Winter fun-time

Depending on where you're living, you may have been a bit cold this week. Much of Canada, Britain, the US, and Europe have been much colder than usual.

Where I'm living, that meant temperatures going down to lows of -40*C with wind chill. To put that into perspective, have a look at this video. It's so cold that boiling water instantly freezes upon contact with air. It's cold.

So to put it mildly, I've been staying inside.

The upside of this cold weather, however, is that Ottawa's famous Rideau Canal skateway fully opened yesterday, and the conditions are fantastic.

If you're not familiar with the Rideau Canal, it's original purpose was to connect Ottawa and Kingston, to facilitate communications and movement of troops between the old and new Canadian capitals. To say the least, it no longer serves this purpose. Instead, every autumn the canal water is drained to a lower level, carefully monitored until it freezes, then opens as the "world's large skating rink", with a length of 7.8 kilometers, and a size equivalent of about 90 Olympic ice hockey rinks (all numbers taken from Wikipedia).

The canal is incredibly well maintained, and posts regular updates about ice conditions. It has food stalls, rest areas, roving paramedics, skate rentals, and heated changing chalets.

And the best part? It's COMPLETELY free to the public (skate rentals and food aside)!

I was so happy this morning when I woke up and checked the weather forecast (about -20, so pretty reasonable), and ice conditions (good!). I packed up my thermos of hot chocolate, a pack lunch, and my skates, and headed off to the canal.

 This is the first time I've been on the canal for over 6 years, and it felt really good to be back! There's something lovely about skating along on a frozen body of water, surrounded by children just learning to skate, families taking their sick relative out for a day (you can rent sleds or bring your own), people using all types of skates, from figure skates, to speed skates, to hockey skates, to sledges.

 The most important things to remember when you're skating on the Rideau Canal are:

- bring a back-pack to carry your boots, food, etc, and any layers you might want to remove
- bring water!
- bring extra layers, just in case
- have fun!


Got my skates on and I'm ready to go!

I paid a quick visit to my former primary school. A yearly school activity was always a night-time scavenger hunt on the canal. Fun for the whole family (except my mum, who couldn't skate... but that's ok! You can walk on the canal too!)

There are these little rest-stops along the way, where you can get hot drinks, beaver tails, and other snacks. Or just have a little rest! I needed to sit down at this point because I had tied my skates too tight. Muscle pain and shin splints ensued. So I stopped, let my muscles relax, then re-tied my skates a bit looser. (In this photo, you can also see a child-carrier - these are normally pulled behind bicycles, but are really handy to push your kids or your stuff on the ice, too!)

After about an hour, I reached Dow's lake - just about the furthest edge of the canal. This is where I had my lunch and turned around. It's about 5km away from where I started.

Lunch time! A thermos full of hot chocolate, a peanut butter sandwich, an orange in slices, and a piece of Christmas cake. This was my little way of trying to defeat the urge to have a BeaverTail. It worked, but mostly because I didn't have enough cash for one.






After a half-hour skate, I was back again! (I tied my skates properly this time, so no need to pause to ease my muscles). Tired, sore, but happy :)

One of the reasons I wanted to post this is because, for me, it's proof that you don't need a gym membership to be physically active. Ottawa is a fantastic place for outdoor physical exercise. In the winter there's the canal, but in the summer there's an incredible network of dedicated bike paths, and lots of open areas. These outdoor spaces are my gym, no membership required!

What outdoor activities are available in your area? Do you take advantage of them?

Tip #5 – Liquid Savings

I’m going to say something shocking.  You might not want to hear it.  One of the main ways I save money is by….

drinking tap water

That’s right, tap water.  Not bottled, not filtered, but straight from the tap.  This is obviously only applicable if you live in an area where tap water is drinkable – but that’s the majority of the developed world.  Even when I visited China, where it was impossible to drink the tap water, tea was given free at restaurants, and boiling water was provided in most public places, including trains.  So bottled water was unnecessary!

I could go on and on about the health benefits of drinking water.  They’re enormous.  It’s sugar-free, fat-free, chemical-free (well, that’s debatable), but this is a blog about saving money.  The fact is it costs nothing to drink tap water.  Granted, many countries charge for water delivery to houses, but the cost is minimal compared with juice, coffee, tea, or (heaven forbid!) soft drinks. 

I’m going to go further, now, so bear with me.

Don’t drink alcohol.

Seriously.  It’s the most expensive thing you could possibly drink.  Simply cutting out alcohol will lower monthly outgoings significantly. 

I realize that this is all extremely horrifying, and you may be unwilling to go fully over to the “unflavoured” side.  So I have a couple of solutions:

1 – If you’re super-unwilling to drink straight tap water, or it’s not possible to do so, buy a simple water filter like Brita, OR fill large bottles with water from a source which you know is safe.  I did this throughout first year university when the water in my residence tasted horrible, and it’s a standard trick for people who have cottages or boats where the water comes straight from a lake.  As an added bonus, you don’t have to pay for filling up your water bottles from a public place J

2 – If you’re unwilling to completely forego the alcohol, set yourself a nightly limit.  Mine is usually 10 in whatever currency the country I'm in uses ($10, ₤10, €10… adjustable for different countries) and I don’t go above it.  That’s usually one or two drinks.  Nurse those for the length of the night, and you won’t feel hard done by AND you’ll save money AND you won’t get a hangover.  Win-win-win in my books.

3 – If you’re a soda- or juice-junky, I suggest you do your arithmetic.  Find out how much you spend on your liquid addiction each month by writing down the price of each drink you buy - in a restaurant, corner store, or supermarket.  Tot up the amount at the end of the month.  Have a minor heart attack.  Resolve to reduce the amount spent on it by drinking more tap water.

Tip #3: Entertainment on a shoestring

Whoever says entertainment costs an arm and a leg is very very wrong indeed.  It’s very possible to get out and have a great day without spending much at all.  Of course, it will depend on your location where you can go and how much it will come to, but by being vigilant and taking advantage of opportunities, you could save yourself a lot of money and not miss out on a great opportunity.

Museums: museums often have free days, and some are “by donation”.  If you are able to donate, it is highly advised to, as this keeps the museum going.  However, it is not required and if you can’t spare the change, don’t feel that you have to!  A good museum can entertain you for several hours.  Bring your own baked goods and drink to eat in the canteen (which are usually open), or a lunch to have in a park outside to make the day truly special and just as inexpensive.

Theatre: theatre tickets can be pricey, and if there’s a particular show that you’re dying to go to, and can justify a high price, then by all means.  For example, I can’t resist a Cirque du Soleil, which isn’t well known for its affordable tickets prices.  But if you’re just up for something, anything, but are unwilling to pay a large amount for, then tickets bought on the day can often be a good way of seeing a great show without spending a great deal of money.  Discount ticket booths for unsold tickets are in several major cities, and standing-room tickets (for example at the Globe Theatre or at the Proms in London) can be very affordable indeed.  The key is to be flexible and prepared to be disappointed.

Movies: here again, the key is to be flexible.  Matinee tickets can be much cheaper, but are often not an option for 9-5ers.  However, summer brings such wonders as outdoor movies, which are usually free or very low cost.  Bring your own towel, pillow, or chair, and a picnic, relax, and prepare for a great evening!  Additionally, it often pays to do your research about the movie theatres themselves.  Small independently run theatres can be far nicer on the wallet than big-name ones.  They don’t usually offer 3D (but who wants that anyway?  It’s more expensive!) but have a nice variety of independent and blockbuster films.  Being flexible is again important, as they will have fewer screens, but it’s possible to get a great price and support a local business too!  And keep a look out for free premiers being advertised.