My perfect weekend: Markets, cocktails and Formula One for Whanganui Chamber of Commerce chief

Whanganui Chamber of Commerce chief executive Helen Garner described her perfect weekend in Whanganui. Photo / Bevan Conley

Every week we ask a Whanganui local what their perfect weekend would be. This weekend we hear from the chief executive of the Whanganui Chamber of Commerce, Helen Garner.

Normally I like to change things for my weekends and try out different stuff around town, but if I were to describe my perfect weekend it'd look something like this.

My first port of call is the Whanganui River Markets.

I go there most Saturday mornings to buy all my meat and vegetables for the week, and checking out the various stalls around the market is always fun.

Going for a schmooze around the shops outside of the market is always enjoyable as well - I don't get a lot of spare time throughout the week thanks to my job so I like to walk around and see what's on offer.

This time of year I'll also be spending time in my garden preparing my plants for the colder months.

Other than that, though, I take it easy on the weekend to enjoy the simple things out there.

My husband and I like to go out for a drive to somewhere lovely and picturesque for a walk and a cup of coffee.

Kai Iwi Beach is a popular spot for us, but even if we go five minutes from home, we like to have a cruise to enjoy the Whanganui atmosphere.

It's nothing glamorous, but wherever we go it always feels like we're going on an adventure.

Living in Whanganui makes it easy to change things for our weekends, as there's always so much to see and do.

We thought about going out of town last weekend for Easter but because there is so much going on in Whanganui we decided to stay here instead.

We ended up riding on the Waimarie for the first time on Easter Monday, which felt like something of a rite of passage.

However, for this weekend, what sounds perfect to me is sitting down with a couple of cocktails and watching the F1 Grand Prix from Italy on TV.