Downtime

It has been a while since my last post, but I can happily say that it is because I have been relaxing and not doing much. The past few days have been spent walking around Alberta Street, sitting in coffee houses, eating yummy mexican food and donuts (not together, of course!), and sitting in Jesse's house reading a good book (The Help by Kathryn Stockett). I ventured out to the grocery store on Tuesday so that I could make dinner for Jesse and Dave, and last night, I went with Jesse to his soccer game at the Jewish Community Center. Looking forward to Jesse getting home from work so that we can head down to the Hawthorne District for some window shopping and dinner!

Seattle and back to Portland

We started yesterday off in Seattle. We had big plans to spend the day doing artsy things, but it didn't work out that way. We went to the Glassblowing studio first to watch a live demonstration. The amount of heat that they used to create the glass was crazy. There were a couple of guys working in a team to create lighting fixtures for a customer (who was there to add his input). Then, we walked downtown to the Art Museum to the big guy with the hammer only to find out that it was closed on Mondays. We walked around for a bit and had a tea tasting (see below!) Then, we decided to head back to the hotel to get the truck and head to another museum that was on our way out of town. Jesse suggested that we call ahead to be sure they aren't closed on Mondays as well and he was right...closed.

We decided to hit the road anyway and head back to Portland. The drive wasn't the nicest (straight shot down I-5) but we did get to see Mt. St. Helens and Mt. Rainier from a distance.

Once we unloaded the truck, we headed out to Dabney State Park for a round of frisbee golf. You will notice from the pictures that I spent most of the time watching Jesse throw the discs because, despite all that Mrs. Quigley taught me in gym class, I'm not a fantastic frisbee thrower. :) It was a nice walk through the Park, though.

On the way out, we stopped for a quick history lesson at the Lewis and Clark State Park and then came back to the house for a pizza and to watch House. Another great day out west...

Seattle

We woke up this morning and went for breakfast. After coming back to shower and pack up, we left for Seattle. After three hours and a bunch of traffic right outside of the city. Once we finally made it to our hotel and check in, we ventured out to see what we could see.

The first stop was the Space Needle. We debated if we should pay the $16 to take the elevator to the top, and decided that since I would likely never make it back here, that we would do it. The view from the top was gorgeous. We could see Mt. Rainier and Mt. St. Helens in the distance, as well as the Cascade Mountain Range and a beautiful view of the city.

Then, we took the monorail downtown and walked around Pike Place Market. We missed the fish throwing because everything was shutting down by the time we got there, but it was still really cool. There were tons of fresh flower vendors, seafood vendors, and traditional fruit and vegetable vendors.

Then, we went to the Crab Pot for a seafood feast like none other! It was soooooo good! Check out the sexy bibs!

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At the park...

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Jesse waiting in the impound lot's office...what a day

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I made it! What a first day...

I arrived in Portland right on time and Jess came to pick me up. We came back to his house to drop off my bags and then headed right out to the Saturday craft market. After wandering around for an hour or so, we headed back to the car. Jesse took me to see a skate park that was made under the Burnside bridge. We parked and walked less than 100 feet to take a peek for a couple of minutes. Less than five minutes later, we walked back and the truck was GONE. My first thought was that it was stolen. We looked around, bewildered to say that least, and saw a sign that said, "parking by permit only. violators will be towed." Yup, you guessed it...towed. Jesse called the number on the sign to find out that the towing ninjas took his truck. He got the address and we began our 3 mile walking tour of the city. About an hour and $200 later, we were back in action and on the way to the park to meet up with a couple of Jesse's friends. They were super friendly and we had a nice time. It was a beautiful day, weather wise, so we enjoyed some time outside decompressing.

Some of the pictures from the day are in the next post...time to watch a movie, eat dinner, and relax. Here's hoping I stay awake at least until it gets dark!

Wrote this at the Minneapolis Airport but couldnt get online to post...

Well, the journey has begun. The alarm went off at 4:30 this morning and I struggled to move. After getting ready and packing some last minute items, Mike took me to the airport on his way to work. A splendid Peppermint Mocha made everything seem much better. I then hopped the flight to Minneapolis/St. Paul at 7:30. I sat next to a lovely woman from York. She was on her way to see her sister in Montana for a month. She said her sister normally comes to York, but because she is 93, it’s getting a little tougher for her. I laughed, and she continued to tell me about her life. Sweet woman. Perfect amount of chatting and leaving me alone to read and nap!
Grabbed a bite to eat and am now waiting to board my flight to Portland. Almost there!

Waiting...

So, I'm finished one final and have one to go. I'm starting to get very excited for my vacation! I have done absolutely nothing to pack yet, but that's what the night before a trip is for, right? Well, doing laundry and then packing! :)

I talked to Jesse on Sunday and firmed up some details. He took the day off on Monday so we can go to Seattle on Sunday and Monday. The rest of the week I will be venturing out during the day to explore and then meeting up with Jess at night for dinner and activities. He mentioned something about surfing, so that should be funny. T minus 2 days!

Ladies and gentleman, start your engines!

With my upcoming trip to Portland, Oregon and Seattle, Washington, I thought it might be fun to post the details of my trip for friends and family to see! I know that I've lost many details from previous travels, so I'm hoping to preserve the details in this way.

After two comprehensive finals this week, I am leaving on a jet plane for a much-needed break! My cousin, Jesse, has graciously agreed to let me hang out with him next week in Portland, Oregon. I think I've even got him convinced to come with me to Seattle for a couple of days too! The plan for this vacation is to see the west coast (I've only seen the Pacific Ocean from the Australia side), spend some quality time with Jesse, and RELAX! The agenda thus far includes the Saturday Market, listening to live music, surfing (yikes!), and reading lots of books! \

I am starting to get excited, although the impending exams are still putting quite a large shadow over the trip. 5 days and counting!