July 31st to Aug 12th – For a retirement gift, our kids gave us two tickets to each of the Major League Ball Parks, to be used over the course of many years – one ball park each year. At a family Thanksgiving gathering last year George Jr suggested that a family trip to Seattle to see the Blue Jays could be a fun adventure. He broadened the invitation to include any of the aunts, uncles and cousins who wanted to come along. Aunt Maureen, Josh and KayaKayla signed on, as did Marilyn (as long as her service dog Mozart could join us). The date was set for the holiday weekend in August 2018 and tickets were purchased.

In March, Josh let us know that he was unable to get the necessary vacation time. Then the week before we were to leave Maureen had to back out because of illness. Our group shrunk from eight to five plus one dog.

Jennifer, George and I flew direct from Toronto to Seattle on July 31st so that we could get familiar with the city before the others arrived. We found our hotel and met a friend, Jim Jagow, who lives in Seattle. He was a great tour guide for the day (four adults in a small Kia makes for interesting travel) and we enjoyed the sights of the city through the eyes of one who lives there. The next day we moved into a lovely home in the Green Lake district of the city and awaited the arrival of the others.

George had flown to Calgary a week early and biked/hiked with a friend through Alberta and the northern states to Vancouver. He met Marilyn at the Vancouver airport and the two drove through to Seattle arriving just in time for dinner. Dinner was at the California Pizza Kitchen, a restaurant chain that George and I frequent in Palm Dessert. There is something for everyone on their menu. We spent a quiet evening getting everyone settled into the appropriate bedroom and preparing for the day ahead.

On Friday, we decided to part ways and meet up at the ball game later in the day. This allowed for everyone to sight-see as they wished. George, Marilyn and I took the car to the Seattle Centre and then took the Hop On Hop Off bus through the first half of its run. Slowed down by a long train, it meant that we had limited time at the waterfront since we also wanted to spend some time at Pike Place Market. It was quite warm and traffic in the city was very slow. By the time we arrived at the Market we were all in need of nourishment and liquid refreshment.

After the Market we walked up to the Light Rail station and headed out to Safeco Field. Safeco Field is also very easy to access on the Light Rail from the monorail link at the Seattle Centre. The first order of business was to sell the three extra tickets, which we weren’t able to give to friends or family in the area. I finally settled for 1/2 the price paid initially. The game was fun given that it was almost like a home game for the Jays. When they play in Seattle, all the western Canadian baseball fans flock across the border. We guessed that at least 80% of the attendees were Jay fans. They won which made it even better! The ball park is quite homey-feeling and there were lots of food choices. Where else can you get a grilled cheese at the ball park?

George and Jenn spent the day at the Pop Culture Museum and the Bill Gates Foundation Museum before joining us at the ball game. They chose to ride bicycles, which appear everywhere in Seattle. Unlike the Bixi Bikes in Toronto that have to be returned to a fixed stand, the bikes in Seattle can be left anywhere. One sees them everywhere throughout the city and it became a bit of a game to make up a story about why someone had left their bike “there”. We’re told they even have electric bikes.

On Saturday, the kids went off to continue sightseeing with their Seattle Visitor’s Card – touring the Space Needle and taking a harbour tour. With nothing planned for the evening, they decided to go back for another ball game. George, Marilyn and I returned to the Hop On Hop Off tour and enjoyed a lovely lunch at Ivar’s down at the port. The line up at the Great Wheel was still too long, given the heat and humidity. We’ll have to leave that for another visit.  We finished the tour and then headed home for a quiet afternoon.

In the evening Marilyn and I headed off to the outlet mall for some shopping therapy while George had a quiet evening of reading at home.

We had heard through friends that one of the best tours in Seattle is at the Boeing plant. That was our gathering spot on Sunday afternoon. After arrival, you have time to visit a small museum before attending a video presentation describing the Boeing company and introducing the rules for the tour. They take you by bus out to the plant – which is hard to describe. The size of the facility is enormous and the planes are huge when looking at them up close. It was an excellent tour: well worth the cost.

After dinner at a Mexican restaurant, the kids went off to the city again to explore a number of Tech specific sites such as Amazon’s new grocery store without cashiers and Microsoft’s offices in Redmond. The rest of us spent Sunset up at Kerry Park – a panoramic view of the city with lovely reflections of the sun as it sets.

On Monday morning we were up early and departed for Vancouver via White Rock, BC. This is George’s favorite place on the west coast and I think he would happily live there if we were to move west. Our home in Vancouver was near the Capilano Suspension Bridge and wasn’t nearly as big or nice as the one at Green Lake. We made do.

George and Jenn spent one day with Auntie Maer exploring all her old haunts – her apartment, the Bridge and other sites. George and I met the Yurkoviches, friends of my friend Margaret Gray for breakfast and also spent an afternoon with Barbara Matiru, a friend from Africa days. We all enjoyed the harbour tour and dinner and a stroll through Gastown. The kids decided to go to Whistler for a few hours, while George, Maer and I  took a driving tour of West Vancouver to see all the big homes up in the hills. Maer enjoyed a special steak dinner at the Keg topped off with an ice cream cone later that night at Dairy Queen – well maybe it was Mozart who enjoyed the cone the most.

After just two very short days, it was time to pack up and move on again. Maer and George Jr left to drive to Calgary, stopping along the way at Revelstoke (to ride the Pipe Mountain Coaster),  Lake Louise (to eat Mac n Cheese at the Fairmont Hotel) and Banff. Jenn, George and I headed back towards Seattle, but took the ferry from Coupeville to Port Townsend – destination Sequim. We had a beautiful home there and spent two days exploring the Olympic Pennisula. The first day we drove to Forks, sight of the Twilight series, which included a lovely drive along Crescent Lake.

Later we planned to go up to Hurricane Ridge, but were thwarted by dad not having filled the gas tank as expected, while Jenn and I were in Safeway gathering dinner supplies. As the distance to empty rapidly descended from 50 miles to 32 miles, after only a partial ascent, we decided to return to town and get gas and attempt the trip the next day. Unfortunately, it was wet and foggy the next morning, so although we made it to the top, the view was non-existent. Dad is still living this one down!

We returned to Seattle via Tacoma and met Jim Jagow again at the oldest pub in Seattle for one last meal together. After a brief stop to see the Seattle Troll, we bade goodbye and headed to our hotel ready to fly out the next morning.

I think everyone would agree it was a great trip – lots of laughs, great tours, good food and the Blue Jays won. What more could we ask for!!