In Autumn 2016, I visited Ottawa for the first time. It was a week-long stay to meet my supervisors-to-be at University and explore the city to see if I could see myself living there.
I’d just finished my previous study in England, and after visiting a few different cities in Germany and Italy visiting friends and professors, I landed at Ottawa International Airport in the evening. The night had already fallen, and compared to Milan, where I had left about half a day ago, the air was significantly cooler.
The youth hostel I’d booked was located in the lower town. As the cab drove me into the city centre, I saw what looked like a narrow river along the road. It was the canal, I learned, a famous icon of the city. Right now, its dark surface glimmered under the street lights, creating a rather surreal view outside the window. After walking on the narrow, crowded streets of European cities, the view of nothing but a canal, some houses and deserted streets felt almost too serene.
As we approached the lower town, human figures finally came into view. and the cab dropped me off in front of my hostel, which turned out to be a large old house in a residential area. The place was by far the most chilled and cluttered among all the youth hostels I’d stayed over the past few weeks. A sigh of relief left me as I followed a young staff into the dormitory.
Rather than having many small rooms, this youth hostel had one big room with many bunkbeds. The room was clean and hippy. The beds circled around the entire circumference of the room. The wall was painted orange, and the sheets and the blankets were also colourful. Despite the apparent lack of order, however, the place felt like a home.
As I climbed up to my spot on top of a bunkbed and started unpacking, a soft music came from somewhere below. The room was mostly empty except one bunkbed across the room. On the bottom bed was a girl, cozying up in a comfy room wear. She had made a nice curtain around her bed with her spare clothing. Lying on her stomach, she was listening to the music playing from her phone. What a nice way to relax.
Once I finished unpacking, I also created a curtain around my bed with my clothes, and after taking a quick refreshing shower, I lay down on my stomach, putting earphones in my ears to listen to some music.