Friday 10: Ottawa bound

I'm on the road to Ottawa this week for a little getaway. It's going to be an adventure! Check my Instagram feed for pictures from the road. 

In the meantime, here are a few articles and links that are inspiring me this week:

First, I'm brushing up on "How to Plan the Perfect Road Trip" via Lifehacker. I'm wishing Roadtrippers would expand into Canada already so I could test it out already.

The colors and flavors of Ottawa's ByWard Market from Megan Leader on Vimeo.

It's been a long time since I've been to Ottawa, but I remember loving the ByWard Market. It's one of the oldest public markets in Canada and is full of interesting food vendors, shops, and restaurants. I can't wait to get back and see what it's like now. 

I'm tucking this list of restaurants near the ByWard Market in my notes so we can keep our bellies full when we need a break from shopping.

Paradise Lost by Gustave Doré | via Wikimedia Commons, uploaded by Holger Thölking

Keeping my fingers crossed that we will see the Gustave Doré (ends 14 September 2014) exhibition at the beautiful National Gallery of Canada. Doré (1832-1883) was and artist, sculptor, and printmaker, but he especially well-known for his illustrations and engravings. 

Since a tour of Parliament may be in order, here are the CBC's 5 secrets from Parliament Hill and a bonus 4 to follow-up. Who doesn't love knowing there are secret stairwells, special scotch, and that each year $4000 to $5000 is collected from the fountain around the Centennial Flame to fund disabilities research? 

Travel = new books for me. I'm using NPR's "Book Your Trip" feature to find some recommendations. Just choose your mode of transportation and you'll get a list of books inspired by that kind of journey. Perfect! I was also recommended The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt twice this week, so that might have to be first on my list. 

Now that my Whole30 is over, I'm sticking with Paleo eating for awhile and finding advice on healthy travel snacks from Nom Nom Paleo.  

Condé Nast Traveler's 2014 list of friendliest and unfriendliest cities in the US is out. I can't say I'm surprised by most of it, but when we were in Detroit for the Winter Classic, everyone we met was lovely. We didn't venture too far off the beaten path, though. 

These photos of Italy's most beautiful beaches make me long to book a trip right now. It's been a cold Canadian summer up here and I can't imagine how glorious one or all of these would be.

via Foodie's Feed

A French hospital opened a wine bar to help "restore longing, taste, desire, and even pleasure" to terminally ill patients, once again reminding us how important it is to take time and enjoy life. 

Falling in love with the Chesapeake Bay all over again through Tim Neville's beautiful story of a father-son fishing trip in the New York Times. 

That's it for this week! Are you off to anywhere fun? Have any great road trip advice? Let me know!

I finished the Whole30!

Hooray! What a ride it was!

I wasn't sure what would happen when I first decided to go on this crazy adventure. I thought it seemed a little too restrictive, but vanity won over in the end. I just had to see if I could get clearer skin. And I did! But I never expected that I would feel so good that I would be sad it was ending.

When I wrote this post at Day 18, I was starting to see some nice results. The 12 days after that were full on "tiger blood" like the timeline promised. I woke up every morning feeling amazing. I'm talking about jumping-out-of-bed-singing amazing! I've never been a morning person and never thought I would be a morning person. That alone blew my mind. 

What else? I felt really, really good after every meal--full and energized but not heavy. My workouts were stronger. I slept better and woke up happier. My cravings plummeted. My skin became clearer than it has been in two years. My SI joint pain basically disappeared, finally! I made some delicious nutrient-dense meals--mmm, homemade mayo! And I learned about how much sneaky stuff is in our food--I'm looking at you, sugar! 

Was it hard? 

Not really. It was frustrating at times, especially when eating out. Or that time I brought a compliant meal over to dinner at our friends' house. That was more embarrassing than anything, though. Or that other time I was reading about the difference between prime rib and Oreos in It Starts with Food and I had a daydream about eat-swimming my way through an ocean of Oreos. Although that just illustrated their point that Oreos are a food with "no-breaks" for many people. 

But like they say:

It is not hard. Don’t you dare tell us this is hard. Beating cancer is hard. Birthing a baby is hard. Losing a parent is hard. Drinking your coffee black. Is. Not. Hard. You’ve done harder things than this, and you have no excuse not to complete the program as written. It’s only thirty days, and it’s for the most important health cause on earth – the only physical body you will ever have in this lifetime. - See more at: http://whole30.com/step-two/#sthash.wjZhqVfT.dpuf

Was it worth it? 

Double yes! Beyond all of the great results, I learned so much about how what I eat affects everything from my energy to my skin to my mood. As a result, I'm finding it easier to say "no" to certain foods, whether it's when someone offers me a dessert I don't really want or when I'm out buying groceries. 

What happens on Day 31?

The Whole30 has a reintroduction phase, so you can't just wake up on Day 31 and gorge on everything you cut out. A bummer, I know! I had visions of cake and ice cream dancing in my head.

Instead, you add back dairy, gluten grains, non-gluten grains, and legumes one at a time with two days of Whole30 compliant eating between them. This lets you see if you're truly sensitive to any of those things.

Reintroduction has been the worst part of the Whole30 for me (yes, even worse than the "kill all the things" day!). I never expected to be sensitive to anything and I've spent the whole reintroduction feeling, well, like crap. Lots of headaches and bloating and stomach cramps and wanting to go to bed at 8. Dairy was an especially awful two-day experience and, to top it all off, I broke out. It has been a learning experience!  

Where will I go from here?

Going forward, my plan is to stay mostly paleo and choose my treats wisely. Turns out that I actually love eating lots of meat, veggies, good fats, and fruits more than I love big bowls of pasta or sandwiches. I'll probably follow the off-roading and life after the Whole30 guides for awhile. Is white bread from the grocery store worth it to me anymore? No. Is a crusty baguette in Paris worth it to me? Yes. 

I'm sure there will be days when I will eat terrible, delicious junk food, too. I think those days will driven much less by crazy cravings than before, though. 

Advice for first-timers? 

Set yourself up for success first and foremost. Read all of the rules, know the timeline, read blogs and forums for others' experiences, find some great recipes to try, use the Whole30 downloads, and then commit 100%. I found reading the book, It Starts with Food, gave me a better understanding of hows and whys, so I'd recommend either buying a copy or borrowing it. 

Yes, 30 days seems like a long time at first but in the grand scheme of things, 30 days of your life is nothing. It's ok to be nervous or skeptical. I was definitely both! I decided to treat it like a science experiment and a time focus on doing something good for myself. So be kind to yourself, too. Get lots of sleep, relax, have fun outside, do non-food things that make you happy and help you de-stress. It will come in handy when the going gets a little rough. 

It really boils down to this: If you really want to do it, you can do it! 

Friday 10: A Paris getaway

This week's Friday 10 is all about Paris. I've had Paris on the brain since Monday after writing about revisiting. Here are a couple of articles to get the inspiration going and a list of beautiful rentals (including the one we booked last year!).

Everything you need to start the getaway ball rolling. 

Discovering the fun surprises of Les Berges, September 2013

The New York Times on Les Berges, a fun section along the Seine that encourages adults and kids alike to to play and relax. We stumbled on it last September and let our inner children run amok for awhile. Hopscotch in Paris?! Don't mind if I do. 

Playing petanque in Place Dauphine for a little slice of Provence in Paris via MessyNessyChic. 

What Anne S. Ditmeyer of Prêt à Voyager would do with 24 Hours in Paris. Hint: it's a wonderful mix of beautiful shops and great food. 

Ready for a trip yet? Here's a few places I would (and did) consider renting.  

via Haven in Paris | Sacre Coeur Penthouse

Haven in Paris's Sacre Coeur Penthouse ($1275-1550 USD | 18th arr.) Bright and sunny with a great location in Montmartre. Check out its gorgeous view of Sacre Coeur and Paris. Haven in Paris specializes in beautiful apartments of various sizes in great locations throughout the city. I've heard lots of good things about their service and contacted them last year, but we were a little late in booking and nothing was available. Check out everything they offer here. The HiP blog is also a great resource for what to see and do in Paris that's beyond the usual tourist spots.  

via Paris Perfect | Chenas apartment

Paris Perfect's Chenas (€214 - €357/night or €1498 - €2499/week | 6th arr.) Located in one of my favorite areas of Paris to wander. St. Sulpice, the Seine, Luxembourg Gardens, Boulevard St.-Germain, lots of boutiques and restaurants, plus two famed macaron shops nearby: Ladurée and Pierre Hermé are all at your apartment door. Bonus: they're having a last minute sale right now! More luxurious apartments at Paris Perfect here and their blog here. 

Perfectly Paris Montmartre with a View (€290/night with a 5 night min or €1450/week | 18th arr.) Also available on AirBnb here. This apartment and company came highly recommended to me last year via SlowTalk. Unfortunately, it was booked for our dates and I can see why. The bedroom has an incredible view and the location in Montmarte offers the feel of a village within Paris. Perfectly Paris specializes in Montmartre, so check out their other apartments here!

via Feels Like Home in Paris | Paris with a View apartment

Feels Like Home in Paris Paris with a View Apartment (€185/night or €1090/week, 18th arr.) Right next to Sacre Coeur, this is another well-located Montmartre apartment with fantastic views. I could probably spend hours looking out over the city from that window, I think you would have to peel me off of it at night. The apartment is bright, modern, welcoming, and pretty darn big--especially for Paris standards--at 506 sq. ft. I love that Feels Like Home in Paris provides an iPhone for your stay, so you can us apps or search for things to do while on the go without racking up huge charges on your own phone. Check out their other rentals here. 

Paris Best Lodge Bourg-Tibourg (€800/week | 4th arr.) A really unique, brightly decorated compact apartment with a balcony! I gave this one and Studio Mazarin (in Saint-Germain-des-Prés) a good, long consideration last year because of their great prices, locations, and balconies. Paris Best Lodge also has a loyal following and tons of reviews. More options from Paris Best Lodge here. 

Cobblestone Paris La Charme du Marais (Rates vary based on time of year, currently $188/night with a 3 night min | 2nd/3rd arr.) Cobblestone Paris is new to me, and their apartments are so beautiful! I had a hard time choosing one to feature. I'm a little bit in love with this airy apartment with a wrap-around balcony (!) on the edge of the 2nd and 3rd arrondissements. It's also a couple of blocks from the pedestrian market street of Rue Montorgueil for easy access to morning (and afternoon and evening) pastries. More great rentals options from Cobblestone Paris here. 

And, last but not least, the apartment we stayed in last year. 

The view of Place des Victoires from the bedroom window. We sat here watching the sky and the people below for hours. Our peaceful, quiet slice of Paris (at least for a week).

AirBnB A Charming Flat for Paris Lovers ($249/night or $1429/week | 1st arr.) We stayed here for a week in September 2013 and still I can't rave enough about how much I loved the apartment. Here's what I wrote last year for my AirBnB review: 

The apartment was an absolute dream for us.

The apartment itself was beautiful, even prettier than the pictures suggest. It was very clean and bright with all of the amenities we could possibly ask for. Marianne has done a wonderful job of making it feel like a really special, welcoming space.

Although there is no elevator, we liked taking the beautiful old staircase. The walk up was worth it every time. The view from the bedroom over Place des Victoires was practically mesmerizing. It was always fun to spend some time people-watching, whatever the time of day. We also found the apartment to be very quiet, which can sometimes be difficult in Paris, so we slept really well. The neighborhood was also lovely and calm in the evening.

The location was fantastic. It was within easy walking distance to so much of Paris and has excellent access to a number of metro lines. The surrounding area was wonderful to stroll through and explore, especially the Palais Royal garden and the covered passages. We didn't feel like we had to go far or leave our neighbourhood to have a great day of exploring, but it was very easy to go further afield when we wanted to.

There are plenty of great shops, restaurants, and bakeries (Aki was my personal favorite) nearby, not to mention to proximity of rue Montorgueil! It was some kind of heaven to go there and look at all of the food shops and then have relaxed a drink at a cafe.

I can't really recommend this apartment enough and I wouldn't hesitate to stay here again (and hope to someday).

Marianne was also fantastic to work with. She was always quick to respond and very professional, helpful, and friendly. You can tell that she truly takes pride in her apartment and wants her guests to feel at home and have a wonderful stay in the city. We certainly felt at home right away and it was very hard to leave!

So there you go. Feeling like a trip to Paris is in order? Because I am. Always!

Let me know if you have any favorite spots to stay in or visit when you're in Paris.