Tag Archives: USA

Goodbye Seattle

20 Jun

We leave our Airbnb host this morning as we wrap up the remaining sights to see and leave Seattle before the evening rush hour. It has been interesting to experience the city, which reminds me somewhat of San Francisco because there are some similarities.

2R/1B yet very practical

Lovely Welcome pack

Stairs coming down leads to Living area

Our home the last two nights has been really homey too. It’s at the basement of the home of the host. A little smaller than the one in Portland we stayed in, this place however is really thoughtful with practical gadgets and space usage. Although only two rooms, one bath and a tiny kitchenette (no stove though), there’s a living and dining area to be used. And oh, the bed’s much better for my back and the comforter excellent to stay warm.

When we first arrived, the lovely host left a welcome note, a bottle of wine and chocolate! How much more welcoming does one need? Excellent host. So we leave with a heavy heart but full of nice memories of Seattle.

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What To Do in Seattle

20 Jun

The day did not start out well. The problematic rear passenger tire became a big problem when we got ready to go exploring at 9.00am. It was almost flat! Oh no…

A quick start of the engine showed that the PSI reading was down to 10. Uh oh… M1 had to call the car company, put on hold for the longest time, rerouted to several other phone numbers before we were told it was okay to drive to their Seattle branch to exchange the car. So we gave up the XT5 for a Dodge. There was no other choices.

The little problem caused us to be delayed by two hours. Oh well… we got going after that. It was hard to find parking in the city. It took us sometime before we found one. Parking is expensive too.

First stop: Space Needle Seattle Center. The CityPass was a good thing to purchase earlier as we enjoyed much savings compared to purchasing at the ticket counter. The queue to go up wasn’t that long; so up we went and had wonderful views of the city from all directions.

Next stop: Pike Place Market. We shared a quick on-the-go Chicken Masala Naan before walking within Public Market towards the Gum Wall. After all the photo ops, we went for our Harbor Tour.

The hour long cruise was enjoyable as we saw a spectacular view of the city skyline and the interesting things within the harbor.

After we disembarked, we headed for Seattle Aquarium which was nearby. The most enjoyable creatures (at least for me) were the octopus and utterly adorable otters.

By the time we got done, we were famished and decided to do a crabby dinner at the Crab Pot. We ordered two servings of The Alaskan and a cup of clam chowder and ate to our fill. Burp.

Reenergized, we made our way to the original Starbucks at Pike Place to buy some collectible mugs before heading back to Space Needle for the evening round to see the city. And it drizzled. Brr…

It was late when we got back to our Airbnb.

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We are in Seattle

19 Jun

We got into Seattle late because it was hard to part with my old friend after lunch and also because traffic was heavy. The other reason being the car. Twice today we had to look for a gas station because one of the tires was losing air pressure and we didn’t want to end up with a flat unexpectedly.

And each time when we looked for a gas station with an air pump, we had to pay for air! We were like ‘What?!’ This thing is free back home in Malaysia and here, it cost a dollar fifty each time in Oregon (& 1.25 in Seattle) for about two minutes or so! Goodness gracious.

Approaching Seattle

So far we have pumped air into right rear passenger side, once each day and twice today over three days. Hrmph… Tomorrow we will have to call the car company to see if we can change the car in Seattle because everytime we do this, it changed our plans a bit.

As we have a packed itinerary tomorrow, this little issue needs to be resolved so that it won’t be a hassle and disrupts our plans.

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Goodbye Portland

19 Jun

It sure was nice to sleep in despite the bed being too soft for me. Our Airbnb was very cozy, a little apartment with two rooms, two baths, a kitchenette and living room area. The property looked like it was purposely renovated to be an Airbnb host.

The only thing was the floor was cold even with socks on. And this is Summer! And the upstairs creaked loudly too when someone was walking around. But generally the overall comfort and convenience made up for the slight discomfort and little disturbance.

Too bad we can’t appreciate it more because today, we will check out to explore Portland as much as possible and be on the road thereafter. There simply isn’t sufficient time to cover the city unfortunately.

I met up with an old friend from my internship days when I was in New York City. She was one of the many mentors at WBMG, Inc. where I learnt so much. We did a Peruvian lunch while hubby and the girls went off exploring more sights and tastes, and gave us almost two hours to catch up.

It really was so good to see her after all these years, and after saying our goodbyes, we left Portland for Seattle by mid-afternoon.

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Hello from Portland!

18 Jun

We got into Portland in the late afternoon and the must-do included taking pictures of several iconic places. The weather here feels more like Summer.

Our precious box of doughnuts

The choices we picked

One of the stops included Voodoo Doughnut and we got got our good things that came in a pink box! Yum…

Next was Powell’s Bookstore. I felt so overwhelmed with so many books and categories, I didn’t know where to begin. M1 suggested for us to explore in pairs otherwise we would be lost. By eight, hunger got the better of us and we headed off for dinner at Washington Square. We had to have Xiao Long Paos!

It was ten by the time we checked into our Airbnb. Tomorrow we will sleep in!

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The Oregon Coast, Part 2

18 Jun

The good night’s rest did the trick. We headed out of Seaside where we stayed to cover today’s planned itinerary with the first stop at Fort Clatsop.

At Fort Clatsop, we hiked two short trails, admiring nature, appreciating the serenity, and be as one with nature. It was very relaxing. Pictures that I took could give those calendar photos a run for their money.

My calendar worthy picture

Fort Stevens was the next stop to check out the ship wreck. I am constantly amazed at how low the clouds come down to, to be with the surface. Very mysterious yet soothing somehow.

Love this clouds meeting the sea

Astoria feels like a much bigger city than Newport. It was here that M1 did her first internship; we drove by the house she stayed at after lunch at Buoy; the jelly dip was so good. The spread was rather filling and enjoyable with a couple of beers for hubby and I.

Ladybug does not like its picture taken!

Next stop: Portland!

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A Celebration and a Road Trip

16 Jun

I have forgotten how tiring Commencement Day can be, after all I am a dinosaur and things of the past (my Commencement at NAU) sometimes elude my memories. We got to campus by 9.30am, looking for M1 in queue for a quick photo before making our way towards Reser Stadium and it was already packed.

We couldn’t get a spot at the lower section we wanted which was right behind School of Agriculture but we managed to get that same area at one level up. It was quite a challenge to find M1 but her decorated mortar board helped.

The ceremony took so long because there were so many speeches, several times the three of us dozed off. We learnt that this commencement, OSU has 7,492 students graduating! Wow. This figure is inclusive of their other campus and online programs, on top of all the three degrees – PhDs, Masters and Bachelors. However on the field today, there’s slightly over 4,000 graduating students in attendance to receive their certificates. Very impressive numbers nonetheless for the 150th Commencement.

We got home at 3.00pm and then we had to go out again for a private tea party celebration hosted by M1’s professor. Spent a good two and a half hours there before we had to excuse ourselves for our family celebratory dinner. We had tapas and dessert which were all bursting with strong flavors. Loved the choices we selected.

Our tapas and drinks

Dessert was oh so yummy!

When all obligations are done and checked off the list, we had to pack for tomorrow as we will start our road trip! Yay. It will be fun because they are places that we’ve never been to before and M1 will play host to show us. After all the excitement died down and packing done, it was 1.15am before I called it a night.

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Class of 2019

16 Jun

A proud day for us and words are not necessary today…

Procession coming into Reser Stadium

Graduating students all seated

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Marys Peak

15 Jun

The drive to Marys Peak took 50 minutes and we did a short hike, not to the top but midway to a good spot to catch the sunset. It was indeed lovely but it sure was cold for us and this is only Summer! I can’t imagine visiting during a colder season. Brr…

We stayed a little longer after the sunset to catch some stars too. And some bright ones we did see including the Big Dipper.

We staked out this tree stump to catch the sunset

Join the stars!

Thank goodness the hike was short for when we got home, my Mi Band2 recorded slightly over a thousand steps more, so in total I, or rather we all walked 14,539 (9.0km) today. Good workout I’say.

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Campus Tour, Part 2

15 Jun

I think the body has not quite adjusted because last night I slept at 1:20am and got up at 9:45am this morning. But it’s okay, we didn’t have to rush.

We had bagels at home for breakfast before we embarked on a more comprehensive campus tour. The weather was lovely to be out walking but it got a bit warm by noon. And what a day it was for we walked and walked and walked.

The college is beaver land. There’s beaver on the wall and on the doors, it’s pretty cool.

Beaver on the wall!

Beaver on the door

By three, we went by the FST department for their little mini celebration honoring the graduating and outstanding students. I must say we felt most proud when M1 was called upon several times to receive her certificates. That’s one smart cookie right there.

Receiving her certain with a huge smile

When we got back, I had registered 13,010 steps equivalent to 8.2km and we are not done for the day! Later we will head to Marys Peak to hike and catch the sunset. I am sure by then my legs will be like jelly. A good night’s rest after that should suffice, for tomorrow is THE day, Commencement ceremony!

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