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Pacific NW in May
Gosling
Looking Up Soccer In Mongolia Right Now, ProbablyWatertown, WIRegistered User regular
Looking Up Soccer In Mongolia Right Now, ProbablyWatertown, WIRegistered User regular
Due to me being rather... judicious in my use of vacation time this year and also not realizing how many days I had to play with in the first place, I will be on vacation for oh let's say the entire second half of May. The days I know I've got coming are May 14-30, though depending on how they schedule there might be an additional day or two in either direction (I've had off time unwittingly extended in this fashion before). My general plan is to make a roadtrip from here in Wisconsin out to the Pacific Northwest. Seattle is the chief destination, with Portland also intended.
What else happens depends on if I have a passport or not by then, something I've been meaning to get for a while anyway. I might be a bit late off the blocks in trying for one, that's on me, but if I do manage to get one before I leave, I'll be adding Vancouver and maybe Victoria to the itinerary, and doing things south-to-north, starting in Portland once I make it to the coast. If I don't have it by then, I'll be sticking to Seattle, Portland and let the eventual itinerary determine which direction I'm traveling along the coast.
My chief questions- feel free to answer any others that you think I ought to be asking- are along these lines:
1. What do, of course, noting that the first and last few days will necessarily be dedicated to getting west and getting home. NOTE: In both potential scenarios, I intend to use I-90 going west as opposed to I-94 in the stretch between Tomah, WI and Billings, MT; the difference between the two is like 20 miles, the I-90 route through South Dakota has clearly more to do, particularly around the Wall/Badlands/Rushmore region, than the I-94 route through North Dakota, and I have no interest in randomly setting up shop for the night anywhere near North Dakota oil country and the scarily expensive and packed hotels within.
2. I know there's a high concentration of forumers in the Seattle-Portland corridor, given where PA is based and all, so would anyone perhaps like to say hi while I'm in the area?
3. A secondary purpose of the trip is to scope the area out for potential relocation prospects; if that does end up happening, I've already determined that finding a roommate would be imperative. What could I do in the context of a vacation to further that purpose?
The list of Stuff To Do is pretty short right now, but so far that short list includes:
*Pike Place Market, Seattle
*Seattle Sounders vs. Sporting Kansas City, May 23
*Card Kingdom, Seattle
*Oregon coast, most likely Cannon Beach
*Powell's City of Books, Portland
What else happens depends on if I have a passport or not by then, something I've been meaning to get for a while anyway. I might be a bit late off the blocks in trying for one, that's on me, but if I do manage to get one before I leave, I'll be adding Vancouver and maybe Victoria to the itinerary, and doing things south-to-north, starting in Portland once I make it to the coast. If I don't have it by then, I'll be sticking to Seattle, Portland and let the eventual itinerary determine which direction I'm traveling along the coast.
My chief questions- feel free to answer any others that you think I ought to be asking- are along these lines:
1. What do, of course, noting that the first and last few days will necessarily be dedicated to getting west and getting home. NOTE: In both potential scenarios, I intend to use I-90 going west as opposed to I-94 in the stretch between Tomah, WI and Billings, MT; the difference between the two is like 20 miles, the I-90 route through South Dakota has clearly more to do, particularly around the Wall/Badlands/Rushmore region, than the I-94 route through North Dakota, and I have no interest in randomly setting up shop for the night anywhere near North Dakota oil country and the scarily expensive and packed hotels within.
2. I know there's a high concentration of forumers in the Seattle-Portland corridor, given where PA is based and all, so would anyone perhaps like to say hi while I'm in the area?
3. A secondary purpose of the trip is to scope the area out for potential relocation prospects; if that does end up happening, I've already determined that finding a roommate would be imperative. What could I do in the context of a vacation to further that purpose?
The list of Stuff To Do is pretty short right now, but so far that short list includes:
*Pike Place Market, Seattle
*Seattle Sounders vs. Sporting Kansas City, May 23
*Card Kingdom, Seattle
*Oregon coast, most likely Cannon Beach
*Powell's City of Books, Portland
I have a new soccer blog The Minnow Tank. Reading it psychically kicks Sepp Blatter in the bean bag.
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Cause that is some prime camping time and the natural scenery is one of the best parts of the northwest.
Well, it seems prudent to mention right off the bat that I don't drink. I'm more of a city mouse than country, but I'm not averse to getting outdoors by any means; thus Cannon Beach. Sports are a thing with me; thus the Sounders (the Mariners and Timbers are on the road for nearly the whole time I'd be out there, unless I want to book it west and try for a Mariners/Red Sox game basically first thing upon arriving, the Sounders/KC game is the only one that really matches up). Total bookworm; thus Powell's, educational stuff interests me. PAX is a thing I'd have attended by now if it weren't over 1,000 miles away in either direction; thus Card Kingdom (though I don't play MtG). Really, the things already on the list, I'd call a pretty good place to start.
Also, this should be pretty simple to take care of, but I should note I am under standing orders from my mom to bring home souvenir spoons from anywhere I happen to go on a vacation. She collects spoons. I went to Minnesota once, first order of business at the Mall of America was to go 'okay, where are the spoons?'
I would say carve out a bunch of time in both Portland and Seattle to eat and explore. They're both fantastic and somewhat odd cities with tons of good eating and lots of nooks to play around in.
Portland area:
Multnomah Falls is right off the highway and spectacular
Eat a Voodoo Donut (don't go to the one downtown, but the other location)
Explore
Seattle:
Underground Tour is a must
Aquarium is pretty neat
Chihouly Museum is really cool
Experience Music/Sci Fi Museum are cool, but only go if you really love music and history
Duck tour is cheesy and great
EAT, so much good food (happy hour is a great way to get 50% off of said food)
Food carts. I am not up to date on the Seattle scene but Portland is a food cart mecca.
The crazy long lines. It was like an hour and a half for that one and I just walked into the other one.
So, specific things on specific clumped-up dates in that timeframe.
Edit: Oh, block 19. You can N/A that. It's just for emergencies.
There's also the Puget Sound Navy Museum in Bremerton, but you'd be in Bremerton. Maybe something to pass the time while you're waiting for the ferry.
e: If you end up needing to kill time for the Bremerton ferry, check out Fritz Fry House right outside the ferry terminal. Good stuff.
And, I concur, get the card too. It's handy.
I really enjoyed Victoria Island. Lots of cool spots to drive and a wonderful garden. Ferry rates weren't cheap, but it was really a nice spot.
Oh, that was a no-brainer. I looked at that and went, why WOULDN'T I get both. They're offering both, gimme.
I can totally meet up, Dehumanized; where's your seat? I'll have to try and find one in that part of the park.
I'm in General Admission. It's the rowdy section!
Word of advice, plan ahead but don't overbook yourself. Have fun!!
Also, Woodland Park Zoo.
"Brilliant! Oh wait, if we were meant to fly, we would have been born with little bags of nuts."
It gets worse. When I went to Los Angeles a couple years ago one of my top priorities was Book Soup, because I am a broken person.
Since you'll be going through Missoula, there's a nice little used and new book store there.
The Google Docs list is pretty accurate still, with only Piecora's and The Hurricane being closed, and Aragona having changed their name to Vespolia.
That noted, could any of the Portland crowd say anything about if the underground tours are worth it?
EDIT: MLS has worked out its labor issues; season on; Sounders ticket purchas'd in general admission.