Mmmm...breakfast. While enjoying my breakfast this morning, I realized that I was sipping the last of the Tulip Festival Blend that I bought from the Skagit Valley's Fidalgo Bay Coffee Roasters.
If you recall a few posts back this was the place where I went with my Aunties Arnie and Jan to enjoy yummy clam chowder and an enormous cinnamon bun. This is possibly some of the best drip coffee I've enjoyed and it makes me sad that it is at an end, like the tale of my trip to Seattle in March.
We enjoyed our last morning nicely and easily. It had been a great, whirlwind trip, so it was lovely to sip our coffees and watch the rain drip from the flora and fauna of their yard. The furred and feathered ones were already fed, but we had to take poor Mocha-Moch to the vet. She had a bladder infection. As we awaited our appointment, that was when Arnie and I fed the chickens, the crows, the squirrels, and Ellie Mae, the cat living on the heating pad in her retirement home under Gladys, their day traveler.
We packed up my things and loaded up the RAV, bound to take Mocha to the vet at the bottom of their hill. It was tough to leave poor Mocha at the vet for observation. I had become quite fond of that sweet ball of fluff and love. She had slept on my luggage all morning and her brother CJ spent the night beside me on my sleeping bag (I was freezing - had numerous blankie and a sleeping bag to keep me warm.)
Once Mocha was at the vet, we were off to Seattle. We planned our adventures around getting me to SEA/TAC - the airport - on time. I purposefully booked an afternoon flight so that we could spend as much time playing during the day as possible. Our first stop was to Jan and Arnie's church so that we could look at the beautiful photos of my aunt's that were on display. She is a nature and bird photographer and boy oh boy are her photos amazing! See for yourself here at her website.
From there we went to the University of Washington's Kayak rental facility to enjoy Mexican food overlooking one of the many waterways of Seattle. I have to admit, we ate very good Mexican food on this trip. After my YEARS of hunting for Mexican food that resembled what I knew from home in NYC, I was delightfully surprised by the Mexican yummies we enjoyed in the North West. The view from the little restaurant was superb. We got to look out on houseboats and kayaks being prepared for the spring season.
From there we went to the Center of Wooden Boats where I was able to nerd-out on the many different vessels they had on display. (Are you noticing a theme of boats? There's a good chance that I like them, but I'll never tell! Unless you've been reading this blog for a while and then you may already know the answer to that.)
Moving on.
We stood in sight of the Space Needle, but our goal for the day was to visit another well known Seattle Institution; no, nothing to do with Bill Gates, Pike's Peak, Costco, or Starbucks (although that eventually happened). Instead, we went underground. That's right, under the very streets.
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| The Old Down Town Seattle |
There was ONE recommendation my friends from back home had for me on my journey to Seattle and it was to go do the underground tour. I'm SO glad I took their advice. I'm a history Nerdette and love to hear a good story, so this was the perfect adventure. I'm not going to do a spoiler of what they talk about because when you go to Seattle you have to do this tour. Disclaimer: it is not suitable for all ages - not because it's scary being underground, but because of the content. To give you an idea Seattle has the best case I've heard for being the origin city of the phrase "Skid Row." The tour was wonderfully colorful and I particularly enjoyed learning about what we on ships would call "deck prisms." If you are walking along a city street and see colorful stones in the sidewalk, those are likely crystal prisms that pour light below - it means, there's an underground passage beneath you. Most of which, you probably had no idea was even there.
After the tour, we hopped back into the car and went to a surprise destination:
The mother ship!
Feel like I don't have to talk about this as you know what it is.
Alas, the adventure was over. My dear aunts drove me to SEA/TAC and with lots of hugs and kisses, I bid them fair winds for the time being. I knew I'd be seeing them again soon.
When I was in the airport, I ran into an old friend, which was a wonderful surprise. We visited and then we had to part ways as there was a plane with my name on it. My adventure to the north was wonderful. I feel very blessed to have done this weekend trip and who knows where the next adventure will take us...except...what's this??
Come back to see the adventures ahead on this, the weekly read!
Until next week!
Your humble author,
S. Faxon
