Today we enjoyed visiting the Aquarium, which had some interesting things we hadn’t seen before. We had a nice chat with an educator about sharks and I learned tons I hadn’t known before. Look at the conveyor belt of teeth in this picture! The kids seem to know way more about animals than I ever have. I don’t know where they learned it all — half the time I ask, Mer says “Wild Kratts!” lol They had a lot of fun touching all the different anemones and urchins. Some of them give your finger a little “hug” when you touch them. The seals and otters were also fun to watch.

Lunch was at Pike Place Market, of course. We looked on in awe at the long line to get into the original Starbucks. I don’t like their coffee to start with, so I really don’t get it. The market was cool, but we have been to tons of those before so we didn’t find it to be as special as we had expected. Maybe all this traveling has just made us jaded, or maybe all the hype about how cool Seattle is just made our expecations too high, like with Old Faithful.

We also visited the Museum of Pop Culture, about which we also had mixed feelings. Some of the exhibits were great (Science Fiction and Fantasy books and film), including seeing the Staff of Ra and Luke’s severed hand. The many music-related exhibits just weren’t to our tastes though; I’m too old, they’re too young. I never was into the Grunge music scene anyway. The kids enjoyed played in the Indie Gaming area though.

There was an awesome playground nearby that the kids had a blast playing in. We have hit so many good playgrounds this last month and this one was one of the best. The kids always feel great after having a break, and I use the time to plan our next stops, look for hotels, and catch up on email. A win/win for all of us.

On the way out of town we also got a quick glance at the iconic Amazon HQ domes (you can google the nickname yourself).

Although we had a nice day exploring Seattle, we have definitely decided it’s not our favorite city. I am sure we aren’t seeing it at its best given how hard they were hit by COVID at the onset, but I still feel that many of the things we didn’t like are endemic to the city itself. One, the cost. OMG! Everything was crazy expensive. The museums were ridiculously expensive, and none of them accepted any of the usual reciprocal membership discounts. Ouch. And don’t even get me started on driving and parking here. Ugh.

We also just didn’t like the general vibe of the place, although I can’t really put into words what the feeling was. Mask “policing” was insane to the point of rudeness, and speaking to other visitors, they felt the same way. I saw many visitors being chastised about the masks they wore, how they wore them, etc. It all just felt so different from anyplace I have been before, and not in a good way.

The ubiquitous evidence of untreated mental illness, addiction, and homelessness were also very sad to see. It did lead to many good discussions with the kids though about problems our society faces, and how best to help people who need and want help. As a past board of directors President for a homeless shelter, I have strong feelings from my experiences about how best to help those who want help, tied with equally strong feelings about how many government policies are the complete opposite of what is actually effective (and cost effective).

On the drive out of Seattle we were struck by another sign, this one with the number to report HOV lane violators. I dislike cheaters as much as the next person, but seriously, “HERO” for reporting your fellow citizens and neighbors? I feel like I’ve read this script before in history…it never turns out well for people in the end. There are a lot of people I consider heros, but tattletales aren’t on the list. All in all, I’m glad we came, but I won’t likely visit Seattle by choice again.

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I had long ago heard of Leavenworth, an Alpine Bavarian village, and wanted to see it firsthand. I did not know, however, until two days ago, that they had a reindeer farm offering tours and education sessions. I was thrilled that they still had space available for us to attend. What amazing creatures they are!

The tour guides were fantastic and we learned so much about these wonderful critters. Did you know they can swim at 6 mph, and run at 50 mph? Their hooves are shaped so that they act as scoops when swimming, and as snowshoes when walking. Their eyes change colors as needed to help them see; they are gold in summer and blue in the winter. They can also see ultraviolet light so that they can find vegetation far below the snow. And they are super sweet too!

Both male and female reindeer grown antlers that they shed each year. We learned about the velvet that covers them while they grow and supplies the bloodflow necessary for growth. When growth finishes, they scratch off the velvet until only the shiny antlers remain. Sadly, the annual rut is very difficult on the males; their hearts double in size and eventualy cause heatattacks. Male reindeer typically only live about 4 or 5 years as a result.

We could have stayed forever at the farm, but when they finally kicked us out we headed to the adorable town of Leavenworth. We ate pretzles and took a short stroll along the river. An art festival was underway and we were lucky to escape just before it got too crowded.

We had an ecclectic two-hour drive to Seattle that took us through beautiful mountain and forest scenery. It started to rain heavily though, and we found ourselves actually driving directly through floating clouds. It was definitely a cool and unique experience.

Driving into Seattle was a bit of a shock to the system after being in the midwest for so long. I forgot about traffic! And crowded roads, and poor signage, and annoyingly tight parking spaces. Ugh. Our downtown hotel had what I thought was extreme security measures, so I was instantly concerned about safety. Turns out I did eventually have reason to be wary. We quickly unloaded and walked to the Space Needle. It started to rain (of course, welcome to Seattle!) so we hunkered down in the Seattle Centre for dinner while we waited for the skies to clear. Seattle appears to be only about half open. Many shops are closed, and while tourists are around, it seems somewhat deserted by the locals. It was also a shock to see the difference in mask usage compared to where we have been; most people here wear masks even when walking outside. Overall we got a fairly depressed, uptight vibe from the city.

When we thought the skies had cleared enough, we took the elevator ride to the top of the Space Needle. I debated whether or not to do it. I was worried about the view, and the cost was outrageous (turns out the cost of everything in Seattle is outrageous), but I am really glad we did it. The ride up included signs and admonitions to not speak while on the elevator — apparently they are no-talking-zones. I wasn’t the only tourist taking a pic of the signs before boarding elevators crammed with tourists. They really, really like rules and signs in Washington State apparently.

The skies cleared and we witnessed a stunning sunset. We also met two wonderful couples up there that I had blast chatting with. The kids had so much fun playing around up there and laying on the glass floors. I don’t love heights (ok – I hate heights) but it was worth the veritgo for the view.

The view walking home was less ideal however. We were only a few blocks from our hotel, but we encountered people that clearly suffered from mental illnesses and/or drug addiction. That exists of course in every city, and this gave me the opportunity to school both kids in urban awareness techniques and self-protection skills. As scary as the charging bison were up close, it’s sad to say that sometimes our fellow man can be more dangerous and unpredictable. For example, while we were in the Space Needle gift shop, Graham had a minor “bad experience” in the men’s restroom. He witnessed a man undress himself and then grab the urinal cake to take a long sniff of it, clearly signs of mental health or addiction issues. Graham handled the situation appropriately and came and got me immediately. I alerted security and was impressed with how quickly and seriously they reacted. It was another opportunity to discuss with the kids some of the harsh realities of life, as well as different government policies and how those effect people’s behaviors. I look forward to seeing Portland in person and expect there to be many “learning opportunities” there as well.

While the Space Needle was cool, we so far aren’t overly enthused about Seattle. We will see if tomorrow improves our opinions about the city.

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We can’t believe we finally made it to our most western state on this leg of the journey. This morning was rainy and yucky weather but we made the best of it in Spokane. We spent time at the children’s science center, the Mobius Discovery Center, a nice but small center. It was mostly geared towards younger kids, so we only stayed about an hour. Mer made a young friend while there too. I asked what they were doing, and she said, “She just keeps stealing my chalk.” lol We took a short gondola ride to view the falls, and then hit the mall food court next door for what we thought would be a quick lunch.

So, one of the first things that was brutally apparent upon entering Washington state was the different rules and effects of COVID. Everything was either closed or very empty of guests. Signs, signs, everywhere signs (funny that’s from an old hippie song). The huge mall was mostly empty on a rainy Sunday afternoon, and only a few food places were open. Even with no one there, it took forever to get food. It all felt very odd, to say the least. After wasting 30 minutes trying to find the car in the world’s most labyrinthian parking garage, we were happy to move on to our next stop. I don’t know if this is just a Spokane thing, or if all Washington state will feel like this. It definitely feels very different from any other state we have visited thus far.

As we drove west, the rain cleared and we had beautiful views. I had no idea that Washington had high desert plains. We started through heavily forested pines, and then entered deserts that looked like Arizona and Texas. I was so confused! We stopped to visit the Ginko Petrified Forest. Fossilized wood is the state gem of Washington (technically it’s not a gem, but whatever). It is a beautiful location overlooking the Columbia River Gorge. I can’t wait to see more of the Columbia River; it is truly a wondrous sight to behold.

We stopped into a large gem and fossil store and I bought way more than I should have. I was too excited to take pictures, but am now the proud owner of several fossils that are over 400 million years old. They have been carefully packed and stored in the car, so fingers are crossed they make it home in one piece. The shop also had a very weird vibe — see the signs on the door! Talk about un-welcoming. The owners were so rude and unfriendly that I had to walk out for a while. I almost decided not to buy anything, but the kids reminded me that I really wanted some fossils, so I should just ignore the rude owners. As Mer told me, you’ve gotta be a little weird to own a rock shop. Touché. I am glad they convinced me to go back though as I am going to love having these displayed at home.

All in, a weird but good day. We are also looking forward to something really cool and different tomorrow morning before we hit Seattle.

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Griff flew back home Thursday and we spent the day relaxing and recuperating. We are having a blast, but this is definitely not a vacation. It is work – fun work – but we do have long and tiring days at times. It’s been great to discuss with the kids the need for rest, taking a break for your body and mind, and general self-care. They have both been getting better at letting me know when they need to take some time off, for alone time or for longer rest periods. After the highly active week we just had, this longer break did wonders for all of us.

We try when we can to stay at unique local hotels or small chains. We stayed at the C’Mon Inn in Bozeman — Graham has a love/hate relationship with puns, so the name alone was perfect. The place was fantastic! Just hokey enough to be fun, but with a huge pool and five hot tubs for relaxing. The inside was done out in lodge style with waterfalls, a koi pond, and tons of taxidermy. Graham was in heaven. Sadly I never got any pics. Too busy doing nothing I guess.

The only thing I really wanted to see in Bozeman is the Smithsonian-affiliated Museum of the Rockies. It was high on my to-do list. It is closed exactly five days a year, and two of those were when we were in town. I was super-bummed but figured every other time we missed something, we ended up doing something even better. Thankfully that turned out to be the case today as well.

We slept late and then visited the American Computers and Robotics Museum. It is a small museum, but I was shocked by the quality of the collection. We were given a short tour and the kids were blown away by seeing the evolution of computing. They had original printings from the Guttenberg press and reproductions of ancient Greek computing devices, up to parts of ENIAC and the Apollo 11 mainframe. It was the first time the kids could really comprehend the rapid change in computing power and the importance of microchips and how they changed everything in computing.

Our next stop was the World Museum of Mining in Butte, Montana. There was an old mining town set up you could walk around and a small museum. We were also able to book an hour and a half tour that included going over 100 feet underground into old silver mine shafts. The guide was entertaining and taught us so much about the science and engineering of mining and geology. It was fascinating. We also learned about the dangers of mining work and the heavy toll that accidents and lack of safety measures have taken on the miners.

When we exited the mine, we were shocked to see that the wind had blown in massive clouds of wildfire smoke. We had seen some along the trip in various places, certainly more than I had ever seen, but this was bizarre, like suddenly walking onto the surface of Mars. It was so thick you could smell it and it stung your eyes. Within about 30 minutes of driving west, it completely cleared up.

We stopped for the night at the aptly named Silver Inn across the border in Idaho. Although recently renovated, we would say it was more like the Bronze Inn at best, maybe Iron.

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