea Party

It was now time for my appointment at York Street Spa, I was met by my esthetician Ioana, a softly spoken Romanian lady who handed me a super soft robe and asked me to soak my feet while she helped me to choose the oils I preferred by scent, they all smelled wonderful.

http://www.yorkstreetspa.com

My treatment included various masques, oils and hot towels applied to the face, while my legs, arms, hands, feet, neck and head were all massaged into blissful abandon.

Despite my “relaxation to the point of catatonia” state I recall misting sprays, the feeling of warmth and the aroma of peppermint — all delivered by such a nurturing, kind lady with a lilting accent that lulled me almost to napping.

At the end of the treatment Ioana hugged me and said she hoped to see me again- no doubt, she will.

Thanks for sharing, Fiona! Got a list of must-hit places in Ottawa? Share your list below!

Samurai, scrolls, street fashion: Fiona Tapp takes in Museum of Civilization’s Japan exhibit

Photo Credit: Fiona Tapp

Fiona Tapp is a British-born elementary school teacher who has called Ottawa home for the past five years. When she’s not teaching, she can be found dragon boating, dancing at Dance with Alana Studios, hiking in Gatineau Park or vegging out with her cat. As a native Londoner, she loves to explore and enjoy Ottawa as a still somewhat new tourist; so far she’s pretty impressed with this “tiny but brilliant” city!

Fiona Tapp

As a teacher, I greet the summer with the same enthusiasm as my six-year-old students, but with quite a bit more planning. At the beginning of the break, I take to my summer vacation planning with all the OCD qualities that (hopefully!) make me a good teacher.

Using different colour highlighters, sticky notes and separate sections — for “Me” time, as well as activities to do with my husband, my girls and around the house — I plan out the entire summer, ensuring every activity, exercise, day trip and overnighter I am interested in is booked, pencilled in the diary and paid for before dreaded September rolls around. This is all much to the annoyance of my husband and non-teaching friends, who think eight weeks vacation is just a little too indulgent for an adult. (Psst . . . they’re just jealous!!)

One of the activities that I had planned and really looked forward to was the Japan exhibition at the Museum of Civilization, which where I found myself on Tuesday afternoon.

My entrance was free as a teacher; just present your Ontario College of Teachers card. (It’s $12 for everyone else.) And as my kind husband drove me there and picked me up, my entire visit was gratis — my favourite price!

The exhibition is housed in Gallery C of the Museum and on the day I visited, I was lucky enough to see Nobumasa Takahashi creating “graffiti” style art on a blank wall at the entrance to the gallery. His cartoon-like traditional sumi-e style is the origin of Manga comics and animation. Visitors were asked to write down their ideas on masking tape for Takahashi-san to use as inspiration, as his style was very quick and energetic, it felt as though you were in a cartoon, watching each character and scene come to life.

Graffiti artist Nobumasa Takahashi (Photo credit: Fiona Tapp)

The exhibition has much to interest Manga fans and contemporary Japan is showcased through the topic of “Entertainment,” including a look at Hello Kitty Comics and Pokemon. Modern Japanese expressions of street fashion were also showcased on a large television screen featuring the wacky and avant garde wardrobes of Tokyo’s “it” crowd. Lady Gaga, eat your heart out!

From Japan: Tradition. Innovation. (Photo Credit: Fiona Tapp)

The fascinating ancient history of Japan is not forgotten and includes artifacts such as Kimonos, scrolls, Samurai armour and swords dating back to the Edo period.

I especially enjoyed the artifacts that demonstrated Japan’s mastery of technology and the miniaturization of gadgets. My favourite of all the objects displayed was a bento picnic box made in the 1800s; I could just imagine a wealthy merchant and his wife enjoying a summer picnic on the banks of Lake Tazawa.

There was a good collection of robots exhibited, both large and small, traditional C-3PO-style humanoid robots, as well as a soft fluffy baby seal, used therapeutically in children’s hospitals and homes for the elderly. The seal responds to touch and is ever so cute — or Kawaii, as they say in Japan!

Museum of Civilization (Photo Credit: Jawcey, via Flickr

I concluded my visit with a walk around the Zen Japanese garden outside the Museum. At first I was disappointed with the lack of colour and flowers in the garden, but on reading an information plaque, I learned that this was in keeping with the philosophy of zen and meditation. As I sat on a stone bench, I realised how relaxing and peaceful this space was — a perfect place to contemplate the March 11 earthquake and tsunami which are referenced throughout the exhibition.

Overall, I enjoyed my visit immensely and am looking forward to returning on September 25 for Japan Day.

Thanks for your insightful description, Fiona. (And we’re definitely jealous of the eight weeks of holidays.) The Japan exhibit runs until early October, but check out graffiti artist Nobumasa Takahashi LIVE until Sunday only!