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Nina Near and Far

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Month: November 2020

Posted on November 21, 2020March 21, 2021

10 Ottawa Experiences You Can Have at Home

We are so fortunate in Ottawa to have(more…)

  • Ottawa
  • Ottawa-Gatineau Winter
 by ninanearandfar0 comment
10 Ottawa Experiences You Can Have at Home
Posted on November 14, 2020March 21, 2021

12 Ottawa Gift Boxes for any Occasion

Give the gift of local.

  • Ottawa
 by ninanearandfar0 comment
12 Ottawa Gift Boxes for any Occasion
Posted on November 4, 2020November 28, 2020

26 Wonderful Things to do in Ottawa in Winter: A Local’s Guide

The best of Ottawa in Winter!

  • canada
  • Ontario
  • Ottawa
  • Ottawa-Gatineau Winter
  • winter
 by ninanearandfar1 comment
26 Wonderful Things to do in Ottawa in Winter: A Local’s Guide

Hi! I’m Nina, and welcome to Nina Near and Far – the Ottawa-based travel blog for people pursing career and academic goals. Nina Near and Far is about making the most of your time off, weekends, and vacation days by exploring you own city and taking short, adventure-packed trips.

Can you believe this is only 45 minutes from downt Can you believe this is only 45 minutes from downtown Ottawa? 😍 SAVE this post for your next outdoor adventure! Morris Island Conservation Area has trails, picnic areas, and a place to put your canoe in the water to paddle around in a sheltered area between the islands! 😷 Rules: Only visit with those in your household and maintain distancing. 💰 Cost: A $6 day pass let’s you park for up to 4 hours. 👥 Washrooms: yes! Operational even now. ☀️ Hours: dawn til dusk 🗺 Trails: low intensity and several options. 🛶 Canoe / kayak: bring your own and enjoy! 🐶 Dogs: allowed on leash. 🎣 Fishing: this is also a popular fishing spot. If possible I recommend going on a weekday! We found it very quiet but the parking lot is small so even on a Thursday afternoon it was already at half capacity. We took a picnic and books and went on a big walk through the trails! Absolutely beautiful. We’re hoping to come back with a kayak or paddle boards soon. #MyOttawa #OttawaLife #OttawaPhotos #FacesOttawa #Ottawa #OptOutside #CanadaGram #DiscoverON
My favourite Ottawa season is tulips 🌷🥰 If ‘construction,’ ‘spring of deception,’ and ‘second winter’ get to be seasons, then I say so does tulips! 🚧 #MyOttawa #FacesOttawa #OttawaPhoto #TopOttawaPhoto #PhotographyOttawa #CdnTulipFest #Apt613 #IgersOttawa #OttawaLife #OttawaLifestyle #CanadsGram #CanadaPhotography #OttawasWorld
Home celebrations 🥂 ⁣ The first time Nick & Home celebrations 🥂 ⁣ The first time Nick & I went for afternoon tea @zoes.ottawa it was a gifted experience. Nick was reluctant but wound up absolutely loving it (he has even gone without me since lol) and afternoon tea is now one of our favourite things to do together, especially for special occasions. It was a little different but equally as delicious and special doing afternoon tea at home this time 🥰 though we hope to be back in the @fairmontlaurier next time! If you still need a stay-home Mother’s Day celebration this would be perfect. ⁣ Bonus: when we went for Christmas we discovered that it’s even more delicious with mimosas 😋 ⁣ What favourite experiences do you keep coming back to? ⁣ #ottawafoodies #ottawafood #myottawa #ottcity #apt613
Calling it now: the new lookout deck behind the We Calling it now: the new lookout deck behind the West Block is going to be a popular photo spot this summer! ⁣ One of the best things that you can do for your brain is anything that is *different* from your regular routine. It’s good for mental health, memory, focus - the list goes on! Things as simple as walking a different way are great for your wellbeing 🥰 (and, if you saw my stories yesterday, then you know that I am very frustrated by construction noise and my wellbeing needed a boost today!) ⁣ Even knowing the research on this I fall into the habit of walking the same route every day, but last night a conversation with a friend reminded me that I should change things up! I went out to explore the stairs and river pathway today and caught this cool cloud formation! SWIPE ➡️ for a little time lapse. ⁣ #Ottawa #MyOttawa #OptOutside #PassionPassport #Apt613 #OttawaLife #FacesOttawa #OttawaPhoto
Peeps 😍 I submitted my thesis!* ⁣ Every miles Peeps 😍 I submitted my thesis!* ⁣ Every milestone in my life just reminds me that I have the best people ❤️ The circumstances during my Masters have been tough, both in personal events and the realities of our persistent global crisis. And yet... in many ways it feels like it was a straight road. That’s the power of great people. Whatever detours, backroads, dead ends, or road blocks come up, I can count on my family, friends, mentors, and this wonderful social media community. For that, I am endlessly grateful 😌 ⁣ *My committee will now review it. Next (likely in June) I will have a thesis defence where I present my research and answer questions from my committee. If needed, I’ll take a couple days to make revisions... and that’ll be it!
First tulip sighting! 🌷 ⁣ The tulips have al First tulip sighting! 🌷 ⁣ The tulips have always been one of my favourite things about living in Ottawa. I love the historical significance to WWII and the tulips are such a happy sign that months of sunshine and warm weather are ahead! ⁣ The Tulip Festival is cancelled this year and any events and displays are moved online, but there are still thousands of tulips planted all across the city for everyone to enjoy 🥰 ⁣ #MyOttawa #OttawaLife #CanadaGram #OptOutside #CdnTulipFest #FacesOttawa #OttawaPhoto #TopOttawaPhoto
Small sources of joy: fresh flowers 💐 fiction Small sources of joy: fresh flowers 💐 fiction books 📚 and sunshine ☀️ ⁣ Today I got a library card! I haven’t used public libraries in years (probably since I was in middle school and went to use the computers after school lol) but I anticipate reading a lot this summer and thought it best to not buy every single book... for the sake of both my $$ and my small apartment. They’re really well set up for non-contact pick up! What are your favourite stand alone fiction books? I love a good series but don’t want to get stuck waiting for next books if I use the library! ⁣ Fantasy lovers - hit SAVE! On my shelf: ⁣ 📖 The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue: Addie makes a deal with the devil to live forever, but the cost? No one remembers her. ⁣ 📖 Lore: currently reading and SO GOOD. Modern Greek mythology meets the Hunger Games. ⁣ 📖 City of Brass (series): Islamic mythology and lore. A con-woman accidentally summons a djinn and gets caught up in a magical world. ⁣ 📖 The Only Woman in the Room: Historical fiction about the life of Hedy Lamarr, reknowned actress and inventor of Wifi. ⁣ 📖 The Fifth Season (series): Science / fantasy fiction set on a supercontinent called the ‘stillness’ that is regularly wrecked by apocalyptic level catastrophe. The final book wasn’t my favourite but the first two were excellent. ⁣ 📖 The Bear and the Nightingale: next up! Historical fantasy set in medieval times and based on Russian folklore. #books #shereads #booksofinstagram
Who had ‘bike shortage’ on their bingo card? 🚲 Increased demand and delays in supply chains has led to ~ 2 year waitlists for bikes! ⁣ SAVE this post for yourself if you need a bike OR to pass on to someone else who does 🥰 ⁣ If you need a bike this summer @biketoursottawa is offering multi-day and -week bike rentals this summer! ⁣ They have a spring promotion on right now. Rent a bike for only $35/week if you rent for 7 weeks or more. I reached out and Bike Tours Ottawa even gave us an additional discount - use the code ‘springescape21’ to take 10% off the spring promotion price! There are also LOTS of other options for how to rent and for how long. ⁣ If you already have a bike check out their tours or day tours for something to do with your household this summer. They have a wide variety of tours in the Ottawa - Gatineau area. Who else can’t wait to bike lots this summer? 🙋🏼‍♀️ I’m just waiting for the roads to be swept! ⁣ #cycling #myottawa #monottawa #outaouisfun #cyclinglife #discoveron #ottawalife #facesottawa #optoutside #getoutside #canadalife #ncc_ccn
*Spamming my soon-to-be new colleagues from Toront *Spamming my soon-to-be new colleagues from Toronto and abroad with photo evidence that Ottawa is the best.* ⁣ Can’t beat these castle views 🤩 Happy Easter weekend everyone! P.S. Head to the link in my bio to find my Ottawa Walking & Cycling Trails Guide if you’re looking for a place to explore this weekend! ☀️ ⁣ #MyOttawa #OttawaLife #Apt613 #DiscoverON #OttCity #OptOutside #Ottawa #FacesOttawa #TopOttawaPhoto #IgersOttawa
I had a different post scheduled for today, but... I had a different post scheduled for today, but... today just hit hard, didn’t it? ❤️ And I want to give you a moment to just... be a little mad. ⁣ There’s lots of time for me to post activities and encouragement and all that good stuff but today I am just feeling like we just need a second, y’know? ⁣ So, friends... tell me what sucks. ⁣ Why are you mad? Frustrated? Burnt out? Tired? Or just - can you relate? And I know - you are incredible and you can see the good, you can make the most of a crappy situation, and you will get through this, and you are resilient... I know all of those things about you. All of you. You’re also a human who has lived through a difficult and frustrating 13 months. And I think we could use a moment to say that this sucks and be met with virtual hugs and empathy, so that is what we’re going to do.
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