We were so lucky to have my sister move to Oregon. It opened up a completely new area for James and I to explore. There are no photos here of Rick and Linda because they were in the processing of moving to their new home. My sister advised me that it would be very boring to have photos upon photos of boxes.We changed our dates and went a few days early to help them move along with Rick’s father Larry and wife MJ, friend Kevin and then left them to unpack.
When we mentioned this change of plans to Barbara about our sudden lack of playmates in the Pacific Northwest, she volunteered to bring Frank and Adam and keep us company.
First stop was Seattle: Pikes Markets downtown and then a walking tour with Seattle 101. We had a great breakfast at the markets after watching the salmon toss and looking at beautiful flowers.
Seattle 101 walking tour was wonderfully entertaining and informative. Joe is a Seattle native and his passion for the city and its story was tremendous.
My favourite Seattle exhibit/museum is Chihuly Garden and Glass. It was a highlight of the visit to Seattle. It should definitely be on your Do Not Miss list for Seattle. Inside and out, Dale Chihuly’s creations are remarkable.
Gallery
The following day we toured the Museum of Flight. It was another outstanding museum and I noticed the same look of rapture on Frank’s face that I saw on Barbara’s face at Chihuly. Here is why: there were so many planes and rockets and exhibits. Prepare to spend the day here.
We had a quiet Fourth of July, watching the fireworks over Lake Union. The next morning we were up and ready to drive to Vancouver, Canada.
Here is the thing, we had a short window of opportunity for a taste of Vancouver and we spent too much time at the border crossing. Think twice about going Seattle to Vancouver with just two days to stay. Vancouver is worth more time and the border crossing shouldn’t be the largest part of your experience.
We did have a great reunion with Marie and Simon Fawkes, who gave us great advice – “get on your bike”, so the next day we rode at least 15 miles to allow us to see as much of Vancouver as possible on rented bikes. The Sea Wall was fabulous, riding a fairly flat and accessible bike path allowed us to see much of beautiful, sunny Vancouver.
We literally biked until our legs turned to jelly. We would like to thank Washington, Vancouver and Oregon for good weather. We did have clothes for inclement weather but we didn’t need them. Weren’t we lucky?