Attention all hockey fans, the countdown is winding down to days for the 2012 All-Star Weekend!  Ottawa will host the four day festival beginning on January 26th, with the NHL trophies travelling down the Rideau Canal Skateway and ending on the 29th, with the main event, the All-Star game! 

The festival kicks off at 2:30pm on Thursday, with the NHL trophies (including the Stanley Cup), travelling down the Rideau Canal Skateway.  Fans, you can catch a glimpse of these trophies between Waverly St. and Daly Ave.  For the true hockey fan, the Scotiabank NHL Fan Fair  will be held from the 26th to the 28th.  This family-friendly event will showcase memorabilia, interactive games and attractions, and special appearances by fan favorites!  Tickets for this event are $15, and can be purchased from Capital Tickets.  On the 27th, fans can take part in the Energizer Night Skate in aid of the Sens Foundation.  This event will take place at the Rideau Canal at 7pm, and the registration fee is $20, but fans are encouraged to reach deep to help the Sens foundation.  All participates will receive an LED headlamp to light up the night!  Saturday, January 28^th, is when fans can see the future (9 am) and current all stars (7pm) show off their skills.   Finally to round out the weekend, the main event!!  Sunday at 4pm, the festival draws to a close with the 59th Annual NHL All-Star game!

All-Star fever is really beginning to heat up with banners and flags being raised on many of the roadways, not to mention on radio and news programs!  For a list of all the events, check out, 2012 All-Star Weekend.

Who says the New Year starts in January? In Ottawa it starts in September

Photo courtesy www.travelandtransistions.com

 or so it feels like it. The students return for the fall semester, the House sits and the city feels alive again! Best part of this time of year is the warm days and cool nights. Fall is definitely my favorite time year (my hair thanks Mother Nature for the drop in humidity!) and Ottawa has so much to offer during this season. A few gems that can be found in O-Town are this weekend’s Grape Stomp and Relay Race in Little Italy hosted by Sakto Corporation with participants raising dough (literally) for the Ottawa Regional Cancer Foundation.

If you want to be inspired, the Ottawa Police officers and members of various police services will take part in the 6^th annual National Peace Officers’ Memorial Run, a 460 km relay that travels through Toronto and ends at Parliament Hill this Saturday.

Or if you consider yourself somewhat of a foodie or just want to take part and celebrate women in food, check out Spoon held at The Side Door Restaurant in the market Sept 27^th. It’s Ottawa’s first ever “Gastronomique Showcase of Powerhouse Women in the Food and Wine Industry”. Tix are $55 each and should be well worth it! Bring on the delicacies and the chunky sweaters!! 

Wishing you all a Happy New Fall!

Since Disney began promoting the Lion King in Ottawa I was hooked. The kick off event last year open to all in the tourism industry was nothing short of magical Disney style; serving up mountains of tasty morsels, constant flow of bevvies, and a behind the scenes PR session cemented my decision to check out the musical. Confession: I never saw movie or really wanted to at all but after Disney courted me I was game. Also everyone walked away with a stuffed animal (Pumbaa was my grab), CD and Lion King paraphernalia from the show to call their own.  Totally felt the love that night, nice touch Disney!

So when the offer to see the show was made I pounced at the chance. Let me tell you this – the show did not disappoint! Especially the child actors, what an amazing production. The family friendly performance was absolutely captivating and the costumes even more incredible.  While staying in Ottawa don’t miss out on your chance to see the award-winning musical at the NAC, the Lion King roars out of town on Aug 7^th!

Photo credit Destination360

It’s the last weekend for bluesfest and well that makes me a little bit blue. It’s great to see Ottawa actually let loose a bit and lose some inhibitions…somewhat. It’s amazing to be part of the audience where you get the opportunity to be exposed to a meld of new emerging Canadian talent paired with seasoned international artists. What a rush!

This weekend’s line up promises to deliver with everything from classic Canadian entertainers to alt rock bands and artisits somewhere in-between.  The fest delivers all genres of music and appeals to so many; I wonder why the name hasn’t changed to musicfest?! Some traditions must remain I suppose. Regardless of your taste in lyrical stylings just get out there and enjoy the last weekend of it! See you there!

Photo Credit NCC/CCN

Happy Canada Day…well almost. We’d love to hear what your plans are for the long weekend and Canada Day celebrations. Fireworks? Concert? BBQ? Waterpark? Cottage? Getting together with friends and family? This Canada Day Minto Suite Hotel will be celebrating in true red & white style with patriotic goodies. Stop by and share in the celebration and find out where the best spot is to catch a glimpse of the fireworks!

A little piece of heaven on Bank St!

Photo courtesy Thimble Cakes

Thimble Cakes http://www.thimblecakes.ca/  is my new found afternoon sweet tooth fix go-to spot. Forget that they are nut free, eco-friendly, offer gluten free cakes, egg/dairy free cakes and serve caffeinated bevies…they have MINI CUPCAKES!

For real, bite size, euphoric, marriage of icing-and-gluten-free-cherry-chocolate-goodness -in-my-mouth cupcakes. Alright so I may be a little too excited about flour and sugar but if you find yourself fighting the afternoon sugar crave, why not head to Thimble Cakes for a decadent treat? They’re located at 369 Bank St. Check out the website to see what the flavors of the day are. Enjoy!

Festival seekers and goers – this weekend starting June 10^th is Westboro Village’s free festival of music, art and life.  Don’t miss out on this celebration of Canadian talent filling 14 city blocks along Richmond Rd of all things art, poetry, concerts, entertainers, food, buskers, possibly more food and children’s entertainment.

Check out the festival’s website at http://www.westfest.ca for the weekend lineup and info on headliners like Bif Naked, Tanya Tagaq and The Murder Plans.

Photo courtesy www.westfest.ca

Here’s what they have to say about themselves: “Westfest is a party like no other! Each year more than 100,000 people attend Westfest during our outdoor, three day celebration of Canadian art and culture. Westfest is a fusion of community and art, and places a special emphasis on diversity, children, and all families. Taking place annually the second weekend of June, Westfest is proud to be Ottawa’s only festival of its size and scope that is free and open to all!”

This weekend all signs point west.

I’ve got summer fever. Would that be considered an acceptable excuse to call in sick to work? I think so, especially on those sunny mornings where you’d rather be anywhere else than slogging away. Like on a patio with a pint or on the outdoor trails. Ottawa has some really amazing hiking and biking trails all over from the Gatineau hills to the canal you can always find a reason to hit the pathway and just go. And now that the city has implemented bixies all over, why not go for a spin?

A friend of mine got me the Hiking Trails of Ottawa book (available at Chapters), and found my favorite trail in Gatineau Park – Trail #2 off parking lot 12 starting from Meech Lake. It starts off with an intense climb (hello glutes!) then levels out so you can enjoy the scenery and your hard work to get there. http://www.canadascapital.gc.ca

Even at Minto Suite Hotel guests are encouraged to get out and explore the city on two wheels. All of the bikes provided by the hotel are free to rent out and a really great eco way to see the Capital. Now if I can just sneak out of work and take off on one of the bikes and find a patio…

Nothing beats the sound of thousands, o.k. maybe hundreds of runner’s footsteps around you. Ottawa Race weekend is approaching soon (5 days!) and I’m thrilled and terrified at the same time. Mostly my legs are terrified. And my feet. My entire body hates me. After last year’s race weekend on a “runners high” I decided 2011 was my year for the half marathon. Well being the procrastinator I am, this year’s half sold out before I had a chance to change my sweat-wicking socks. I was a faced with a choice: run the 10k again or the marathon. Marathon a little voice said, you can do it (actually the voice was my feisty running partner who screamed MARATHON!), I totally could do it, it’s like running four 10k’s in a row right? Sounds logical to me. Ack!!!! What did I sign up for? If found on the ground, please drag across the finish line (hmm maybe I could rock that t-shirt…)

I’m pretty fortunate to work for a company that actually encourages my running. Is encourage the right word? My boss consistently (and I mean constantly) reminds me of the morning 5k runs that he’ll be leading every Tuesday and Thursday at 7am open to all employees and guests. I may just have to really consider waking up early enough to join him. I’ll give it a strong consideration from underneath my covers.

The excitement of Race Weekend is about to explode Ottawa May 28-29. www.ncm.ca Come out and cheer on all the participants, regardless if you’re a runner or not, the radiant energy of the crowd is amazing and truly motivating. Now if I could just get my legs to stop being so scared….