Greetings! June had an exciting start since I was in Warsaw, Poland, finishing the last stretch of my trip. Upon returning home, summer weather is here and I'm enjoying outdoor events which leave me with much less time for sitting at my desk to blog. I still want to record my month of June with several highlights as it was another excellent month.
Without further ado, here's my June in a nutshell:
FITNESS - I kept up my fitness routine both at home and abroad. For my mind, I meditate and continue taking online French and Spanish lessons, each for 15 minutes daily. When I was in Warsaw, I did a lot of walking to explore the city and used the gym in the hotel. Once I returned home, I continued with my daily 5K walks, gym workouts, yoga, and 5K runs. I'm grateful to have access to a gym with air-conditioning, especially on warm and humid summer days.
ENTERTAINMENT - I watched a spy movie titled Red Sparrow while flying home from Warsaw. Other than that, I enjoyed visiting the outdoor farmers' markets four times, attending four great outdoor music performances by Jerry Leger on June 7, Angela Saini on June 14, Mike Branton on June 21, Amanda Rheaume on June 28, and the indoor Luminato Instruments of Happiness event which was a tribute to George Harrison by 100 electric guitarists led by Montreal virtuoso Tim Brady and hundreds of Doane Uschool ukulele students.
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| Farmers' Market before the crowd comes |
ARTS - I saw plenty of beautiful architecture and art work in Warsaw. At home, I enjoyed the indoor Spring art exhibition and the outdoor HTO Pendulum Wave festival. The local parks and gardens have also been looking fabulous with lush green trees and seasonal flowers. The Toronto Harbour is dotted with sailboats and the lake view never gets old.
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| HTO Pendulum Wave festival |
SOCIAL - I went out with my friends for a tasty Chinese dinner. We ended up with lots of leftovers for my friends to take home because the portions were so big. Another friend and I had a nice coffee meeting to catch up on our news. I also enjoyed a big BBQ family gathering at my sister's. The evening's sweet ending was the three birthday cakes to celebrate three family members' birthdays. On my blog, I wrote eight posts in June with many photos (Maybe too many?), had one guest post, replied to all comments (Thank you to everyone who left a comment!), and submitted my comments on other blogs when I could. I say 'when I could' because sometimes Blogger and WordPress do not play nice together and my comments disappeared or I had to log in different accounts to leave a comment.
TRAVEL - As mentioned earlier, I started June in Warsaw, Poland. My short stay there was wonderful and it made me think of planning another trip in the future to focus on Poland. I hope to finish a blog post about Warsaw with some photos when I'm at my desk long enough to do it. At the moment, I'm in Quebec, about 800 km (450 miles) away from home, enjoying summer time with family and friends.
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| Toronto-Quebec City route |
I'd love to know how your June was. What was most memorable for you?
Wow, you had a busy month! I can't really remember many details about June - at my age, guess I'd need to make daily notes (or read my own blog - LOL!). Great recap.
ReplyDelete#MLSTL visitor
Thank you, Donna, for stopping by. My June was full of fun and was mostly outdoors. So far July seems to follow the same pattern LOL. Hope you are enjoying July.
DeleteAother busy month for you - and again I'm in awe at the way you maintain your routine. Bring on July.
ReplyDeleteI really aim for consistency when it comes to maintaining my fitness routine. Not always easy to do but I always feel better once I get it done. Thanks, Jo, for stopping by. Bring on July :)
DeleteWhat a busy month! I had wanted to see Red Sparrow in the cinema too but missed it. I'll have to wait to see it on DVD now.
ReplyDeleteIngrid
https://www.fabulousandfunlife.com.au
Thanks, Ingrid, for stopping by and commenting. I greatly appreciate it. It’s funny that I watched Black Panther before Red Sparrow. Looks like movie producers are running out of good titles.
DeleteSo glad you had a lot of fun and sights to see in June. The weather looks amazing! You are having a good time at home I imagine while the weather is so kind. Denyse x
ReplyDeleteThanks, Denyse, for stopping by. June was excellent overall. The weather here has been warmer than normal. We’ve had a heat wave in Ontario and Quebec for about a week now. Hope you’re enjoying July even though it’s winter for you.
DeleteThat is great that you can keep up your fitness while you are away, it can be challenging at times!
ReplyDeleteIt’s challenging for sure, Anne. I know myself well and learned to be consistent with my fitness routine. Thank you for stopping by.
DeleteWhat a beautiful June! I'm in the process of doing my sentence a day post for July so will be joining you at the end of this month!
ReplyDeleteSSG xxx
Thanks, SSG, for stopping by. It would be great if you joined us for July sentence a day. The link usually goes live on the first Thursday of the following month.
DeleteI will look forward to reading your post on Warsaw. I imagine it would be an interesting city full of history and the dreadful Holocaust. Thanks for linking up today. #TeamLovinLife
ReplyDeleteThanks, Kathy, for stopping by. I saw Warsaw as a city of strength and rebirth after most of it was destroyed and so many lives were lost. It is a bustling place now.
DeleteAnother entertaining and varied month for you, Natalie. That guitar concert sounds incredible!
ReplyDeleteOn the night flight to Belgium, for once, I also watched two movies, which passed the time fast. Usually, I can't use the entertainment system, because I don't have headphones, but this airline still provides them. Yay!
Enjoy your time with family and friends as well. Summer is a good time of year to do so!
Hi Liesbet - The Luminato event was terrific with so many guitarists and ukelele players playing and everything was in harmony.
DeleteOn transatlantic flights, if I’m going to somewhere familiar, I usually watch one or two movies to pass time. If I’m going somewhere new to me, I try to nap so I’ll be more alert when I land.
Hope July is going well for you.
Hi Natalie,
ReplyDeleteI noticed that you are learning two new languages at the same time. Is that ever confusing for you?
No worries about the number of photos in your posts - it's great! I just wish they were larger. If you ever decide to change themes, definitely go for one with bigger photo spaces. That's my vote anyway :)
Hi Karen - Yes, I do get French and Spanish words mixed up sometimes. It requires my attention to make sure I get them right which I like because one of the reasons I’m learning two similar languages is to exercise my brain muscles. A moderate challenge is good for me.
DeleteThank you for your feedback about the photo size. I greatly appreciate it.
I'm starting to wonder if you're ever at home Natalie - and if you ever sit down for 5 minutes! You always manage to get through so many activities + the travel and yet you always sound relaxed - June looks like it was fun.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Leanne, for stopping by. I read somewhere that we have the go go years, then slow go years, and finally no go years! I enjoy being active and try not to sit for prolonged periods of time but I also have lots of blank spaces in my calendar because I like the flexibility and the feelings of being relaxed. Hope July is going great for you.
DeleteLovely read! Have a great July.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Nancy, for your visit and comment. You have e a great July, too!
DeleteI enjoyed reading about your month, Natalie as you always have a variety of topics to share. Have a wonderful July and I wonder what it will bring?
ReplyDeleteSue from Sizzling Towards 60 & Beyond
Thank you, Sue, for your kind words. I like variety in my activities and try to make the most of my ‘go go’ years :) Hope your July is going well.
DeleteI'm envious of all your exercise. I used to do daily 5k walks plus extra body toning. But it's all gone out the door due to lack of time and fatigue. Of course lack of exercise creates more fatigue. So I'm taking the bull by the horns and getting back out there. Not quite 5k a day yet, but at least 10-15 k a week. Will get there in the end! Thanks for the inspo #teamlovinlife
ReplyDeleteThanks, Leanne, for stopping by. You have a lot of exciting things going on. To do 10-15K a week with your busy schedule is very good. Enjoy July!
DeleteWhat a fabulous month----that trip to Warsaw sounds fabulous, and yet I've never thought to visit there. What made you go?
ReplyDeleteI always enjoy the photos you share.
XOXO
Jodie
www.jtouchofstyle.com
Great question, Jodie. I chose Warsaw for its proximity to the Baltics, its history, and it’s a new destination to me. There is a big Polish community in my city. I was curious to know what made them leave their homeland to settle here. Thank you for your positive feedback about my photos.
DeleteIt's always so hard to keep up healthy routines when I travel! Any tips on how you did it?
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jamie, for stopping by and commenting. I greatly appreciate it. I wrote a post on how to stay fit while traveling a while ago. Basically, I aim for consistency. If there is a gym, I use it three times a week like I do at home. If I don’t have a gym at the destination, I modify my exercises using my body weight and a resistance band or do yoga poses. I also walk a lot when I travel. My suggestion is to do 15 to 30 minutes daily so the muscle memory continues and the body stays flexible. Regular exercises are also great for managing stress and jet lag which happen when the traveling involves long flights and time zone changes.
DeleteIt sounds like you had a great month! I’ve never been to Poland... one of many places on my wanna-go list.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Janis, for stopping by. June was great. July is off to a fun start so far, and very hot due to a heat wave. Hope you're enjoying your time in Mexico.
DeleteI bet Warsaw was fascinating! Thanks for sharing all the photos.
ReplyDeleteYou're right, Juhli. Warsaw was fascinating. I'll write a post about my visit there. Thank you for stopping by and leaving a comment. I greatly appreciate it.
DeleteI'm not gonna comment at all on the myriad of your achievements cos I froth with envy each week I tune into your blog (and yes, I'm a slacker and only read blogs once weekly nowadays!!!). So I won't say ANYTHING about your language lessons or exercise and the like...
ReplyDeleteI tried to do the 'sentence a day' thing but had to break it into two posts os they got too long. (And I am too wordy!) #teamlovinlife
Thank you, Deborah, for your comment. I enjoyed reading your June SaD posts. I'm impressed with your writing. I hope you'll do a July SaD post or two :)
DeleteMy niece has been living in Warsaw for the past year and she says that it is an interesting city. I also practice learning second languages everyday - French and German in my case. I’m using Duolinguo, which is a phone app. Is that what you are using too?
ReplyDeleteJude
Hi Jude - Yes, I’m using Duolingo. Warsaw is a bustling city. I hope your niece enjoys living there and has time to explore other places in Poland and Europe. Thank you for stopping by.
DeleteNatalie, you sound like you had a fruitful month, both for body and mind. Warsaw sounds like a wonderful city. We would love to make another trip to Europe.
ReplyDeleteThanks, LuAnn, for stopping by. June was great. I hope your hand therapy is going well.
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