Check Out Chelsea for a Daytripping Stop
Sunday, March 13, 2011 at 10:50PM 
Dear readers,
My daytripping went a lot better for me this past weekend and I'm pleased to announce that my anger management coping skills have kicked in, Thank God! (Remember the last blog post on Almonte)? We can't have a hot-head blogging, Lord knows what I might pound out on the keyboard next! But this weekend was different. I went across the Ottawa River to the Quebec side, to Chelsea, to be more precise, (mais oui, bien sur)! I’ve put the bad memories of Almonte behind me, or as the French would say, c’est passé!
Spring was in the air, so blame it on Spring fever I guess. I was feeling a lot more …. Oh, Je ne sais quoi…jaunty, and in the mood for something different, so I decided to explore the tiny village of Chelsea. The rich go to Paris in the Spring, but the poor… the poor can always explore Quebec (and pretend they're in Paris), but I must say, I was enchanted in Chelsea, or as the French would say…enchantée!
Let me just start by saying that nothing clears your head better than a Sunday drive through the Gatineau Hills. If anything, the drive was both calming and relaxing and the scenery, like the rolling hills and picturesque cottages made it worth venturing out there (those of you fortunate enough to own a car).
Chelsea is a charming little village located 20 minutes north of downtown Ottawa, and, although it's become increasingly trendy to live there, it does have its fair share of cute--looking cottages along the way. Here are two photos of some cottages I noticed on the drive in. Look at the first one, cozy huh? Can you say "log cabin" with me?
Chelsea caters to nature lovers as it has plenty of nature trails and is right next door to Camp Fortune, a ski resort. The main street is dotted with several restaurants and shops which I had chance to poke around in, but I must say, it's a tad pricey. I went to Galerie Old Chelsea, an art store which exhibits local artists' paintings, (mainly nature scenes of Chelsea) but it's $$$ if you're interested in buying one.
I had dinner at a tiny vegetarian restaurant called Soup 'Herbe and as the name suggests, yes, indeed, the food was superb! (I just HAD TO get that in there!)
Allow me to say that if you’re going to cheat on your diet, I suggest you do it in style. Just look at what I feasted on! I sat down and had French onion soup (which, coincidentally, was the soup of the day, or as the French would say, the soup du jour ) and fit in nicely with my blog this week. For dessert, in honour of the French, I ordered crêpes… (just stay with me and pretend we’re in Paris). Pancakes are for the commoner, I dined on crêpes. Those with savoir-faire, know what I’m talking about. I felt terribly Bourgeois eating the French version of fancy pancakes. Twist my rubber arm, but how can you refuse crêpes with whipped cream, topped with fruit, drizzled in chocolate and maple syrup? De trop you say? Certainly! But as the French would say, C’est la vie! What’s that you say? My overuse of French expressions is beginning to get on your nerves? Oh là là! Not me, Au contraire, I’m having too much fun with this. As this is my blog, I’m giving myself carte blanche to write however many French expressions that come to mind. Where is your joie de vivre anyway? Signing off now, au revoir my friends, Voila, c’est fini!
Reader Comments (1)
The food looks delicious Linda! Way to cheat on your diet (haha). Seems like it was worth though.