Staycation is becoming the treasure I seek.

“I am just so laaazy to get up and walk and…. ahh. I am so lazy to even talk” brushing off all deliverables. “Yeaaaaah. I’ve turned down night-outs so many times. I’d rather sleep”, my bestfriend said.

Staycation is my latest trend. And I recently did one in Hidden Valley Bed and Breakfast.

Here is what I mean with Staycation.

For a long time, I had been looking for an undisturbed writing time. The only consistent writing I do is my Quiet Time but slowly it got caught in the web of working late. And with this being busy, my mind had become a junk of trash thoughts.

I needed to relive the beaten positive thoughts I sadly (and intentionally) neglected out of being busy. I wanted a general cleaning and redecorating of mind. You know, be really inspired. Be fully awaken by life’s innocence. I wanted to rerun what happened and review what is happening, write them down on paper with black ink and then draw something about the future.

I also wanted a resting place where I can conveniently and safely gaze at Aurora Borealis in the late evening. Aurora had always been a destination in mind. My chasing experience in Dawson was very risky but also a funny one. Preview: I was almost washed out by a snow storm and my finger froze to complete white it could have broken off if I didn’t run back to safety.

I wanted to have a balance in Whitehorse. Laidback.

What sealed the staycation is immersion. I can’t tune in the very existence of a place or, this time, nature’s magic if I am so preoccupied with activities and sightseeings.

I always like to soak every little thing I discovered and learned, massage it slowly into my being and have my subconscious mind say “This beautiful thing in front of me..(breathe).. really do exists.”

For me, when I wake up in the morning and realized I am not where I want to be, I would like to encourage myself, My experience out in the wild wasn’t just a dream. There’s something bigger than this.

Hidden Valley Bed and Breakfast was, as the rappers say, the place to be. I would also say this is the priciest accommodation I have stayed in. This time, greater comfort comes greater money. #wallettorntoashes

And by comfort, I meant gourmet 2-course breakfast every single refreshing day.

Breakfasts were cooked, prepared and served by their chef, Scott, who was always beaming with a smile and with eyes straight at me every time we talk. I can still remember how his voice pronounces my name. It was very English (although not sure if he is), slightly in deep pitch and very elegant to hear.

“Olivia, what time do you want your breakfast tomorrow?” was his usual question. One night during my 7-night stay, he stopped asking. He knew I would just say “Maybe ten o’clock again?”

Every waking day, I would go straight to their garden-feel dining area and make myself a cup of coffee, sit down on my prepared place and focus on my morning shock. What will be my breakfast this time? Yas! Yas! 

“Olivia, I didn’t know you’re already here. You should have said Hi and Good Morning” he asked. “Oh! Sorry. I will start tomorrow” with grinned smile of apology. I should have minded the Western culture.

“Your dessert have pineapple, yoghurt, berries, chia seed and chocolate. This one is an organic egg with canola oil on it. Everything here came from our farmhouse.” Very fresh I could smell the aroma of the ranch outside. My digestion worked very well during my stay. I even messaged my Mom that I was having a happier and leaner stomach.

Let’s go to my Red Room.

I have always wanted a room covered with wallpaper. I remember asking my Mom when I was a kid if we could have our wall covered with wallpaper because it is prettier and classic. I love the jittery touch and rough sound the paper makes whenever I slowly wipe its flatness with my hand.

Everything is in red color – a favorite of mine. I had a stack of six big fluffy pillows and three coats of blanket. You probably won’t notice me if I get tucked deep in this hollow of puffiness and waves of linens.

And the washroom.. geesh. It was all mine. I had two sinks and too-many-to-count red and black towels. Was it meant for two people? Like a makeup room of a celebrity, the vanity area has big white light bulbs and inner washroom has a decent bath tub.

The view outside my window looked like a canvass of Mother Earth.

In the morning, my eyes can reach the farthest distance of the earth. I open my window by an inch to let cold wind inside and listen to horizon’s silence. Breathe in. Breathe out.

In the afternoon, I sit down on my leather couch and read a book. And then go on with writing. The best moments of the afternoon was always when sun starts to travel from east to west with its rays shining through my windows resting second by second on my book.

There were days when the sun can’t get through the clouds. In the second half of my stay, snow fell so hard. The sky was fogged completely and have turned to greyish blue. The days weren’t colder but snow on the ground got softer, thicker and taller. Bigger and thicker boots were needed. Snowshoe was not an overkill. Walk around the ranch with fashion boots, you’ll get pulled down like in a quicksand.

In the evening, I wait for Aurora’s presence. I turn off the lights in my room then look through the window mirror with my hands enclosing my eyes. Aurora can be very shy. Attention and complete darkness were necessities. Whenever I see a faded swipe of green lights on the dark blue sky, I instinctively grab my tripod and camera and head out to the garden.

“Wohoaaaa….” I, Yuka and Maki uttered in sync. We were standing in front of the theater for lights.

Seeing Aurora and freezing cold out in the midst of trees with legs tugged deep in the snow was so fondly pleasing.

The bed and breakfast always have the sweetest scent whenever I see Mel’s big family gathering at the dining table. Kids playing, music coming from piano strings, peals of laughter and stories being shared.

Must be the vibe of being in a house of a big family why I feel so warm and welcomed in the middle of dead winter. There was so much tranquillity and love even if the house was silent in most days.

Every little design detail is regarded. You can find bird nests resting on big branches and squirrels hopping beneath the shadows of tree trunks. Reflection of the sun on white snow was making my surroundings feels like a deep and wide ocean.

This staycation was an escape. By Wiki definition, staycation is a vacation spent in one’s home country rather than abroad, or one spent at home and involving day trips to local attractions.

I did the second one. I am so glad I did. So worth it.

Stories of my visits to local attractions are underway.