The Saga Ends

Mount Rainier...Finally

If there were a perfect day to visit Mount Rainier, it would be today. We have absolutely no regrets about waiting until our final day to drive down there. It was a great way to end the vacation, not to mention relaxing. We're in the airport now and our plane is getting ready to board in about ten minutes, so I'm going to have to make this quick.

We were checked out of the Ace Hotel by 9:30 or so, and got started on our drive down to Rainier pretty much right away. It's about a 2 and a half hour drive, so we stopped for a quick breakfast off the interstate, then made our way along another 60 miles of state road to arrive at the park entrance.

It's a pretty amazing park, sectioned off into different elevations. We started in something close to a national old-growth forest, then made our way up to the tree line, stopping by plenty of overlooks and vistas of the mountain along the way. We were worried during the morning because of all the low-hanging clouds around the area, but those all pretty much burnt off by noon and by the time we made it to the top of the tree line, we had a magnificent view.

We stayed up there for awhile and hung around the old visitor center, then meandered through a few paths that were completely covered in over 20 feet of snow. On our way back to the car we ran into a red cascades fox running through the parking lot. There was a ranger there making sure that he didn't get hit, because as we learned from her, the fox (actually a subspecies of the red fox) is an endangered species, only local to the Cascade Mountains. We watched him make his way over the snow bank, then headed back towards our car and drove all the way back down the mountain to the lodge for some lunch.



By the time we finished up, we only had an hour or two for some hiking, so we checked out a few of the trails around the bottom of the ridge, but even those were completely covered in literally feet of snow. We toughed it out for a while, got some amazing views, then after one last glance up at the mountain, hiked back to our car and started the long drive back towards Seattle-Tacoma Airport. Not only was it a relaxing and peaceful day, but the weather was absolutely beautiful and like I said before, it was the perfect ending for our trip. We couldn't have asked for anything more.

Discovery Park and Our Last Night in Seattle

Leaving North Bend, we set the GPS to take us directly to Discovery Park, and enormous wooded park on the coast of the Sound, just west of Queen Anne. About 45 minutes later we arrived, parked the car, and started walking.

It was a little longer of a hike that we originally planned, but was it worth it. The first part brought us close to these huge bluffs looking over the Sound and into Bainbridge Island. The day was still a bit overcast and foggy, so there wasn't too much to see, but it kind of added to the experience of it. There's something about mist over the water that just feels right. It's not spooky, but appropriate. It was a little chilly and there was a drizzle in the air, but we were enjoying ourselves.

After hiking about two miles through the trails that wound down the cliffs away from the lot, we came to a beach on the edge of a small peninsula that stretched west into the Sound. At the edge of that strip of land was the small West Point Lighthouse, which we started making our way over to. Now, lighthouses fascinate me. I'm not sure what it is about them, but I just think there's something romantic and nostalgic about them...and Steph feels the same way. We clambered down the rocks to the lighthouse and walked along the beach for a bit, taking in the air and the view before heading back up the hill for a rough climb to the car.

By this time it was about 3:00 and the weather was to be desired, so we decided to make one last tourist stop before really calling it a day. We hadn't seen the Space Needle yet, so although we didn't really have any intention of going up into the Needle, it'd still be kind of cool to see the former grounds for the Seattle World's Fair of 1962. Much of it is still there, but has been turned into a tourist park, the most interesting building there being the Experience Music Project building, which we went inside for a bit to check it out. We had a free pass, but unfortunately they were closing early yesterday so we weren't able to use it.

After spending an hour or so poking around the park, we got back into the car and tried to make a decision as to what to do next. Both of us knew that we wanted to chill out for a bit, and we most likely just end up going back to the hotel, laying down for a few hours and taking in some TV before we headed out for the night. And...then we cracked. We couldn't help it, okay? We're movie fans. We love movies. Some of my friends go to different cities all over the country just to sit inside that city's baseball stadium...we do the same for movie theaters. So yeah, we cracked. We went to go see the 7:00 showing of Iron Man. And holy beejeebus was it good.

Following the movie, we knew we wanted to head out for one last night on the town, so we shot back to the hotel, made a quick change, and were out to the bars by 10:30. It was after all, Cinco De Mayo, so we celebrated accordingly. We passed a few of the bars around Belltown, then ended up at a place called Twist (not to be confused with the bar in Cleveland of the same name...purely a coincidence) where we sat back and had a few drinks, reminiscing about the events of our day. Just after midnight we called it a night since we were planning on leaving to go to Rainier today (the weather is looking a LOT better) so we came back to the hotel and crashed.

Tonight will probably be our last update, which I'll do my best to make from the airport. If by chance there's nothing posted in the morning, I'll do my best to make sure that something is posted by the afternoon. It is going to be one. long. day tomorrow, so you'll have to bear with me. Till then, wish us luck at Rainier. We'll be arriving at SEA-TAC airport around 8:30 and flying out on the red-eye at 11:00. Till then.

For All You Twin Peaks Fans...

With our plans to head down and see Mount Rainier yesterday postponed until this morning, Steph and I thought it'd be fun to head west to a town called North Bend where the cult TV series "Twin Peaks" was filmed. There you'll find the cafe that was made famous by the show, along with a few of the other locations around town that were used throughout the series. I had never actually watched the show, so besides being a David Lynch creation and being incredibly strange, I honestly didn't know much about it. Steph on the other hand, along with her sister Tiffany, were fans, so this was one of the main highlights of the trip for her. After all, I had my Goonies moment, she needed her Twin Peaks fix. And it ended up being a really fun time.

It was about a 45 minute drive east from our hotel. We could tell that we were heading into the mountains, which loomed above us, but unfortunately, the cloud cover was so thick and low that it was hard to get a good view of the peaks. Only the bottom of the snow lines were visible. Everything above that disappeared into the mist.

We got into North Bend and filled up on gas, then headed directly to the cafe. Apparently it's extremely different inside and from the pictures on the wall, you can definitely see how. Unfortunately in the year 2000, there was a large fire, started by arson, that gutted the entire cafe, so it was remodeled and rebuilt, but the 60's retro wooden feel has completely disappeared and given way to more of a 50's diner look, with electric blues and reds. The layout is basically the same though, so if you use your imagination, you can see how it originally felt.

Steph had to get her "damn fine cup of coffee" and cherry pie, a pair of which was also made famous in the the show, and slowly sipped away, taking in the entire atmosphere. There were a lot of people in the cafe at the time, mostly all locals, and I couldn't help but notice how much food they were getting. When this place gives you a plate of hash browns and eggs, they aren't kidding. It was more breakfast food that I'd ever be comfortable eating...at least three meals on one plate. It was absolutely ridiculous, but I'd be lying if I said it didn't look good. I mean, who can pass up a huge plate of breakfast skunk?




After our coffee and pie, Steph and I drove around, looking for a few of the other locations in town. The cafe sold maps for $2, and of course Steph bought one, but we both had to laugh at the ridiculousness of its quality. With everything available to us today, you'd think that it wouldn't be hard to produce a quality map with a few locations drawn in, right? Nope, think again. I swear to God, it's like they had a local contest at the elementary school for whomever could produce the best map of Twin Peaks locations. It was like it was seriously drawn by a Kindergarten student...in crayon. I wish I had a picture of this thing. They were honestly selling them...and yes, like I said before...Steph bought one. We are complete suckers.

After our drive and checking out a few of the locations around town (not too much more besides the cafe and the opening credits) we decided to head back towards Seattle and get in some hiking in the parks. We said good-bye to Twin Peaks (North Bend) and headed west back to Seattle and straight into Discovery Park.

The Ace: Seattle

Thursday afternoon we arrived in Seattle, prepared for another three nights at the Ace Hotel. Much to our surprise, the Ace in Seattle is wildly different from its branch down in Portland. We knew the interior design of the hotel was different, but the layout was extremely surprising. In Portland, like any other hotel, the front desk is on the first floor and the rooms lie in the floors above. The Ace: Seattle however, has a much different layout. When you first walk in, you're welcomed by a flight of stairs (no elevator) that span up to the front counter. Once you get all your bags up there, you realize that you're immediately surrounded by rooms. Ours was almost directly across from the front desk. We were a little apprehensive at first, especially since we were at the front of the building, right on top of the street, but after a few nights here, I have to say it's actually not that bad. The street noise out side becomes more of an ambiance, the kind that I really got used to when I lived in NYC and San Francisco.

After sleeping like babies during that first night in seriously, one of the most comfortable beds I've ever been in, all of our initial fears about the room faded away and to be honest, we've really ended up loving it. We're getting ready to leave now, but I know that when we do come back to Seattle, and I do know that we'll come back, the Ace Hotel will be back on our list for places to stay. You can't beat the rates, nor the location. I'd recommend them to anyone.

Mount Rainier? ...Not Today.

Well, we were planning on heading down to Mount Rainier today, but it doesn't look like it's going to happen. I called the Ranger's station down there and they're in the midst of a rain/snow mixture that would just make hiking kind of miserable, even in the lower altitudes. So, we unfortunately decided to ax those plans for today.

Instead, we're going to take a trip over to the East side to see a few things, and then up to Discovery Park which I heard is really really cool. The good news is, we have all day tomorrow to visit Rainier since we're not planning on getting back to the airport until at least 8pm at the earliest. The weather is looking to be a lot better, around 10-15 degrees warmer, with the snowline beginning around 7500 ft. as opposed to today's 4500, which is where most of the trails begin.

Either way, our last two days in town should be a lot of fun. Keep checking back for more updates in the next 48 hours.

BC & SF

Bainbridge Island & Pioneer Square

Now that we're back in Seattle, it's time to do a few things that we didn't get a chance to cover while we were here before. One of those things, out of a suggestion from my buddy Glen, was to take the Bainbridge Ferry over to Bainbridge Island and back. It's about a 2.5 hour round trip and offers some really unique views of the city, the Cascades, the Olympic Mountains, and if you're lucky, Mount Rainier. So, we did just that, and after a quick contintental breakfast at the hotel, managed to catch the 11:25 ferry over to Bainbridge Island.

It really was beautiful, though the air got really bitey, especially on the Sound, but we loved it. Fortunately, it was just clear enough to gain some really great views on the surrounding mountain ranges. The peak of Rainier however, was covered in cloud. After about 35 minutes or so, we arrived at Bainbridge, unboarded the ship and headed into downtown Bainbridge.

To be honest, there wasn't much here, so we didn't spend much time hanging around. It was nice to see parts of the Island though, and I'm sure it would've been a lot more interesting had we brought our car and driven around the Island for a bit to gain some other views, but we were on a walking tour, so we pretty much stayed in the area of downtown. We did get to check out a few interesting stores while we were here, but nothing that held our interest, (or that our bank accounts would've been able to withstand) Before we knew it, we were heading back towards the Ferry that would sail us back to Seattle.





Back in the city, we learned that Pioneer Square was only a short walk from the Pier, so we headed up the hill, and into the main Square, which as I know it, is the oldest section of Seattle, basically being the square that the entire rest of the city was built upon. This is also where they offer the underground Seattle tour, which we didn't take, but I was actually able to talk to one of the tour guides about it for a few minutes. After fires hit Seattle in the early 20th century, most of the city had to be rebuilt. There were a lot of problems, including flooding and issues with the foundations due to the nearby water table, so everything had to be restructured. Since the city owned the public streets and the sidewalks were privately owned, the city didn't touch the sidewalks and built straight up from the streets, creating basements out of the first floors of each buildings and turning the second floors into street level stores. Does that make sense? It was kind of cool, and it probably would've been great to take the tour, but we just didn't have time.

We ate lunch at a cool little Irish Pub in the Square with one of the friendliest waitresses we've had yet, then took the opportunity to walk into Belltown and explore the area in which we're staying. Steph found a coat that she fell in love with (by a private designer that unfortunately was charging an arm and a leg for it) and I nearly needed to be dragged out of a Peter Miller design store with enough books and resources inside to last me years.

We got back to the hotel and relaxed for a bit, then headed out to dinner at a place we passed earlier called Celler's. It was an amazingly good Italian place that had just opened up a few weeks before. Steph and I both chose our selections from the wine menu, followed by a finely presented cheese plate and our chosen main courses. Completely full, we walked up towards downtown for a few minutes to let our food settle, then jumped in a cab, making our way up to Capitol Hill again to meet my buddy Jon one last time. This offered us a new perspective on Capitol Hill, which Jon explained later as one of the most expensive and sought-after areas of town. We wouldn't have guessed that before, but it was interesting to hear.

We arrived at a bar called the Canterbury a bit early, so we sat down at a chess table and passed the time with me teaching Steph how to play chess. She had never learned before and once she started getting the concept of the game, fell in love with it. I see a really nice chess set in our future after tonight. The bar itself was really cool. It had an old medieval feel to it, complete with small rooms filled with wooden tables, low hanging rafters and chandeliers, fieldstone fireplaces and tudor designed walls. Jon and his friend Rita arrived shortly after, so we sat down with them for a bit and literally laughed straight through the next hour. We wished we could've stayed out with them longer, but because of our early rise in the morning, we cashed out around midnight, said our goodbyes, and took a cab back to the hotel.

Only two days left and there's plenty to fit in, especially tomorrow. Hopefully the weather will hold up long enough for us to really enjoy Mount Rainier. Keep your fingers crossed for us...we'll post more when we get back.

Goonies for a Day

So we made it. We left Portland at about 9:30am, drove almost 2 hours northeast into Washington, then back into Oregon again, to arrive in Astoria shortly after noon in search of the many familiar Goonie landmarks. I can't say we were able to visit all of them, but we got to see the important ones that the fans will appreciate.

It's pretty late right now in Seattle (we arrived back at the Ace Hotel: Seattle only a few hours ago), so bear with me while I write this. It's been an exhausting day, but I'll try to run through as much of as I can in as briefly as I'm able. All in all, it was a pretty amazing part of the trip.

So like I mentioned above, we made it into Astoria at about noon and hightailed it directly to the Goonie house, where Mikey and his brother lived. I found out that they're actually really cool about fans taking pictures up there, as long as you park at the bottom of the hill. So, we did just that and hiked up the short drive to the house. It's close to what we remember from the movie, only updated with a new paint job and a lower level porch. We sat up there and took some shots, including one of me doing the truffle shuffle. It had to be done, but I only posted it in the Flickr photos, so if you're willing to succumb yourself to that, feel free. The house has a great view of the inlet and Astoria's neighborhood hills, and we were able to hear the sound of sea lions barking from the docks the entire time we were there. It seemed like a really relaxing place to live, regardless of the plethora of fans that make their way up there.

From the Goonie House we drove down the hill into town and got shots in front of the County Jail that the Fratelli brothers escaped from and the Museum where Mikey's dad supposedly worked. The museum is actually a real museum, though of what I'm not sure, and the jail hasn't been opened since 1971. It was so cool to stand right there in front of these places...I can't wait to get home and watch the movie again. It was fun to watch Steph's memory come back and recognize the scenes. At one point, I'm not sure who was having more fun.

Next came Ecola State Park. This is where the scenes outside the restaurant were filmed, as well as the scenes of Mikey looking through the dabloon in order to line up the Lighthouse, the Rock, and the Restaurant. The park is actually about a half hour south of Astoria, so after a quick debate as to whether or not to make the drive, we decided we'd regret it if we didn't and headed down the coastal freeway into Ecola.

Entering the park is almost as gorgeous as the coast. You drive along this narrow road filled with hairpinned turns for about a mile into the park, all the while, passing underneath moss-covered pines and fields of fern. It was very surreal. Minutes later, you arrive at a large parking lot that offers an endless number of viewpoint options of the Pacific Ocean. Not being able to help myself, I bounded up a hill at the edge of the bluffs and gazed over the sea, only to be joined by Steph a minute later. Something about the ocean fascinates me...and adding the beauty of the Oregon coast into the equation...simply incredible. I have no other word for it.


From this hill you can actually see the Rock that Mikey sees in the dabloon...in most of the shots of Steph and I, you can see it in the distance. We're on the north end of it, even though it was mostly shot from the south in the film. You can also see the lighthouse in the distance of a few of the shots, most specifically the one of me standing on the edge of the cliff with the lighthouse island directly to the right.

And finally...the restaurant. Unfortunately, it's no longer there as the building was constructed only for the film and torn down shortly afterwards, but you can still see hints of the scene in what exists today. In the shot of Steph and I behind the picnic bench, look directly over our heads and you'll kind of see the old stump that the ORV was parked behind, and down to our left there is the drive coming up to the flat part of the land. Here's the thing, all of the land behind that stump has completely caved in due to a large number of landslides around the bluffs. You can't see it in the photo above, but I'm pretty sure that the exact location that the restaurant sat on has since fallen into the sea, but at least you can still see where it once stood with the addition of 20 years of growth.

Pretty much concluding our adventures as Goonies for the day (minus the search for One-Eyed Willy's Treasure), we then decided to head back north towards Seattle and find a quick stop to get a bite to eat along the way. This is when we discovered Seaside. Almost by accident, I pulled into this sleepy little coast town and what we found was a neighborhood of charming shops, coastal restaurants, and spectacular views. We stopped inside a local seafood restaurant, the name of which escapes me right now (Dookles?...no, that's not it. It'll come to me) gobbled down some lunch and walked over to the enormous beach for some final shots of the Pacific. Before heading back to our car we explored a few of the shops, but realized that it was getting late and that we still had a three hour drive ahead of us. On that note, we got back into the car and headed the rest of the way north towards Seattle.

It was a long drive, but at least this time it offered us some pretty amazing views of Mount Rainier, which we plan on visiting Saturday. A few hours later we pulled into Seattle and got all set up at the northerly location of the Ace Hotel. All's good for the night and it seems to be about that time to retire. We don't have a set plan for tomorrow, but there should be plenty to talk about. Till then.

Our Last Day in Portland

Okay, now that all the photos are uploaded (still more to vomit up on that site today), we can go ahead with our last day in Portland entry. It's Thursday morning now and I'm sitting in the study area of the Ace Hotel, waiting for Steph to gain consciousness, us to pack up our stuff, and head west to Astoria, followed by a nice coastal drive, then finally on to Seattle where we'll be until we fly home Sunday night.

So our last day in Portland was a great one. We got a bit of a slow start in the morning due to some quick work that I actually had to do for the office. No worries though, as we were out the door by ten to grab some breakfast at a place call the 35th Street Bistro. I ordered an Asparagus and Tomato Quesche and Steph got a whole mess of scrambled eggs and the biggest strips of bacon I've ever seen. After breakfast we jumped in the car and headed east this time towards the neighborhood of Hawthorne.

Our first stop was Mt. Tabor, a now-extinct volcano that is now covered in pine trees, dog-lovers, and the occasional nomad that still appreciates some good sleep under the aspen pine canopy. We couldn't find a hole leading down into the guts of the volcano, but I highly doubt one exists anymore, at least one that is publicly accessible, so we climbed to the peak and explored the top of the hill, discovering a perfect, framed portrait of downtown Portland. This place was like walking through one of my old fantasy King's Quest series computer games that I played as a kid. For those that ever messed around with those, it's public knowledge that the Pacific Northwest was inspiration for much of the early games' settings, and it shows. Even the bathrooms up here have a fairy-tale quality to them. We took a few shots, explored around a bit, then headed down back down towards the car.

Our next stop was Hawthorne, which we read was one of the neighborhoods to see when you're out here, due to the plethora of hip little boutiques, thrift stores, and record shops, with the occasional coffee shop thrown in. It's also the home of the most cozy outlet of Powell's Books, a large chain of popular book stores here in town. After exploring a few of the shops and picking up a few things here and there, we wandered into the bookstore and were completely amazed at the size and selection. It's the largest bookstore I've ever been in and the demeanor of the whole place is laid back and even somewhat sarcastic. We looked around for a little while and came across a few books that I remember having as a kid, specifically an encyclopedia about gnomes and another from the Three Investigators series, which I haven't seen in years, probably since I was in elementary school.

We spent a few hours in Hawthorne and walked around the streets a bit, taking in the atmosphere. It was very laid back and trendy, almost a younger, college version of Nob Hill, except not quite as pretty and less kept up. We really liked it though, and after checking out a few more wordly-type shops, jumped back in the car and headed north towards the Kennedy School.

I've mentioned us eating and having a few drinks at these McMenamins places around town. Well, the Kennedy school is part of that chain, though it's definitely something different that what we've ever seen before. Years ago, it used to be an elementary school, dating back over 150 years to when Portland was first being settled. As times progressed, the school was eventually shut down until McMenamin's purchased the property and remade the building into a mix of a hotel with restaurants, small pubs, a theater, and a variety of party/meeting rooms. It really is a cool place, with most of the original signage. I mentioned to Steph that we should stay here the next time we're in town, but the fact that the rooms are old classrooms and that they still contain the original chalkboards kind of freaked her out. I can understand that, as it does have a bit of a creepy vibe throughout the entire place, but it'd still be really cool. Oh well, at least we got to see it.

Arriving back at the hotel, neither one of us were feeling all that well, so we laid down a bit and after a short nap, I came back down to the lobby, grabbed a beer at the bar next door and worked on getting all of the photos uploaded to the Flickr site. I took a ton of the hotel that probably won't be uploaded until tomorrow, but we'll get them up here soon enough.

We have an early start this morning, as I'm actually getting ready to jump in the car here in a few minutes to get us moving on our way to Astoria. More updates to come, as I expect today's photos to be some of the most beautiful and interesting we've taken yet. Till then.

Photo Troubles...

We've been having some trouble uploading photos to Flickr, not because of their network, but because our wireless in the hotel is acting a bit tricky. Keep checking back as we have a LOT of photos to upload from yesterday, and even more that we're taking today.

BC & SF

Finding Nob Hill

Portland is really one of those cities where you can just relax and enjoy the atmosphere around you...yes, even if it is raining. We didn't have much of a plan today, or tomorrow for that matter, but we knew we wanted to hit a few of the neighborhoods on the west side of the city at least one of those days. We had picked up some maps and a few brochures the night before while we were out to dinner, so we had an idea of where we wanted to go, but nothing was set in stone.

This turned out to be one of the best decisions, as our first full day in Portland really ended up as one of the best days we've had out here so far. After grabbing breakfast at a small corner diner up the block from our hotel, we got into the car and headed west about a mile into the Nob Hill neighborhood. It was sunny at this point, and relatively clear, but there was a chill in the air so before leaving, we both went back up to the room to grab our coats. About a mile later, the scenery of the city changed from downtown warehouse and loft living into ornate cottages and colorful homes, inspired by anything from deep southern plantations to English Tudor, or even a mix of both. The greenery in the Nob Hill neighborhood was completely outstanding, creating an emerald canopy over the streets, with painted magnolias and cherry blossoms mixed in for variety.

We parked the car and walked around for a few hours, exploring the small shops and novelty stores speckled throughout the streets, one of our favorites being named 3 Monkeys, which was the one place we actually purchased a few things from that day. We explored the clothing stores and walked through a few of the bars, then headed into the residential streets to view many of the homes and outlying parts of the neighborhood. At one point to avoid the drizzle that started, we ducked into a small independent coffee shop (not a Starbucks) and waited out the short burst of showers. Steph got an iced coffee and I settled for my Chai Tea, and we sat by the window, watching the rain pass through town, within minutes, it was bright and sunny again, and we were on our way.

After a while, we got back into the car and drove up to the million dollar homes on what's called King's Heights. These places range from anywhere between $600,000 and 5 million, depending on how high you are on the hill, your view, and of course, the size of the home. Surprisingly, a lot really weren't all that big, but they're perched right on the edge of a steep pitch, propped up by stilts driven deep into the side of the slope. The views are spectacular, offering a full panorama of downtown Portland and the Cascade mountains beyond. The higher you get, the more elaborate the homes become. Some of them even look straight down into Washington Park, which ended up being our next stop.

Washington Park is a huge suburban park containing the zoo and a few of the world's most renowned gardens. The Rose Garden, although highly rated would've been great had the roses been in bloom. We had talked about visiting the Japanese Garden earlier in the trip, but until now, hadn't really cemented the idea. We parked the car on the edge of the Washington Park Train Station, an old-fashioned steam locomotive that circled the entire park and through the Oregon Zoo, and took a short walk up a neatly kept hill path lined with bamboo and twine, arriving a few moments later at the Japanese Gardens. It had started to rain by now, but not the rain that we would know in Ohio where the drops are heavy and you're soaked within seconds. This rain was a light drizzle, almost a mist, and continued off and on throughout the rest of the day. We didn't let it bother us though, and surprisingly it didn't hinder our day, allowing us to start to understand the mentality of everyone out here.

Our walk through the Gardens was nothing short of relaxing and peaceful. We couldn't get enough pictures of our surroundings, and took about an hour and a half to walk through what was probably an area the square-footage of a football field. There were bridges, waterfalls and ponds, small tea rooms and pavilions, and scattered meditative huts that honestly persuade you to forget that you're not actually in Japan. This garden is the most accurate Japanese Garden in the world, outside of Japan itself, further proving how much the people in the in this area of the country regard their outdoors.

Upon leaving the Gardens, we decided to head back into Nob Hill and eat a small corner pub called McMenamins' Rams Head, which may sound familiar as it's associated with the McMenamins pub that we had met Jon at up in Seattle. It was a cozy little place, a perfect fit for the weather. Steph got an amazing mozzarella sandwich and I ordered a stuffed burger. Our waitress was really nice and we had a good laugh with her when one of the obvious patrons came over to our table while she was taking our order and announced that she's getting married in a few weeks, then proceeded to ask us if we knew where the wedding was being held. She turned to him and told him that for the last time, she's not giving him an invite as she's worried he'd throw cheese at her or something. He laughed and kind of agreed, then sort of staggered away back to his stool. You kind of had to be there, but it was actually really funny and the three of us laughed about it for the next few minutes while she continued to try and take our order.

The night again was fairly relaxing as we decided to retire early and watch some TV. I fell asleep reading and Steph caught her American Idol and before we knew it, the day had ended. We'll probably do much of the same the next day, only exploring different parts of town. Again there's no set agenda, which seems to be the way to go here in Portland, and we're enjoying every second of it.

Arriving in Portland

We had a pretty decent start in the morning, both of us waking up by 8:30 and getting our stuff all packed and ready to go in order to be out of the room by 10:00 am. We checked out, jumped into the car and started driving south towards Portland. Almost immediately we recognized the timing as a good decision seeing that Seattle's incoming traffic was completely gridlocked. For those that aren't familiar of the layout, unlike Cleveland, or even Cincinnati for that matter, Seattle basically has one freeway artery into downtown, and one out; I-5. Traffic can be a nightmare, especially when everyone and their brother is trying to commute into downtown for work. We breezed out of downtown with hardly an issue and continued our trek south through Tacoma.

It was a really pleasant drive, almost lasting 3 hours, but it really didn't feel like it. The only downer was that we weren't able to see Mount Rainier in the distance due to some low-hanging clouds immediately about the mountain (the rest of the sky was mostly spotted or clear), but we both know that we'll be heading that way towards the end of the week, so we weren't too bummed about it.

We got into Portland at about 1:00 or so and immediately got ourselves checked into the hotel. Driving down, we were both exhausted, so we knew our first day in town was going to be somewhat of a leisurely one. For a momemt I thought the experience was going to be interesting as the deadbolt to our door literally fell apart as I turned the key, but within a few minutes we had a maintenance worker come up and fix it to good as new for us. On that cue, Steph laid down for a nap and I took care of the Parking.

Before I walked up to the room from the parking lot, I took a quick stroll around the neighborhood, locally referred to as the Pearl District, immediately noticing a distinct difference between Portland and Seattle. Portland is a really cool city. It's great for people watching and it sports this vibe that I've never quite seen before. I mean, it is a city. There's a fairly established downtown, and there are a few skyscrapers dotting the skyline...but, I don't know what it is. It's almost as if it has a small town feel to it, though I'm not sure why. Steph pointed out later in the day that it seemed as if everything was really close to the street, so maybe that's it. Regardless, it's very charming and it's easy to feel at home here.

Exhausted as well, I came back up to the room and relaxed for a bit, reading some of the books I picked up in Queen Anne and catching a few minutes of sleep before dinner. At about 5:30 or so, we left the room and did some exploring of the neighborhood together, eventually finding a neat little noodle place to eat that reminded me all too much of Tea House Noodles in Cleveland. It had a largely health-driven menu, which was a nice source of protein to help us recover a bit from being so worn out.

After dinner we walked around a bit to some of the stores, but most had started to close around 7 since it was after all a weekday. We made it a point to check out more of them tomorrow and got back to our room around 7:30 or so to chill out at the hotel for the rest of the night. This may sound like a waste of time to some, especially considering that we're only here for a few short days, but in all honestly, the Ace Hotel in Portland is kind of like this little hipster hangout. People come here during the day to get away from work and just chill downstairs in the lobby with their friends or just to get a change of environment, and at night there are people in and out of the main entrance, taking advantage of the books downstairs or just to recover for a bit between bar hops. It ended up turning into a really nice, relaxing evening. Tomorrow however, we have a few more aggressive plans. Considering it's supposed to rain most of the day, we may be doing quite a bit of driving as opposed to walking, but I think we'll have to play it by ear. Portland has a lot to offer, so much in fact that regardless of what we end up doing, it'll be hard not to take advantage of it.

The Six Arms

I haven't seen Jon Agnone in over six years...before that, it was probably another five. That's a long time not to see someone that you practically grew up with, and it was a good reunion.

Jon and his sister Jen grew up right across the street from me back in Youngstown. We always got in a lot of trouble together, but it was always innocent kid stuff, most of which if I remember correctly, I mainly instigated. We had a great time growing up, but after high school each of us went their separate ways, occasionally catching up with each other through myspace or a random run-in back at home.

I think Jon's been out here for about six and half years, and the last time we had seen each other back at home, I believe he mentioned that he just moved out for school. That's stuck in my mind and before heading out this way, I sent him a line telling him that we'd be in town and it'd be great to meet out. Fast forward to last night, only a few blocks from our hotel, we meet out at McMenamins' Six Arms bar, a cool little microbrew joint that has outlets all over Seattle and Portland, one of which we had already planned on stopping at in Portland without even knowing that they're related.

We spent the majority of the night catching up on old times and filling each other in on what's been going on for the past decade with our families, careers and what-not, throwing back a few drinks (the only other guy I've met that voluntarily drinks a Rusty Nail), and detailing the rest of our trip with a few suggestions as to what to do when we head down to Portland and back the following day.

Honestly we could've talked longer, but the bar closed up and announced last call. A few minutes later we said our good-byes and once again headed our separate ways, Jon back home and us to our hotel, with the promise to give one another a call when we get back into town. Once again, just a really cool thing when you see someone for the first time in years, and it doesn't feel like much time has passed at all. The one thing we didn't do was trade old stories about the neighborhood, but we'll have to save that for another time, when the bar is open later and the shelves are stocked with an adequate amount of Drambuie and single-malt Scotch.

Where's the Beef?

All Steph wanted was a hamburger. Which usually isn't that hard to find, but man...we just weren't getting lucky at all on that front. There was Thai food, sushi, more italian and coffee. Those were our choices, so we bounced around a bit until we finally came across some old-fashioned pub-fare up in Queen Anne in the form of a bar called Hilltop Ale House. We tried one place beforehand called How to Cook A Wolf (thankfully Wolf is NOT listed as a menu item), but there were literally five choices for entrees and although the restaurant was ranked as one of the top ten in the city, we already had Italian the night before, so we grabbed a glass of wine, took in the Hobbit-hole like atmosphere, and decided to head elsewhere.

So after leaving Hungry Like the Wolf we ended up at the Hilltop, which was a neat little microbrew pub right on the main strip in Queen Anne. We looked around at a few other places, but this seemed the most appealing. The menu was pretty straightforward...I got the Steak Sandwich and a cup of Italian Sausage Stew, while Steph got her hamburger with chips on the side. They had a really great selection of beer, of which I only had one, a Porter called Scuttlebutt, which I'd be more than happy to try again. It ended up being a good choice for dinner and we had to laugh about how appropriate it was (due to an intense fear of all things 'wolf') for Steph not to like the menu of Peter and the Wolf, or whatever the hell it was called. It was a perfect end to what really turned out to be a very relaxing day around town.

Exploring Seattle

Sunday was a good day. Our morning was pretty relaxed. While waiting for Steph to get ready, I went down to the gym and put in about three miles on the treadmill and got in a quick workout following the jog. After a quick shower and change, we got some of our stuff together and headed down the street for breakfast. We wandered around a bit, just trying to find a place that served something other than danishes and coffee, and eventually ended up making our way down towards the market again, where we found a quaint little bistro called Bocca tucked into the side of the hill on Stewart. They specialize in these amazing juices...completely worth the wait to get in, which actually wasn't all that bad.

After breakfast we picked up the car and headed north into a few of Seattle's neighborhoods. Our first stop was Queen Anne. We didn't really have an agenda, so we drove up the hill and made our first stop at Kerry Park, a small overlook suggested by my buddy Glen. After checking out the skyline for a few minutes, we decided to drive around and explore. This brought us to Queen Avenue books, a cozy little bookstore nestled behind a small cafe on the main strip. I picked up a book about weird washington facts and a best-seller called 'Merle's Door,' a story about a man and his dog, which after reading a page or two of, I felt all too familiar with.

Instead of going back to the car, we took a stroll around the neighborhood just west of the strip, which ended up turning into this amazing walk. We were both so impressed with the houses, all of which were a bungalow/arts and crafts style, that were so detailed and well-taken care of, that it almost reminded us of something out of a storybook. The yards were immaculate and detailed with ornate landscaping, and the homes themselves couldn't have a more perfect coat of paint on them. It was a very comfortable place to be.

Soon after, we jumped back in the car and headed down the hill towards Fremont, which is widely known as the funky district, appealing to thrift store shoppers and those with eclectic tastes. Almost right away, we loved it. While Queen Anne was quaint and prestine, Fremont had a vibe to it that reminded us of Lakewood in Cleveland. There were tiny little vintage shops everywhere and the place was littered with a huge variety of restaurants. We parked the car at the bottom of the hill and almost right away came across a small street fair, with dozens of vendors set up along the sidewalks up and down the entire street. We decided to stay there for a little while and browse the tents, and ended chatting it up with a few of the local artists. One guy was selling hand-crafted leather wallets from Argentina, while another had a display of wood-carved earrings. Just before we moved on into the neighborhood, Steph found a table of homemade scented candles and picked a few of those up on our way out.

Like I had mentioned before, Fremont has sort of a "wacky" reputation, which means it has some out-of-the-box public art. Like Waiting for the Interurban for starters, a simple piece that displays a group of people waiting for the bus. The odd thing here is that the dog's face is actually the mayor's face from when it was erected there, mainly due to a legendary dispute between the artist and the mayor of Fremont himself.

Next was the Fremont Troll. Now, I don't think anyone knows exactly how this got here, or what inspired it, but wow...is it cool. It's hysterical, you walk up the hill under the bridge and this is what you see, a huge troll coming out of the ground, crushing a Volkswagon Bug of all things. ..I know, right? And the Bug is real, not made out of cement like the rest of the sculpture, which made me wonder what's actually inside of it. You almost can't help but clamber all over it...just watch out for the bums that make their home behind it (some little Rasputin-looking fellow with a staring problem was standing directly behind me during this photo). Very wierd, but very fun.

A Night on Capitol Hill

There are a lot of things that Steph and I are comfortable with in Cleveland. We enjoy a nice Italian meal in Tremont and we're frequenters of the Garage Bar in Ohio City. It's just what we do when we're there, so this was a really nice night to experience something so close to what we're used to.

After looking through Seattle Weekly, a free magazine similar to Cleveland's Scene, we decided to head up to Capitol Hill and have dinner at Ristorante Machiavelli's, a cozy little neighborhood restaurant, tucked into the top of Pine Street, overlooking the Paramount Theatre. The restaurant itself had a very strong NYC vibe to it, but it also reminded me of a few of the restaurants we've frequented at home. We started off with wine, then Stephanie ordered the Penne Bolognese while I got the Linguine alla Vongole, smothered in garlic and topped with a white wine sauce. It was fantastic, and worth the garlic breath that no mint can cover up effectively.

After dinner we decided to explore the area a bit. We were supposed to meet my buddy Jon, an old neighborhood friend from Youngstown, out around the Hill but he said Sunday would be better for him, so we were on our own. We walked up Pine Street for about 6 blocks or so and passed a bunch of eclectic and vintage stores that we made a point to try and come back to next week when they're open. We passed a few bars that seemed fun, but decided to head over to Pike where Jon had suggested to go originally. There we found Moe Bar.

Like I said, we're frequenters of the Garage Bar in Cleveland and I think this is as close as you can get without it actually being the Garage Bar. The crowd was EXACTLY the same...sort of hipster, yet punk, with some yuppie mixed in simply for the sake of variety. While the Garage has a bit of a biker theme/retro-50's gas pump feel to it, Moe Bar had a slightly more Gothic edge to it, with some old-fashioned wallpaper choices that you tend to see in those really freaky antique family portraits where no one is smiling and Joe Shotgun looks like he's about to go Manson on his entire family. Anyway, we got a few drinks, and hung around the bar a bit. Steph almost got hit on by the Green Lantern (I wish we got a picture of this guy), which was entertaining to say in the least. After awhile of mingling around and meeting some really cool people, we decided to jet, took a cab back to the hotel and called it a night. I would love to go back there again, but next week is Cinco de Mayo and we're staying in Belltown, which should be an experience in itself. We'll have to hit Capitol Hill next time we're in town.

I Want to High-Five an Otter

After spending some time in the market and exploring some of the lower levels (there are three levels below the main market full of small nick-nack stores and businesses), we headed down the bluff to the piers to get a good look at Puget Sound. We ended up exploring some of the oddities shops down here and stopped to eat lunch at a small fish n' chips place which had the best beer-battered cod I've ever tasted in my life. We then walked out to the end of one of the piers to get a better view of the mountains, which you can kind of see in the photo to the left. They really are spectacular and it's hard to imagine that they're as far away as they are. There were a ton of touristy cruises leaving the pier while we were there, and although it would've been kind of cool to jump on one, we plan on taking the Bainbridge Ferry when we get back into town on Thursday, so we opted for the Aquarium instead.

The Aquarium was a good choice to spend the next hour or so, because although we didn't go out into the Sound yet, this place gives you a really unique view of what life is specifically like out there below the surface. There's a hands-on exhibit that we really enjoyed where we got to handle different kinds of starfish and sea cucumbers, and some of the glass displays were completely immersive in how you felt like you were right underwater with them. My favorites were the sea mammal displays that contained sea lions, river otters and the like, all of which possessed a playful demeanor I couldn't help but love. It's like you just want to hang out with them and give them high fives.