It’s Friday – that time of the week when you start looking forward to relax and unwind. But aren’t you tired of doing the same thing weekend after weekend? How about doing something meaningful and fun at the same time to make sure you are completely recharged when you head to work when the weekend is over? Don’t just waste time by binge watching a series or whatsapping with your friends all day long. Here, The Week presents 10 exciting ways you can utilize your weekend and make it super exciting

Learn something new
You never know what talents are hidden within you unless you explore it. This weekend, stretch your boundaries and learn something exciting and new. You can download apps that will teach you a new language or put your headphones on and take guitar lessons from YouTube. Learn how to build a website. Google a new fact and have fun exploring and surfing the web fruitfully. You can teach yourself a lot of things this way and feel good about yourself.

Teach your parents or grandparents technology
You know they have always wanted to learn technology but you have never had the time to teach them. Sit with them during the weekends and teach them how to operate a cell phone and a laptop. Using Facebook, Viber, YouTube or Skype is going to give them immense pleasure. Meanwhile, talk to them about your life, laugh together and share your problems with them because, you know, they always have solutions for all your life’s complications.

Make a mood board
Life is complex and confusing for everyone. The anomalous events in your life definitely make tomorrow uncertain. Try making a mood board this weekend. Stick pictures of your childhood, relive those wonderful memories with your friends and aim to understand your current situation with the help of pictures, illustrations, pie chart or arrows. Do not forget to plan out your future, give yourself enough options to explore and wander. Also be adamant to focus on the goal that you have always wanted to achieve in the mood board you are creating.

Trace your family history
This is going to be really exciting. Try making a family tree and write down everything you know about your family. Ask your parents about your ancestry and their children. Request your parents, grandparents, or relatives to delineate all good and bad habits of your relatives. Find out the number of places your family has been to and the secrets that was always hidden from you. Explore your grandparent’s childhood and experiences they had when they were young. At the end of the day, learn from their mistakes and understand the importance of hard work and struggle.

Go out for a picnic
There are many restaurants in the city where you can have good food and relax during the weekends. But try something different this time. Explore the wonderful nature outside the sprawl of the city. Go for short treks outside the valley such as Nagarkot to Dhulikhel, Nagarkot to Changunarayan, trek in Shivapuri, Nagarjun, Champadevi, Pulchowki or Namobuddha. Find random spots amidst the surroundings for a picnic. At the end of the day, you can stretch your legs and have an amazing barbeque party as well.
Understand your country’s political system
Our country has been through a lot of political turmoil and most of us are disappointed with the current political scenario here. Yet we have inadequate knowledge about the working of our political system. Take out time in the weekends to understand the country’s political history and the functioning of the government. Be an informed citizen and make constructive criticisms. Trust us, this is definitely going to make you feel smart and confident.

Create a kitchen garden
Your kitchen garden can produce organic vegetables and delicious healthy meals. Planting vegetables and fruits can be an exciting and rewarding experience. Choose a sunny spot in your balcony or garden. Get yourself a generous sized container or a pot and good soil. Crops that bear fruits for a long period of time such as tomatoes and peppers can be planted too. Also try planting crops that occupy less space such as radishes, carrots, and lettuce. Use organic fertilizers and remember to water your plants frequently.

Give away
Open your cupboard and keep aside all the things you know you will never use. Take out those paints, colored papers, or sketch pens that is of no use to you and donate them to children in need. Try giving some of your clothes for charity and at the end of the day you will definitely feel much better. You’ll have done something worthwhile, and you’ll also have a cleaner, more organized home.

Volunteer
Utilize your weekend well by making a contribution, however small, in your community. Go and join cleaning campaigns on Saturdays such as Kathmandu Environmental Education Project or Clean up Nepal. You may also want to teach the under privileged children of your locality. There are many organizations that tie you up with orphanages where you can teach kids English or Arts for a few hours on Saturday or Sunday.   

Pamper yourself
It has been a long week and you have worked really hard. Treat your body with some fantastic spas and massages this weekend. There are many spas and massage centers where you can go to feel rejuvenated. Pamper yourself with Ayurvedic stone therapy at Heritage Spa, Basundhara Road, release all your stress through the massage therapy provided by Kathmandu Spa, Bhagwati Bahal, give your backbone a rest by the Spinal therapy at Tranquility Spa, Hotel Radisson, Lazimpat or groom your body, hair, and skin at Wellness Organic Club, Lazimpat. Don’t forget that you deserve to be happy and satisfied for which occasional self-pampering is a must.

 
• weekend
 
• fun