Day 180 – Seattle, USA

At 7.00am we woke slowly and showered. Any final clothes that were air drying were packed and all the gear then put into the car. We set off and were at the Amazon building by 8.30am.

Our bus to Vancouver was not until 1.40pm and we had arranged to meet Rach up at noon. I can’t say we had any big plans for the morning but I wanted to make sure of where the bus was collecting us from as it was a different bus to the one we took last week. We found the right spot and it was actually walking distance from the Amazon building which was good to know. The spot was outside the Washington State Convention Centre and inside was some nice seats and free wifi so we took full advantage of their generosity and spent the next hour relaxing with a nice view. After a while we took a walk down to Pike Place Market for a little wander around the art stalls and to see what people were making. We had a few dollars left to spend (not counting the  75 x $1USD notes that I had collected over the past 10 days) but we didn’t buy anything new. I’m not 100% sure why I had started collecting the notes. I think I wanted to get a good stack of them to throw in a safe one day but I didn’t hit the magical 100 figure. I think if I moved to the states I would start collecting them. Imagine what a thousand of them would look like. Sarah preferred that I would spend them instead but once I get an idea in my head it’s hard to get it out. After strolling around for a awhile we returned to Amazon where we met Rach who had lunch for us. It was some delicious Chinese dumplings with some leaf wrapped rice. The dumplings were great. All too soon we had to get in the car and get dropped off at the bus stop. It was a bit tough saying goodbye and poor Rach had to return to work and deliver a presentation to twenty or so big customers. The bus turned up and we piled on. I had worked out a sleeping plan for us in order to eliminate or at least minimize the jet lag we could expect otherwise. The first part of the plan required us to sleep for as long as possible on the bus ride and after our short sleep last night this was not too difficult. I think we probably slept half of the ride which was pretty good. Crossing the border was no trouble and once in Canada it was not long before we got out at the stop really close to the airport. The air train took us the rest of the way and even though we got to the airport seven hours before the flight we were able to check in. The $20CAD dollars we had left went on two foot-long subway sandwiches (of which I ate one and a half) and a smoothy for Sarah (yes I had some/lots). The next three hours were spent eating and pillaging the free and fast internet provided by the airport. Oh there was also a really cool aquarium which took our attention for a few minutes.

At 9.00pm we headed through customs and waited another two hours until the boarding call came. It was a big plane that must have had about 300 passengers on board. With the flight expecting to last around 14 hours the fuel tanks must have been completely full. You could tell the plane was loaded right up as it required the whole runway to get up enough speed to take off. Once in the air we were served a hot meal (my fifth for the day) and we settled in to watch a couple of movies. The key to eliminating jetlag is to have a good long sleep before landing (assuming you are landing in the morning like we did). Darkness was not a problem as we were chasing the night as we flew. This gave us about 16 hours of night time but in order to sleep at the right times we had to stay awake until about 4.00am local time. At about 3.30am we took sleeping tablets and dozed off. I think we both got about 7 hours of only slightly disrupted sleep and then another one or two of light dozing. We landed about half an hour after day break and set our feet down in the beautiful country of deadly creatures; Australia. We were not quite home but were pretty close.

Day 179 – Seattle, USA

We were up around 7.00am for showers and a quick bite before heading out the door with Rach. She had an appointment with some quack about her back. We didn’t feel we needed to go into the clinic so waited patiently in the car while she learned some interesting things. Once out she dropped us to Victor Steinbrueck Park where we just managed to catch the start of the Pike Place walking tour. It was only an hour long tour and gave attendees an overview of the market and it’s interesting elements. The park was a good meeting place as it is right next to the top end of Pike Place, where the market starts. I’m not sure why a market gets a tour of its own. Maybe the typical tourists to Seattle consider market information to be as important as learning the history of the area. I guess we did, as we planned on taking both tours available. So the tour actually started off with a Starbucks lesson as Starbucks started in Seattle and has spread into the world from there. Our guide, Jake, wanted to make it very clear that the Starbucks, which had a queue out the door for 90% of every day, is not actually the first Starbucks but the oldest Starbucks. The first Starbucks started in 1971 but burned down in 1976 so moved up the road to what is now it’s current location at 1912 Pike Place. The store was actually named after the coffee drinking first mate in the book Moby Dick. We did not join the queue but moved on down the road to see a few stalls and keep learning. Jake wanted us to learn about the three types of businesses that operate in the market. The first are the shops which have to be original and interesting and therefore add character and value to the market. They pay rent and 10% of their profits to the market. Next are the high stalls which are semi-perminant areas of the market. Stall holders here get the same space everyday and therefore have permanent fixtures and signage. The oldest of these is the City Fish Co. which started in 1917. They were known for their smoked salmon. We all got to try a bit, which was incredible. It had been soaked in a mixture of brown sugar, salt and water for some time before being smoked. Jake led us across the street into another part of the market where we tried some fresh apple and after walking the lane we popped out in what Jake said was prime photo taking territory.

Inside the market again, we were introduced to the famous fish throwers from the Pike Place Fish Co. They started throwing fish to save them time but people loved it so it became a huge attraction. To us it felt a little forced, for our benefit, but it was fun to watch. We were too slow to catch an action shot and when we did someone’s fat head was in the way.

We also got to enjoy a few samples from the dried fruit guy across the hall before moving on. The last type of stall is the regular type you expect to see in every city. These are ones where people sell art, clothes, flowers, and jewellery. The rule here, however, is that the goods that are being sold need to be directly produced by the people selling the items. As the tour was only meant to be an hour long Jake finished up the tour at the gum wall. The gum wall started a long time ago as a way of sticking things, like show tickets, to the wall and after the items were removed the gum remained. The amount of gum grew to the point where it was narrowing the path so every few years it had to be cleaned off. Eventually the market administration decided to make it an attraction. We were not chewing so didn’t add to the quantity already there.

After the tour finished we headed back to the meeting point again and joined the next tour leaving.

This was Seattle 101, which was more about the origins of Seattle and the current Seattle and was also taken by Jake. There was not a lot of overlap of information which was good. Here is a quick recap of the info. Seattle was originally called Duwamp after the native Duwamish people who lived in the area. The main industry that bought settlers to the area in the late 19th century was logging. Timber was in high demand further south and so many people went to Duwamp to cut down all of the very old Douglas Fur trees. This industry lasted about 40 years and after the trees were all gone the attention turned to gold. A good publicity campaign attracted thousands to the area after they heard of the Klondike gold rush. They bought with them their savings and spent it in Seattle before heading north to the gold fields. Unfortunately, the majority didn’t find gold. A few years later half the city (as it was pretty much made of wood) burned down in a fire that destroyed 33 blocks. After that the buildings were built in stone. I’m not sure at what point the city was named Seattle after Chief Seattle of the Duwamish people and at some point parts of the city were raised by 12 feet, in order to produce a sewage system that would flow downhill and out into the sea. This means that a number of buildings have basements that used to be the first floor. The tour was wrapped up on the seafront where James told us of the new tunnel being built to take traffic off the shoreline overpass, which will then be removed.
A park will be put in its place. The plan was to meet Rach at 5.00pm after work so we had about three hours left for ourselves. The tour had given us ideas as to what to do so we headed in the direction of the first. It was to have a coffee at Starbucks but not the oldest one. This one was on the 40th floor of the tallest building in town. It was not hard to find the place and after going up to the 40th we ordered drinks and sat next to the windows. Sarah ordered an iced coffee which was just a black coffee with ice in it, very different to an iced coffee in NZ. She looked lovingly at my cappuccino. The view was not as amazing as we hoped, as at the low height of 40 floors other building were around.

We could see the city of Belvue in one direction and a small slice of the bay in the other. Between the two was a new build in construction. I enjoyed watching the workers weld pieces in place. I wondered if they ate lunch whilst sitting on one of those big steal beams high up above the city. Probably not. We left the building around 3.00pm with the intention to grab some fish and chips from a small Irish pub that had a good happy hour. It didn’t happen though as the coffee had filled us up and taken away any hunger. So instead we started walking towards the Space Needle. The needle was quite a distance and on the way we got distracted with a little clothes shopping. Sarah took gold by getting seven items for about $60USD. I picked up a pair of shorts. All was stuffed into the back pack and we continued on needle bound. Time was running short but we made it with time spare to get a photo or two and use their toilets. The Space Needle was completed in 1962 for the world’s fair which was in Seattle that year. At the time it was the second tallest building in the states. It inspired cartoon The Jetsons and for some reason The Flintstones. After heading back to Rach’s work I got the reception guy to give her a call and she finished up and came down. In the car the three of us went to Kerry Park which had a great view of the city.

It was a small but popular park because of the view, but as it was a couple of hours from sunset there was ample space for everyone. We got photos which even had Mount Rainier in the background, albeit mostly hidden.

After returning to the car and taking a nice drive around Lake Washington Rach pulled into the car park of the XXX Root Beer Diner. We entered to find the place jam packed with everything you could think of that had a link to the past.
Photos, number plates, drivers licenses, gumball machines, car parts, record players and much much more covered every part of every wall. We ordered massive milkshakes and one burger to share.

The milkshakes must have been at least a litre in volume and very thick. I managed to get through mine pretty quick but when the burger came out I realised I was quite full already.

We all managed to finish our burger but it was a struggle. I saw a guy with one of the burgers to himself. I got a strong feeling that he would be struggling before long. We waddled out to the car and headed home. There was just enough time for Sarah and Rach to have one last physio session while I got a final load of clothes washed and dried. We may have squeezed in a final Midsommer Murders episode also before we packed everything up. I was sad to be leaving, not because the trip was over but because we had such a good time with Rach and I knew I would miss her a lot. The clothes, shoes, art, gum and everything else was packed into the five bags we now had to use. The suitcase was pulling it’s weight and I made a string which I hoped would add a little extra support. It was nearly 1.00am by the time we crawled into bed.

Day 178 – Seattle, USA

After all of the late nights, watching murder mysteries and programmes investigating people who are having online relationships with unknown partners, we finally got a bit of a sleep in. It was after 9.00am when we got up and made no rush to get out the door. Breakfast was consumed at a leisurely pace and once we were all ready we hopped in the car and headed to the area of Evergreen. They were hosting the largest fair in the county or something along those lines. After parking and getting a free ride from the car to the entrance in a golf cart we joined the queue. It didn’t move fast but we were still in no hurry so didn’t let it bother us. It also gave us a chance to see what the locals were like. Generally they were fine. Only one or two interesting people were around and that is to be expected at a carnival. Sarah did use this opportunity to tell us of a guy she saw the other day with a pony tail at the back of his hair and one in his beard. Annoyingly she didn’t have a photo for us all to enjoy. Once we were through the gates we had a good look at the days schedule of events. It was very handy as there was a lot going on in different places and at different times over the park. The first event we wanted to see was the Crazy Animal Races but it didn’t start for twenty minutes so this time was spent wandering around the different food stalls trying to decide what to have. Fate decided for us as we noticed the same Kettle Corn guy selling out here also, so of course we had to buy a bag from him. He really must have thought we were stalking him. We bought a bag and found our way to the animal race track where the races had begun. We didn’t miss much of the event which was mainly aimed at kids but we loved what we saw. The crazy animals turned out to be regular farm animals which didn’t seem to suffer from any mental health issues. I guess what made the races crazy, other than the event hostess, is that they were racing different animals against each other. My favourite was the super combination of a goat, a sheep, a pig and a duck racing around the track. Following the races we watched some wood carvers for a bit with their little chainsaws. They were making bears which were also for sale. The bears were cool but the best carving was the huge Sasquatch. Across the other side of the park we got to watch the teams of four Clydesdale horses pulling wagons. It was impressive to not only see the power of the horses but how well controlled they were.

A 15 year old boy and his four horses won the trophy. There were more events in the barn but they were not the desired rodeo so we popped out to watch a little of the drifting which was happening on the track just outside. We didn’t buy tickets to see it properly so were forced to stand outside and look through the fence. If you stood with your face really close you could see it quite well. After a few minutes we headed back to the other side of the park and this took us through the food area once more. The popcorn had long since been consumed and something new was required. We passed on the Funnel Cakes which just looked like deep fried stodgy oversized waffles piled high with cream and icing sugar – yum. We also passed on the dodgy/delicious looking corn dogs and the many burger options and decided to try the “Aussie Onion Burst”. I can’t say that I ever saw one when I was in Australia but according to the marketing it was all the rage. Basically one huge onion is chopped in a device to open it up into a hundred or so fingers which are still attached to the core. This is then given a good dusting of flour and then deep fried for a couple of minutes. The result is a delicious volume of onion chips which resemble something like a 100 legged spider laying on its back.

We scoffed it down with sauce and sour cream before entering the animal areas. Oh we also got a delicious scone each which finished things off nicely. There were about six barns in a row which contained different animals. The first one we entered contained goats. I think they were pygmy goats as they were all quite small. Also, a lot of them seemed to be pregnant, which is not a characteristic of them being pigmey goats; it was just an observation. They were funny to watch and we spent more time in this barn than any of the others.

The next contained dogs and the owners that attend dog shows. We spent more time looking at the dog chart rather than the dogs themselves, thinking about what type of dogs would best suit us. The cat barn was walked through pretty quickly. I think that after being in that dusty house yesterday I have been more sensitive to allergens and so didn’t want to linger any longer than necessary. The produce barn was also not lingered in as it was kid’s produce and of pretty poor quality. We spent a few minutes looking at the llamas and alpacas but not ages. The last barn was for the pigs and it was great. The stalls only contained either piglets or their mothers. I can guess where the male pigs are. There was a common thing about all of the pet owners and the biggest example came from the first stall. In it was an owner sitting next to a massive sow that had given birth to 15 piglets two days earlier. The owner was  stroking the pigs teets and talking to the pig while she slept. The common thing to all was that the owners were all odd. After leaving the pig pens we made our escape from the carnival and made our way to Costco. Costco is like a supermarket but on steroids. The goods are generally sold in bulk and for good or great prices.

Actually there were certain items that I didn’t find to be all that cheap like the fruit and bakery products. The electronic items seemed to be good value and we were close to buying a Samsung 8″ tablet for $159.00USD. I think if I had lived in these parts I would have purchased a good volume of the staples from Costco but got my meats and fresh produce elsewhere. We didn’t leave empty handed but bought a 20 × 15 box of chewing gum and a two pound bag of skittles. On the way out we saw that they had a cafe attached to the store. It was run by Costco and Rach thought that it may have been run as a non-profit part of the store and so the prices were very low. I was keen to check it out and got a 1/4 pound american hotdog and large drink (with refills) for $1.50USD and Rach got a large slice of pizza for $2.00USD. I can’t say I was hungry and knew I wouldn’t be for a while after we finished them. Once back home Sarah did some physio on Rach’s back while I watched TV and after a couple of hours we put the last two pound fillet of salmon into the oven to bake. As per usual it was delicious and massive. I think I would like to go salmon fishing sometime in the future. I can see why a lot of people in the northern parts of the USA and Canada head to Alaska to go fishing. I certainly would be interested in taking advantage of their large salmon stocks. It was another night of going to bed with uncomfortably full stomachs.

Day 177 – Seattle, USA

After waking up around 8.00am we had showers and changed, ready to make the most of the day. Rach made us large green smoothies which we drank in the car on the way to some more estate sales. We only went to two and they were not as good as some of the others we have seen. The first one was a hoarder’s dream as there were hundreds of different items. The house was not as bad as some you see on TV, where the kept goods were stored in rooms which had been filled to the ceiling, but it was not far off. The windows were painted shut which led to a build up of dust. Like a number of others I started sneezing as I looked around. The other condition we all seem to suffer from when in these houses is the need to use the toilet. This day was no different. I blame the smoothies and my small bladder. Amongst the hundred old soft toys and dusty nick nacks there were one or two interesting items. These were the old newspapers which were kept after important events. I was quite close to buying the JFK assassination one but decided that I already had enough items to hang on the wall so another was not necessary.

I expect to live to regret this decision. While Rach sifted through old records and fur jackets I gained a little dust relief outside. Sarah soon joined me and after a while so did Rach. The next sale was in an empty shop which had been set up temporarily with the goods for sale. There were interesting things there but ultimately only Rach took anything away. Actually I lie. Just before we left I saw some watches and bought a pretty little red and blue one. It was a swiss-made wind up watch but I could not tell you how much it was worth. Google was also no help later on when I looked it up. From this sale we found ourselves at a nearby thrift store but more for us to be able to use the restrooms rather than looking for anything to buy. Of course once you have two girls in any store it can be hard to get them to leave. We did end up getting away and made our way home via the same farmers market that we visited last week. I left the girls in the car and went directly to the kettle corn man to get a large bag. The corn was still delicious. The supermarket was also visited in order to collect snacks and ribs. Yes we had ribs yesterday but I had seen an advert for $2.79lb ribs and got it into my mind that we should buy a large volume. We got about 4lbs and a big stack of other snacks before leaving. The path home was once again lengthened after we went past a garage sale sign so we stopped in. Most items were typical stuff no one wants but Rachel struck gold with a cone-head hat. It got a lot of use over the next few days. When we finally did get home I immediately set about marinating the ribs in the usual concoction of soy, honey, brown sugar, Worcestershire and mustard. It was basically anything that looked suitable which I could find in the cupboards. While they bathed in the fridge we played some cards and watched the odd episode of Catfish. I think during the afternoon I decided I needed to do a little exercise and so knocked out 30 minutes on the exercycle. It was tough work and the sweat was dripping off me from about the five minute mark. Drinking a nice cold milk while I cycled was probably unnecessary but it helped keep me going. The girls were a little jealous of me getting exercise so they each also had a go. The ribs went into the oven at about 5.00pm at 300°F and they stayed there for around 130 minutes at which time I pulled them out to give them a good dose of more marinade.

This was repeated every ten minutes for the next half hour and then they were served. The two extra bottles of rib sauce that were purchased were not necessary as the flavour had infused itself into the meat. They were delicious and tender to the point where I think ‘old Dave’ would have been proud. The four pounds certainly pushed the capacity of our stomachs but we got through them all and even had a cobb of corn each for nutrition.

I think it was a Midsommer Murders that saw us through to bedtime in our uncomfortably full states.

Day 176 – Seattle, USA

Much to our delight Rach had taken another day off work in order to hang out with us. We all got up around 8.00am and after a quick shower and change we hit the road. It was estate sale time again. Estate sales really are an interesting ordeal. You easily get wrapped up in several emotions all at once. Usually it is a little sad, as you are sifting through someone else’s old goods, but at the same time there is a little hope and excitement as you never know what you will find. Then there is the ongoing battle of whether you need/want something or whether it is just junk that will clutter things up; along with your ability to convince others (mainly Rach) that the things she is planning on buying are rubbish. The first place was awesome. It was in a gated community and to get in Rach had previously put our names on a list.

Almost all of the other people at the sale were middle aged woman who must have lived nearby. They all could have auditioned for a part on ‘Desperate Housewives’ and all seemed to know each other. The house itself was beautiful and the furnishings were good quality. I bought a nice old book, Vicar of  Wakefield, and Rach got a couple of skipping ropes. I’m not sure why anyone needs two skipping ropes but there you go. We didn’t buy the $1500USD Ralph Lauren leather couch. The second estate sale was quite the opposite, with the house and contents seemingly caught in a time warp. Everything was from the early 70s and very interesting. Sarah and I got an old suitcase which we now required in order to get all of our gear back home.

I’m not sure how strong a 40 odd year old suitcase is but we will see. $1.50USD will not break the bank anyway. I am not sure what Rach bought but I know she would not have left empty handed. Oh that’s right I think she bought a stack of records. This second sale was near part of Lake Washington so we headed down for a dip to cool off. On the way Rach spotted a sign for a salmon sale and said do we want any. I said yes without hesitation so she followed the directions which took us to a car park. From a large ice and fish filled chest on the back of a ute, a fisherman and his wife were selling whole Salmon. I generally don’t recommend buying fish off the back of a ute or out of a boot for that matter but these guys seemed legit. The fish were caught yesterday and were being sold whole. The smallest fish they had for us was seven pounds and the largest ones we saw were around nine. We got a small one and even had it filleted for us.

They packed it in ice and and double bagged it to stop any fish juices from leaking into the car. This was also stored in the new suitcase as it would be better to have a smelly suitcase than a smelly car. The lake side, when we got there, seemed crowded but almost everyone left after taking a group photo. Only about 20 people and three life guards remained. We got into our togs and headed into the small part which was roped off for us to swim in. The lake was really nothing to like those back home. It was slow to get deep and had a film of stuff floating on the surface. Under the surface were weeds which you had to wade through in order to get out into the deeper area and even then the weeds still got in your way. As soon as we entered the “deep” part a life guard got in a row boat and paddled out to watch/guard us.

Initially I didn’t realise that she was there to supervise us but I soon figured it out after diving in off the platform. It turned out that diving in was against the rules. Rach and Sarah were out on the platform and they were soon also told by the lifeguard that they were not allowed to jump off the far side of the platform. I saw the funny side and tried to see what else we were not allowed to do. I did a back flip off the platform and was then told it was a no go. I jumped off the high part of the ladder and was told that this was not allowed and then when I did a hand stand on the platform she asked me to stop. I don’t think she was a lifeguard, only a funguard. Even the young boys with a tennis ball were told that they had to play in the shallow area if they wanted to play with it. I asked the lifeguard what time she went on lunch and she said that they would be there until 7.00pm. It was fun pushing the boundaries. After we went in one of the other lifeguards was doing a bit of swimming practice and running around. He dived in off the platform so when he came in I asked him why it was alright for him to do it and no one else. He came up with some bad excuse and generally felt a bit embarrassed. With our work there complete we moved on and made our way to “Famous Dave’s” where we got a big stack of delicious hickory smoked ribs and plenty of sides.

They came out on a large wooden chopping board ready to eat and so we did. The large volumes of sauces were tried and enjoyed and after everything was consumed we went one at a time to wash our hands and faces. Filling up on ribs at 4.00pm when you have several pounds of salmon to eat is not a smart move but I was not complaining. We returned home with an extra half dozen corn bread muffins which may have been partially consumed on the way and then settled in for some catfish and Poriot. At about 8.00pm I fried up the meat that surrounds the backbone. There must have been about 300g of delicious flesh on the 30-40cm strip. Sarah had a couple of small nibbles but she was holding off for the fillets. As the fillets were massive we only cooked one. I chopped it into two one pound pieces and wrapped them in tin foil with a little pepper and oil. They took a little longer than we expected but around ten we were consuming large volumes of the delicious pink flesh. I must have consumed at least 600g of salmon over the evening. 

Day 175 – Vancouver, Canada

It was a slightly less painful wake up than I was expecting. After saying bye to Steve and thanking him for letting us stay at his place we packed up our gear and wandered down to the park, where Sarah took advantage of a free yoga session on a grass verge overlooking Kitsilano beach.

During the hour long stretching session I relaxed on a sunny park bench and enjoyed the view out to the ships waiting out in the harbour.

At 10.00am it was all over but I could not seem to find the Cuban ring that Sarah gave me to hold onto. The next half hour was fruitlessly spent looking at the small patch of ground around which I had been. We would have spent longer looking but our bus was booked for 11.30am so we had to make tracks. Sarah was not terribly happy but after a few minutes of walking I remembered that I had taken a couple of photos while I waited and that my camera was in the main part of my bag. At the next lights I checked it and the ring was sitting right on top. Yay. We continued walking at great speed and after 20 minutes were at the ferry dock on Grandville Island. A cool bathtub of a boat ferry pulled up and we dived on.

The captain took our money and then said “I’ll be back in a minute”. Five minutes later he returned and slowly departed. As we were in a hurry everything seemed to be going slow but I’m sure this was just our imagination. We made a stop on the way to the science museum and after letting the passengers off, our driver had a long conversation with someone on the dock about their dog. It was really annoying but in the Canadian way we just let it slide. Five minutes later we were cruising again but when we started heading towards a different dock I asked if it was 20 minutes to the science museum. He said that usually it is but today they had been going a little slow. I told him we had a bus which was then due to leave in about ten minutes so instead of going to the other dock he took us straight to ours. He apologized for the slowness and basically told us to run. We did and at about 11:28 we made it to the bus and got on. It was nice to not have missed our bus. After an hour or so we pulled into border control and made easy work of it. The guy basically just checked that we had stamps from a couple of weeks ago and then let us pass. Outside the office were a couple of vending machines which we would usually avoid but today we had not eaten much so were hungry. To our surprise the prices were quite reasonable so we got a pack of lollies that looked like licorice (tasted nothing like licorice) and a packet of biscuits. The coolest thing happened when the biscuits were coming out. The machine looked to be struggling a little and maybe it had a sensor that told it that nothing had dropped as the screws kept turning and suddenly two packs dropped. It was our lucky day so we scooped up our goods and got back on the bus ready for a quick ride back to Seattle. The bus was supposed to drop us back to the train station at 3.00pm but it was 4.00pm by the time we got off. Our plan to meet Rach early was under threat so we took to the streets at a rapid pace. It was a dozen blocks or so across town and to speed things up we grabbed a bus. The driver let us know he was only going two stops but that cut our distance in half so it was perfect. Once in the Amazon building Rach came down and we all headed off to her acupuncture appointment. It was out in the area of Belvue and while she was being jabbed with needles we walked down to the whole foods market to get some proper food. The market turned out to be ages away so it was a power walk. I was surprised that we made it back to clinic before Rach was finished. Instead of heading home we went back into the city as we had tickets to the NFL. We parked a few blocks from CenturyLink Stadium and walked the rest of the way with many others in Sea Hawks clothing. At the stadium we were told by security staff that Sarah would not be able to get her small clutch bag in as it was too big. They suggested we could either take it back to the car or store it in a locker on the southern side of the stadium. As the time before kick off was rapidly approaching we decided that returning to the car was out of the question. We headed around to the south side but found long queues for baggage storage. As the bag was quite small we decided that it could probably be hidden so Sarah took everything out of it. There were several places where we could stash it but finding a spot that would not be moved in the next four hours was the key. We ended up going with a road cone which had a big base and when she thought no one was looking Sarah slid her bag under it. If it was still there when we returned it would have saved us $10.00USD in storage and more than ten minutes of missed game time. From the queues outside to enter we could hear the crowd getting excited and knew the players were on the field. The line moved quickly and soon enough we were in and after making our way to the top stand we were seated ready to watch. I think that from the back of the stands you do miss out on a little of the on field action but you gain more atmosphere.

And with the stadium almost full there was a lot of it. I can’t say we knew all of the rules but picked it up well enough as we went. The Sea Hawks, who were Super bowl winners in 2013,  were playing the Dallas Cowboys who are iconic in NFL so even though it was a preseason game I was expecting it to be good. We were not disappointed. The Cowboys were first to score a touchdown but the Sea Hawks responded with two of their own. The crowd were doing their part as the 12th man and as we didn’t really support either team we could just watch and enjoy the efforts of both sides. Frustratingly the battery in the camera was flat so there would be no clear photos of the action, however all was not lost. Rach had her binoculars and these, when combined with a mobile phone camera, made some pretty cool looking pictures.

The Sea Hawks consolidated their lead in the third quarter and while this made the cheerleaders happy they didn’t seem to do more than wave their pompoms around. Rach was expecting them to be doing flips and the types of things you see on the movies but they were pretty tame. I thought they were pretty good. The game finished with the Cowboys getting a late touchdown but it was too little to late. Half of the crowd had already left by this stage so they missed the late action. This was good for us as it meant there were less people leaving when we did after the game. Once out of the gates we returned to the road cones and were happy to find Sarah’s bag still safely hiding. It was a win for the little guys. The ride home was fast and after getting there we relaxed in front of the TV with some fresh corn off the Cobb and some really yum dumplings. There were also these really weird fried polenta bars that Rach had fried up. They did not taste nice at all and I was the only one that finished them. 

Day 174 – Vancouver, Canada

Had a nice relaxing sleep and woke up on the air bed feeling refreshed and ready to check out the city. Steve was up and off to work like most people but we stayed in bed for a little longer and eventually got up at around 9.00am. After showers, breakfast and a little planning we headed back down to the seawall but this time we were on bikes. It was an excellent day for biking around Stanley Park. Instead of biking down Yew Street and crossing the bridge we decided to take the path back the way we came, as the same seawall stretched all of the way around. There were plenty of people doing the same thing as us but fewer than yesterday afternoon which was good. A little weaving was still required but generally it didn’t hold us back. After rounding the science museum and heading back west we came to the start of the park. Initially there was a little confusion with direction which we were supposed to be cycling in and this was not helped by a couple of racoons which were distracting us. We were riding down the car path, as the bike path had sent us towards a gravel track, when two racoons crossed the road. We pulled up to watch them but they disappeared into a small patch of bush nearby before we had a chance to get the camera out. After hanging around for a few minutes hoping they would return to us we moved on. The cycle path that we found nearby was one way only so instead of circumnavigating the park clockwise, as we had planned, we were forced to go anticlockwise. I think this turned out to be a good thing as it allowed us to see more racoons which were at the waters edge. It was the pile of tourists watching them that alerted us to their presence and we joined the audience for the free show. I think they were a parent and baby enjoying a feed of shell fish and crabs. It was fun watching them dig around in the sand for oysters and then gobble up their findings.

We left after a good ten minutes, during which time they seemed to be oblivious of their audience. There was one moment where their tranquility was almost threatened. A couple of young kids jumped down off the bank, which we were all standing on, and one picked up a stone. This action was followed by a loud voice that came from the crowd saying “Are you serious, are you serious right now? Are you serious?” The kid dropped the stone and they both returned to the bank. It was pretty funny really but sad to see that maybe they were going to throw stones at the cool creatures. Of course there was a possibility that maybe they were just going to skim stones. Back on the bikes we continued along the path with excellent views back toward the city on our right.

A few float planes landed without any trouble in the calm of the east arm inlet in front of downtown.

The north side of the peninsula was shaded and quite cool so we cycled through it fairly quickly. It made me wonder, if it was this temperature in late summer, how cold it would be in winter. We crossed under the Lions Gate Bridge and soon enough rounded the western point to find ourselves back in the warm sunlight. The path back to the more urban areas was actually really short and in no time we had found a nice relaxing spot on the grass in the sun. Sarah did some sunbathing there while I went to find some food. There were plenty of options but the one that took my eye was fish and chips. The place was pretty fancy but they did takeaway and I returned to Sarah with the goods and some bread and extra sauce for making chip butties. They went down a treat and the fish was also really good. After lunch we cycled a couple of blocks to meet up with Emma, a friend of Sarah’s friend J McV. We had met her and her husband at Jess and Andrew’s wedding a year or so ago and it was nice to catch up with her again. Their apartment was very close to Stanley Park and being on the 12th floor it had a wonderful view of the park, Coal Harbour and up West Georgia Street.

After half an hour of chatting and staring out the window we dropped back down to street level and had a drink at a nearby cafe. It was our first chance to have a world famous Caesar.

A Caesar is a tomato and vodka based drink with some delicious and interesting additions. The most interesting addition is clam brine but also the pickled beans and full salami stick add to the flavor. It was also really spicy which made the cold drink hot and probably overpowered any clam flavors. I really enjoyed it. Sarah had a fresh rosé and Emma did also. After about ten minutes Emma got a message to say that her step father-in-law, who had been fishing for the day, was unwell and needed collecting from the docks. She gave her apologies and dashed off and we followed after another ten minutes or so. The ride home was easy, even though it was getting close to peak hour traffic, and once back we got ready for some hill climbing. Steve arrived not long after and a friend of his, Rachel, also appeared. We all hopped in the car and after picking up one more, Maddie, we went up to the start of the Grouse Grind. The Grouse Grind is a path that leads up Grouse Mountain on the northern side of the city. The reason it is called the grind is that it is steep and very tiring. The path is only 2.9km long but you gain 853m in height over the short distance. It really is just a massive set of stairs and rocks to climb up. The five of us, and one more friend who met us there, set off and quickly separated out according to the different levels of fitness. I actually left 18 minutes after the others as I wanted the goal of trying to catch up to them. I started off at a jog but gave that up before I got to the two minute mark. The walking continued to be difficult the whole way. I only remember one slightly easier part and it was a flat incline that lasted about 6 metres. I noticed the halfway sign but did not look at it or read anything on it as by that point the brain was not working so well. Finally after 44:38 I made it up to the top where Sarah and Steve were waiting. I had passed the three other girls on the way but Sarah got to the top about 8 minutes before me.

We were shattered but Steve seemed fine. Up at the top was a restaurant and bar and also a Bear sanctuary. The Bears were rescued as cubs after their mother died and they have been looked after ever since. They were black bears and massive.

Way bigger than the sun bears in Wellington zoo. We saw them only for a couple of minutes before they went and hid in the bush areas at the back of their enclosure. We were treated to a really nice sunset and view over Vancouver City and towards Vancouver Island. Although slightly obscured, it made the hard slog worth it.

At the restaurant the five of us shared a ginormous plate of nachos and a pitcher of beer before taking the gondola back down to the car park. We dropped the girls off on the way home, showered and then tossed our weary bodies into bed.

Day 173 – Seattle, USA

We were up before 7.00am this morning as we were getting a ride into the city with Rach on her way to work. She dropped us to the train station where we hoped to catch the 9.00am train to Vancouver. We dived out of the car near the station and made our way to the ticket office.

It turned out that there was no 9.00am train; infact only two trains run each day and they leave basically at dawn and dusk. The ticket man offered us seats on the next available bus which left at 10.45am which we took. This meant we had a couple of hours to spare and we spent it quite wisely. The first thing we did was to go for a walk and find breakfast. Neither of us were all that hungry so I got a large and healthy chocolate milk while Sarah had a banana. The next stop was at subway where we got a sub to eat on the bus for lunch and then moved on to the stadium of the Seattle Sea Hawkes. I think we were the first to buy tickets for the day and the old chap who sold them to us was very nice. We basically asked for the best seats for the lowest price and in order to find them he had a good look though a few different options. We took his recommendation and bought the tickets. Back to the train station we went and as we now knew we would be going to the game on Thursday night we booked a return bus which would enable us to be back in time. With everything now sorted we got on the bus and headed north. For the first hour or so it was very pretty as we made our way over and around the inlets and lakes. For some reason one guy on board was filming the scenery as we went. Sure it was nice to see but a film of objects whizzing by at 60mph would not be much fun. After the water ways were left behind the main thing to see outside was trees. They were mostly pines and all tall. From time to time the driver thought we might like some information about where we were. I can’t say I listened to much of what he had to say but once we had crossed the border he had some good stuff to say about Canada. One such fact was that it used to cost 1.6 cents to make a penny so Canada stopped using them. The USA still use them however, but theirs cost 1.7cents to make. I suspect they may not last too much longer. We pulled up outside the train station and after getting off followed Steve’s walking tour directions to his house.

We had a couple of hours to make the 4km journey so took our time and made a couple of stops on the way. Steve’s directions were very easy to follow. Basically follow the seawall for most of the way and then turn south at the end. The seawall took us along False Creek which was full of boats and featured a number of bridges. In False Creek there were a number of ‘aqua busses’ which were ferrying people up, down or across the stretch of water. They were not the most sea worthy looking vessels but they had a lot of character and charm.

We didn’t need to catch one but I wanted to just for the ride. Before we made it to the first bridge we came across a seagull that was trying to consume, in one go, a mouthful that was just too big.

It had several goes but I could not see it happening. We watched for a few minutes but moved on before either side won.

About 500m down the path I saw the same bird again. It must have flown round and landed in front of us. It still had the starfish in its mouth and had not made any further progress. Under the second bridge which we came to was Granville Market on Granville Island that Steve suggested we check out. To be honest it was pretty similar to any of the Mercado Centrals that we have seen over the past five months with one main difference. This one had food hygiene standards which meant the meat was stored in fridges and the cheeses were not being wiped with a dirty cloth. We didn’t buy any meat or cheese but we felt safe drinking the juice we did get. Also they had a nice seating area outside on which marketeers could relax and consume their purchases. This is what we did and had a pleasant time until a large flock of pigeons started circling us. We made tracks before anyone was hit and left the island to resume the seawall walk.

There was a lot of activity going on along the seawall; there were float planes landing, people paddle-boarding or canoeing, running, biking, rollerblading and even paragliding. Well actually we didn’t see anyone paragliding, just people setting up for a long time and not going anywhere; maybe it was training. 

At around 5.00pm the path neared a busy beach called Kitsilano. Lots of people were relaxing on the sand and all of the six beach volleyball courts were being used but only a handful of people were in the water.
It was interesting to see that the cold water was not deterring people from going to the beach, even though they were not there for swimming. For me if I am not planning on going swimming then I would not be anywhere near the beach. After the beach we headed inland about three blocks and arrived at Steve’s place maybe three minutes before he got home. We all headed up to his apartment and had a good catchup before returning down towards the beach for food and a drink. Sushi was on the menu and it was really good. We each got a special menu item and they turned out to be massive and tasty. I ate my 19 pieces and about 5 out of Sarah’s 22 piece pack. These were eaten at Kitsilano beach while the sun set in front of us. It was a very pretty evening and after it started to cool down, as it does above the 49th parallel, we walked home and went to bed.

Day 172 – Seattle, USA

We were all up pretty early this morning as Rach had a doctors appointment at 8.10am. We came along so that we could continue the day without making Rach come home to collect us. I’m not exactly sure what type of Dr Rach was seeing but I’m not sure if he was a Dr of medicine. He had some interesting ideas about her back injury but these seemed to create more questions than answers. After the appointment we went for a classic American breakfast at a diner. The menu was large but not as large as the portion sizes. The interesting thing about the options was that they came with either hash browns or pancakes on the side. It was like ordering two meals in one but the prices were reasonable. I got a scrambled meat lovers omelette which came with hash browns mixed in and pancakes on the side. The girls both got regular omelettes with pancakes for Rach and hash browns for Sarah. I knew it would be a struggle to eat it all so ate rapidly in order to get it down before my brain realized I was full. The omelette went down OK but the three pancakes drowned in syrup were a bit of a struggle. I also had to eat one of Rach’s pancakes which was difficult.

We waddled out and drove north to the high end outlet shopping mall. We had planned to meet up with Jesse from roller derby there as she was the manager of the Dr Martins store. She said she could get us 65% off the regular price so we got busy trying anything and everything on. The girls both liked these sweet looking Grey heels which they got and I got three pairs of shoes!!! I was not really expecting to get three but they were just such a good deal I could not pass up the opportunity. This buy also happened just after I had just bought a new pair of Nike Frees from the shop next door. That’s four pairs in under an hour. Rach decided to get exactly the same type of Nikes also and Sarah was a bit hacked off as they didn’t have then in her size. The only other store we needed to visit was the Levis shop down the lane. They had deals going as well and while they were not 65% off they were much less expensive than back home. I think I tried on at least 10 pairs and Sarah spent just as much time in the dressing room as me so she was racking up a good tally also. The staff were very helpful and we had them working hard finding us different styles and sizes. At the end of the denim demonstration we had five pairs between us that were purchased. Sarah took out the top spot with three pairs. It was a very successful shopping expedition but it was not quite over. The last shop was Aldo where Sarah picked up a pair of sunnies. It seems that every other day I write about Sarah buying a new pair of sunglasses. At least this pair only cost $6. Her last pair only lasted 24 hours as she lost them when rafting down the river the other day. With too many bags to carry by hand we returned to the car and headed home to start breaking in our shoes and view the purchases all together. It really was a successful outing.

The afternoon was filled by playing a card game called Exploding Kittens. We rustled up some pizza for dinner and then watched some more Catfish while applying facemasks. 

I have not been able to convince Sarah and Rach to watch Chariots of Fire with me but I have managed to get the theme tune into their heads on more than one occasion. 

Day 171- Seattle, USA

Had a very relaxed start to the day today. Woke up around 9.00am and watched a little of the last events of the Olympics. It was getting down to the final events, which are usually less exciting but still important. The only Kiwi performing was Lydia Ko in the golf and she seemed to be doing a good job. After lunch we headed out to see some roller derby. It was Rach’s team, Rat City All Stars, that were playing but as she has a back injury she was not playing. Annoyingly, all of the other top jammers were also injured so it would be the second tier team that would be performing today. The entry fee was more expensive than the baseball yesterday at $25USD but at least we were a little closer to the action.

Rach dropped us off with Jesse, her team mate, and then did the rounds saying hi to the team and some supporters. Jesse filled us in on the rules as things kicked off, so that we would be able to follow things as they progressed. It was a brutal game with a number of the girls taking heavy falls.
One went down and didn’t come up without assistance but mainly they were tough and shook off the pain. Rat City won in the end with a score line of approximately 148-88 which was pretty good.

The scoreline could have blown out more however, as in the next game the score was Rat City B 120 – Vancouver B 29. We didn’t stay for the end of that game but said farewells and hit the road. Again it was back home for some dinner and another Poriot. Oh there was another program we have been watching a lot of called Catfish. Basically it is about a couple of guys who investigate people’s online relationships. The investigation is done because one person in the relationship thinks that the other person is not who they say they are. They often turn out to be a completely different person and maybe of a different gender. Very addictive television.