One Last Post

We are home and back into our routines.  The trip back went well - everything was on time and no problems with flight to Houston and then to Mexico City.  We only had an hour between flights in Houston but taking the tram from one terminal to the other was a breeze, especially since we did not have to go through security again.

It was almost 10 p.m. by the time we cleared customs in Mexico City - which was simple and we didn't have our luggage inspected - darn, I could have brought that russet potato back with me like I was tempted to do.  There is basically only one kind of potato here - white.  It's good but boring.  How nice it would be if John could grow some Russets - but it is not to be - yet.

In the Mexico City airport there was a little office for the Ramada where we had reservations.  It's right by the airport but you have to take a shuttle to get there.  The woman in the office called them and we waited there comfortably until it arrived.  The hotel was very nice and we had a little bite to eat in the restaurant before retiring.

In the morning we had no schedule as the buses to San Miguel from the airport run every 50 min.  So, we went down for breakfast and were pleasantly surprised to find a huge breakfast buffet included in the price of the room.  We had lovely custom made omelettes - among other things.  The shuttle took us back to the airport where we boarded a bus for the trip back home - well actually to Queretaro and then a taxi ride to our house.  That was the worst part of the trip - it was hot and the taxi had no a/c and he drove too fast.  Oh well, we made it.  The doggies were thrilled to see us and we them.  It's always good to be home.

We would have to say that this was an excellent home exchange and our exchange partners also had a great time in San Miguel.

Back to Seattle with a Stop on Bainbridge

On Sunday we had a leisurely morning before heading back to Seattle in warm but cloudy weather.  Friends Zan and Paul who we met in San Miguel, live on Bainbridge Island.  They also have a home in San Miguel and hope to spend more time there in the future.  Zan is a fellow horse enthusiast.  They invited us to stop at their home for dinner on the way back and we did.  They have a lovely home right on the beach with a fabulous view.  We sat on the patio overlooking the water visiting and drinking a glass or two of wine and then had a very nice salmonburger dinner.  The time flew by and we realized it was time to head to the ferry.  We were trying for the 8:10 sailing but got there just a couple of minutes too late but no problem - the next one was 8:55 so not long to wait.  All went well and we enjoyed a pleasant 25 minute crossing to downtown Seattle with the sun setting behind us and a nice view of the Seattle skyline.  From there it was just short drive home.

Tomorrow we will will tidying up and packing for the trip home on Tuesday.

A Trip to Portland for a Family Visit

Friday morning we headed south to Portland for a visit with John's nieces, Becky (& husband John) and Ruth (& husband Chuck and 3 boys Jack, Joe and Michael), his sisters, Mary and Ruth and Mary's husband, Curly.  The sisters live in southern California and the nieces both live in Portland.

We left after rush hour so the traffic wasn't too bad.  I had booked a room on line at the Rodeway Inn near niece Becky's house but when we told her, she thought it might not be too nice - they drove by a couple of days ago and said we probably shouldn't stay there - it was right next door to a Strip Club.  So, I cancelled and re-booked at one of the places Becky recommended - Homewood Suites by Hilton.  The price was good and included full breakfast.

The drive down was mostly Interstate and it was gloriously sunny all the way and WARM.  Finally, the temperatures were in the 70's and 80's.  We arrived and settled into our suite which was very nice.  We headed out to buy a new laptop for John - checked out Best Buy and Costco - bought it at Costco.  The nice thing about shopping in Oregon is that there is no sales tax.

We went to niece Ruth's home and had a happy reunion with the family - who we had not seen in a number of years.  We shared a few bottles of wine and Ruth made a nice dinner.  It was a very pleasant evening of catching up and reliving memories.

Saturday morning we enjoyed a big breakfast at our hotel and then found our way to Alpenrose - a big commercial dairy who does a lot for the community including building and maintaining a beautiful Little League ballpark.   We all watched young Michael and his teammates lose a baseball game.  The weather was fabulous - clear blue skies and warm temperatures.  All the pale Oregonians were trying to add a little color to their skin.  From there we went out to lunch and then consolidated into Ruth's van for a drive up to the Pittock Mansion for a view of the mountains.  Due to the fabulous weather we had a beautiful view of Mt Hood, the port of Portland and we could see several other mountains.

Later we gathered for our final dinner at Becky and John's home.  Again we enjoyed a little wine and a delicious meal.  Another old friend from John's past, Herb, was invited over and we enjoyed the addition of his cheerful company.

All in all, it was a wonderful family visit and we're hoping that we can all get together again soon.

Trip to BC via Ferry - Anacortes to Sidney

We had to set the alarm clock for 5 a.m. because the ferry leaves Anacortes to Sidney at 8:30 a.m. (only one a day) and we needed to be there about an hour early, we thought, to park and buy our tickets.  It was about an an hour and a half to Anacortes and we drove through a fair amount of rain but it stopped near our destination.  There was a good secure parking lot right at the ferry entrance for $20 for 48 hours.  We purchased our tickets - could only buy one-way because of customs and immigration coming back.  Senior fare was 1/2 price so it was about $8 each for the nearly 3 hour trip.

The ferry was run by the State of Washington - the Chelan. There were plenty of seats and lots of big windows to see the scenery.  There was a cafeteria and a duty free shop.  We settled in for the ride through the San Juan Islands with one stop - Friday Harbor - along the way.  The seas were very calm so it was a comfortable trip with lots of clouds but no rain.  We enjoyed the scenery and arrived on time in Sidney.  We cleared immigration and our friends, Nan and John were there to greet us.  Nan and John used to spend their winters in their San Miguel de Allende home and I got to know Nan because of horsey connections.  About 5 years ago, they sold their home in SMA and then stayed in Canada to be near their grandchildren and family.

Their Sidney home was just a few minutes from the ferry dock so we went there first and they showed us to their lovely apartment that they normally rent out long term but it was vacant for a couple of days so we were invited to stay there.  Then John and Nan drove us all over Sidney and to Victoria to see the sights.  The beaches are all public so we stopped at a couple of places and walked to the beach to enjoy the views.  We went to a Cajun restaurant right on the water for lunch.  There was even alligator on the menu (imported from LA) but we passed on that.  The sun actually came out during our lunch.

After our touring we went back to the house and had a very nice visit and a little wine.  For dinner we went to another restaurant on the water and enjoyed a nice fresh fish meal (ahi tuna).  It was delicious.

John and Nan made a lovely big breakfast the next morning and we visited some more before our return to the ferry dock for the trip back to Anacortes.  It was still cloudy but no rain.  We did the trip in reverse and enjoyed the scenery again.  We played a little Scrabble on my Kindle.

Back in Anacortes we headed for home with a stop at our favorite grocery store for a piece of Sockeye salmon for dinner.  It was very nice but I've now decided that I like the King salmon better than the Copper River sockeye.  Who would have guessed that there were such differences in salmon?

This 'n That

We've taken it kind of slow the last couple of days but have a lot planned for the rest of this final week: a ferry ride from Anacortes to Sidney, BC - overnight there with friends and the day after our return we will drive down to Portland for a reunion with nieces and two of John's sisters.  We'll have a day to pack and tidy up here and then we will have the long, not so fun trip home.

We are so glad to have chosen Seattle for our home exchange.  It is a beautiful, interesting and clean city.  I love the view of Puget Sound as we come "home" from our excursions and the mountains.   I'm really looking forward to the ferry ride to Sidney going through the San Juan Islands as well as the drive down to Portland..

I can't imagine a better way to visit an area than a home exchange.  Once you are settled in, it's just like being in your own home.  You can cook as little or as much as you wish.  You can run around trying to do everything or you can just relax at home.  Usually, you can invite another couple to visit, as we did on this trip.  On some of our exchanges, we met neighbors and friends of our exchangers which always makes it more interesting.  This time we did not meet any neighbors but we were able to get together with people we know from San Miguel and my college roommate and family in Portland.  That always makes the trip special.

I have to say that one of the wonderful things about Seattle for ua is the availability of fresh fish and seafood.  We don't really have that at home - too far from the ocean.  I don't know if I can ever bring myself to eat frozen salmon again - especially the farmed type.  The memory of fresh wild King salmon makes my mouth water and anything less will be a disappointment 

Seattle is not cheap but then everything everywhere outside of Mexico seems more expensive to us - we are spoiled that way.

The weather:  I have to say that the weather is better than I expected.  The cloudy factor has been high but the rain has been minimal.  The sun peeks out regularly - just enough to keep you hoping that there will be more.  The weather forecasts that I read on the Internet were not at all accurate so it's best just to ignore them and look out the window.

Seeing the shades of green everywhere you look has been eye candy along with the spring blooms of rhododendron bushes at nearly every house in the neighborhood.  It's been such a contrast with our high dessert cactus landscape at home.

I would certainly return to Seattle in a heartbeat except that there are many other places that we have not seen so probably we will not get back - but who knows?  Unfortunately, we are not getting any younger so we have to work on the bucket list.

Sunday in Seattle

It's a cloudy day in Seattle - but it is not raining so we decided to try the bus to go downtown to the Pike Place Market.  We went once when Bob and Marilyn were here but John didn't see it because he and Bob sat on a bench while we went in.

The nearest bus stop was over a mile away from the house so we looked up the bus stops and found one by a grocery store where we could park.  That's what we did and a bus came within 15 min and we got to ride for the senior fare of .75 each - nomally is is $2.25 on Sundays for adults - what a deal!  Sometimes it pays to be old.

We did a little shopping on the way to the market entrance and I found a great deal on a pair of women's cargo pants at Nordstrom's Rack.

Entrance to Pike Place Market in Downtown Seattle

One Ugly Fish

We strolled the whole length of the market and it was packed with people but fun to look at the beautiful fish and produce.  We bought a little lunch of tempura shrimp and calamari - tasty but kind of high in fat content.  Oh well.  We managed to kill several hours and took the bus back to our car with no problem.  It was sure cheaper than gas and the outrageous parking prices downtown.  We may try it again tomorrow to go to Seattle Center (that's where the space needle is).  There is a Folk Life Festival going on there that sounds interesting.  We'll decide when we see how the weather is tomorrow.

Issaquah and Snoqualmie Falls & Pass

On Wednesday we took it pretty slow and easy.  Our only outing was to buy an iPad for friends back in Mexico.  It was kind of fun to check it out and play with it - nice toy.  Wednesday evening I cooked the beautiful scallops we bought yesterday and they were outstanding.  Had fettuccine alfredo and cesar salad to go with them - yum.

Thursday was a day to visit my roommate from Augustana College, Rock Island, IL - have not seen her in 50 years - amazing.  She lives in Issaquah so with good directions and the GPS we drove over there.  The GPS did fine - but I put her street in as Drive when it was actually Blvd so that threw us off a little.  But with the help of a FedEx driver, we realized our mistake and it was very close by.

Jean and Jeannie

Jean graciously welcomed us into her charming condo and we chatted up a storm.  The weather was "iffy" as usual but not raining so she invited us to take a walk around the lake by the property.  We all had umbrellas, just in case, and about half way into the walk, it started raining fairly hard so we headed back under our umbrellas - but it was a pleasant walk even though it was short.

Yellow Lake

Jean prepared a nice lunch and then we headed out in her car to Snoqualmie Falls with drive-bys of places where she had lived previous to her current home - like North Bend, a sweet small town with fabulous views of the Cascades.

We arrived at the Falls and it was not raining - hooray.  The views were wonderful and the falls impressive.  The oldest hydro-electric plant in the US is located there.  We drove on to the Snoqualmie Pass and Gold Creek where Jean knew there was a nice hike.  Unfortunately, the road to the creek was closed when we got there and it was raining again - so no hike but beautiful scenery.

Snoqualmie Falls

Cascade Mountains

Back at her condo we had a couple of fun games of Scrabble and then went to dinner at a local Thai restaurant which was delicious.  It was great fun for Jean and I to reconnect and reminisce about our days at Augie.  We may get together again next week for another adventure.

The 45 min drive home was easy and we got there before dark.

Seattle Skyline from I-90

View close to our home exchange

Rain Moves In - Marilyn and Bob Move Out

Sadly, it is Marilyn and Bob's departure day.  And, the rainy, cloudy, dismal weather has begun.  Their train does not leave until 5:00 p.m. so we spent the day relaxing at home and listening to reports of the tornados and bad weather in Missouri where they and their families live.  The worst was the tornado in Joplin where many were killed and injured.  Today, tornados touched down near their children's homes in KC, Sedalia and Columbia.  But, fortunately, none were directly affected.  Marilyn's cell phone was active all day.

We headed out to the Edmonds train station in plenty of time and the train was on time.  The rain was light so not a problem.  On the way home we stopped at a grocery store called Central Market and wow - was it ever a great store.  There was an unbelievable fish market with all kinds of live seafood like, many varieties of oysters (who knew about different varieties of oysters), clams, mussels, crabs and beautiful lobsters - plus wonderful fresh fish, shrimp, scallops, etc.  It was overwhelming.  We finally decided on some fresh wild King salmon  for dinner tonight and fresh huge scallops for tomorrow.  The store was terrific - will be our store of choice for the rest of the trip, that's for sure.

Wild King Salmon from Copper River in Alaska

Back at home we opened a bottle of wine and I proceeded to prepare a dinner of sauteed salmon, baked Idaho potatoes and brocolli.  John bought a pumpkin pie at the grocery store so we had dessert too.  The salmon was unbelievable - it was a "10" for sure.  The pumpkin pie wasn't bad either.  We didn't eat all the salmon so the leftover will be in a salad for lunch tomorrow.  So far, we have not eaten any red meat since arriving in Seattle - and we don't miss it.  I think I could become a "pescaterian"  (I know, no such thing) - if I lived here.

Marilyn just called from the train - they are happy with their "bedroom" - they upgraded from a roomette and really like it.  They had champagne and chocolates and then salmon for dinner - pretty nice.

No plans for tomorrow except that we will go buy an iPad for a friend to take back to Mexico.  It will probably be rainy again.

A Shopping Trip and Edmonds for Lunch

I started out the day by trying to get our malfunctioning GPS to work by calling their tech support after trying online troubleshooting to no avail.  Bottom line is that I finally got it working again.

Marilyn and Bob needed to change their train ticket so they could leave from Edmonds instead of downtown Seattle and they upgraded to a bedroom.  I wanted to check out the REI Sporting Goods store up that way so off we went - this time with the help of the GPS.  I got my Teva sandals (great sale) and Marilyn bought a pair too.  From there we drove over to Edmonds, got the tickets changed and asked for a restaurant recommendation.  Arnie's was the choice - right on the water overlooking the ferry dock.  They had happy hour and special menu in the bar so that's what we did.  We enjoyed clams (Bob), Clam Chowder (all of us), crab cakes (Marilyn and Bob), and Fried Calamari (me).  It was all good but John said the crab cakes were not as good as the ones at Etta's.  I loved the calamari.  The sourdough bread was fresh and wonderful.  We ate well.

It was after 5:00 by the time we got home.  Weather wasn't bad at all - kind of like yesterday. We had our final rounds of Sequence and I am pleased to report that Marilyn and I remain the overall champions.

Chuckanut Drive and Fairhaven - Monday May 23

The weather is - well, medium.  That means, cloudy with occasional rays of sun peeking through but no rain.  We had a big breakfast today - scrambled eggs and bacon.  Our plan is to do the Chuckanut Drive up to Fairhaven which is on the bay in south Bellingham.

Here are a few pictures of the scenery on Chuckanut Drive:

We printed out the directions and headed north.  We took I-5 most of the way and then you get off the freeway and head over to WA-11.  It was a lovely drive - not spectacular, but pleasant.  In Fairhaven we parked the car and browsed some of the shops until lunch time.  Still having an appetite for fish/seafood, we found our way to the Big Fat Fish Co.  It was very pleasant and we all found something interesting on the menu:  clam chowder which was fabulous, John had a salmon burger which was good but not great, Marilyn had a cheeseburger, Bob had a huge order of delicious mussels (he gave me a few to try) and I had a prawn pizza with cesar salad.

Downtown Fairhaven

The Big Fat Fish Co. in Fairhaven

We took I-5 all the way instead of the scenic drive - once being enough - and had our usual relaxing evening of TV, wine, a little sandwich and Sequence - Marilyn and I skunked the boys tonight - 6 to 0.

Downtown Seattle

Marilyn's brother has two daughters in Seattle and a granddaughter so she made arrangements for us to meet them near Pike Place Market for lunch at Etta's.  It was quite simple to drive downtown but there were a lot of one way streets near our destination which made it a little confusing to find the restaurant.  However, we finallly got there and were able to park in a lot right across the street ($8 for two hours) and it was also right at the entrance to Pike Place Market.

We enjoyed a nice lunch with Kim and Sophie.

 Bob, Kim, Sophie and Marilyn in front of Etta's Restaurant

John had crab cakes which he said were a "ten".  Marilyn and I had fish and chips with cole slaw - a lot to eat, and Bob had fried oysters.  After lunch the "girls" walked over to the market while Bob and John sat on a bench.  The market was fascinating and will require a second visit.  Kim bought some flowers for us - very beautiful.  I shot some photos and we left and headed home.

Here are some pictures taken at the Pike Place Market - fabulous flowers and seafood and all kinds of other stuff.

Marilyn on the Phone with a bored Bob and John

Marilyn and Jeannie

The weather today was cloudy - mostly - but did not rain on us.  At home we realexed, read, computered and watched a little TV with our crackers and cheese for supper and then some more Sequence.  We retired for the evening with Marilyn and I ahead two games.

Tomorrow we will do the Chuckanut Drive to the north.

Saturday - Sunshine is Over

As expected, we woke up to the pitter patter of rain on the roof.  It was not a downpour - just kind of drizzly.  It did not dampen our spirits, though, we relaxed in the family room and ate a late leisurely breakfast while making plans for lupper (that's late lunch which then pretty well takes care of supper too).  Ray's Cafe was recommended and according to Google Maps, it is only 9.4 miles away.  We printed out the directions and had no trouble finding it.  Marilyn had called to make reservations so we were treated to a nice window table overlooking the sound.  Even with the cloudy weather, it was very pleasant.  We all had the halibut luncheon special - a trio of halibut, mashed potato pancake, lucious salad and coconut cookies for dessert.  We were all members of the clean plate club, that's for sure.  I was so eager to chow down when the plates arrived that I forgot to take a picture of the beautiful plate of food.

The Veiw from Ray's Cafe

Bob and Marilyn

View from Ray's downstairs restaurant

Marilyn in her Red Raincoat

Marilyn and Bob had never been to a Trader Joe's so we drove over to one in the neighborhood and enjoyed shopping there and getting a few bottles of wine and other delicacies.  We seemed to have a lot of "stuff" in our cart and the bill was only $39 - we thought that was a pretty good deal.  There are a couple of TJ's coming to Kansas City (according to their web site) so Marilyn was quite pleased.

Spent the evening at home with wine and cheese, a little TV and 6 or 7 rousing games of Sequence.  The boys did better tonight and while we are still in the lead, we will have to do better tonight.

Marilyn and Bob Arrive by Amtrak

I was able to talk to Marilyn on the train and learned that they would be late due to flooding in the midwest.  After a couple of phone calls back and forth and checking Google maps, we decided that it would be easier for for them to get off the train at Edmonds instead of downtown Seattle.  Edmonds is just 9 miles north of the house and easy to get to so that is what we did.  Bob and Marilyn disembarked and we loaded them into the car and off we went back home while hearing stories of their wonderful train ride.  They had a roomette and lots to eat and drink and beautiful scenery - nice way to travel when you're not in a hurry.

We had sandwiches for lunch and then drove down to Carkeek Park so they could see the views - the mountains were even more visible today.  But, weather forecast is for rain Saturday and Sunday so this might have been the only chance to see the view while they are here.

We enjoyed visiting and then delicious little lobster tails and baked potatoes for dinner followed by a game of Sequence which Marilyn and I won, of course.

Settling Into our "home" - Thursday May 19

Woke up to a sunny day - that was good news.  We unpacked, read house instructions, ate breakfast, set up computer and made plans.

Grocery shopping sounded like a good idea.  We first headed to Costco (we had a cash rebate to spend).  We browsed around and bought a few things - like wine and from there went to Albertson's for groceries.  Bought some wild salmon for dinner and some little lobster tails for tomorrow night to have for Marilyn and Bob's first dinner with us.  After putting the grocerties away we walked over to Carkeek Park - just a 5 minute walk through the beautiful woods.  It was clear enough to see the Olympic mountain range.  We relaxed on a bench for a while but did not go down the stairs to the beach.  Headed back to the house and had a delicious salmon dinner with a wonderful Idaho baked potato (something not available in San Miguel).

As we drove around the neighborhood today, we really enjoyed the lovely landscaping and beautiful spring blooms.