Home is where the heart is

Whenever people ask where we’re from, they’re always surprised that we had decided to move from Toronto to Ottawa. The usual questions?

“You moved HERE? Why?!”
“Don’t you think Ottawa is so boring?”
“There’s nothing to do here, I can’t wait to leave. Settling down then, aren’t you?”

CJ grew up in Ajax, and moved to Ottawa for school about seven years ago. I fell in love with the city after we did the whole long-distance relationship thing for a year, and I moved here after graduating from McMaster, three years ago. We first moved into an apartment in Sandy Hill. For those who aren’t familiar with Ottawa geography, Sandy Hill is right downtown and what we had not-so-affectionately come to learn is Ottawa’s student ghetto. After two years, we decided to move a bit east to the Vanier area.

While we love our area, and haven’t at all experienced any of those “Vanier stories” (the neighbourhood has cleaned up a lot within the past 10 years, but unfortunately the reputation has stuck) there are particular areas of Ottawa that we’ve really fallen in love with.

Of course, there’s the Glebe. An eclectic mix of local boutiques and restaurants, and for all our Toronto friends, is (kinda) comparable to the Annex. The Glebe is home to the infamous Kettleman’s bagels, Suzy Q’s amahhhh-zing Earl Grey doughnuts, and the Flapjack Pancake Shack (which can you believe, we have yet to try?).

And there’s Westboro, hands down one of our favourite areas in Ottawa. We love how you can walk everywhere — to the grocery store, your favourite coffee spot, and bonus points for being an awesomely dog-friendly area.

We’re currently on the lookout for Ottawa’s most up-and-coming neighbourhoods — New Edinburgh. Home to some of Ottawa’s classic spots, like Bridgehead, New Edinburgh is close enough to downtown that its still accessible and central, but far enough away that you still have that quaint sort of feeling. The best way to describe this spot? A great place to enjoy a nice patio, some fresh gluten-free pastries, and organic produce.

So to answer those questions from the beginning of the post… There’s an endless supply of things to do and places to eat in Ottawa, and the city is growing. We’re ecstatic to watch how our city will evolve in the next few years!

We both moved here a few years ago, intending for our stay to be only temporary. The two of us have big plans for ourselves in the next few years, and these plans might take us outside of the capital and even abroad — but this city certainly has captured our hearts, and it looks like it’s Ottawa that we’re always going to call home.

what she’s wearing | Nordstrom Hinge suede skirt | Le Chateau sweater | BP wedges | Express clutch
what he’s wearing | LD West holster | Urban Outfitters slacks | Florsheim shoes

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