San Juan Islands
Turtleback Inn
View from Mount Constitution
Krystal Acres Alpaca Farm
June 1, 2008
#32 Kenai Peninsula
Kenai Peninsula
We went out on Portage Lake in a ice-breaker boat. When it plows through the ice it creates these cool little needle-shards along the fault lines.
Portage Glacier: The nearby weather station mid-April recorded winds of 214 mph.
Our guide was telling us that those crevasses go a very long way down. A couple of weeks ago, a bear was trying to cross the glacier, fell into a crevasse, and is presumed dead. Occasionally a bear does make it across; they've also been seen swimming across the lake.
We went out on Portage Lake in a ice-breaker boat. When it plows through the ice it creates these cool little needle-shards along the fault lines.
Portage Glacier: The nearby weather station mid-April recorded winds of 214 mph.
Our guide was telling us that those crevasses go a very long way down. A couple of weeks ago, a bear was trying to cross the glacier, fell into a crevasse, and is presumed dead. Occasionally a bear does make it across; they've also been seen swimming across the lake.
#31 Inside Passage
Inside Passage
The view is so fantastic that these pictures can't possibly do it justice!
We ran across this logging raft going into a narrow part of the passage. I couldn't belive the size of it; all being carried primarily by the current with a little help from a tug.
We had fantastic weather, low 70s most of the week. Every guide mentioned that they only get around 20 days per year like that, and we had 7 in a row.
The view is so fantastic that these pictures can't possibly do it justice!
We ran across this logging raft going into a narrow part of the passage. I couldn't belive the size of it; all being carried primarily by the current with a little help from a tug.
We had fantastic weather, low 70s most of the week. Every guide mentioned that they only get around 20 days per year like that, and we had 7 in a row.
#30 Pikes Place Market
Pikes Place Market
We had lunch at Lowell's; I had a fabulous turkey club while everyone else enjoyed seafood. Everyone raved about the food, and the view from the 3rd floor was spectacular!
That blurry thing...it is a fish being tossed through the air.
The flower vendors were my favorite. I got yelled at by a lady selling ceramic pigs, but once you've been yelled at by an Amish guy...well ceramic pig ladies in public markets are not very scary.
We had lunch at Lowell's; I had a fabulous turkey club while everyone else enjoyed seafood. Everyone raved about the food, and the view from the 3rd floor was spectacular!
That blurry thing...it is a fish being tossed through the air.
The flower vendors were my favorite. I got yelled at by a lady selling ceramic pigs, but once you've been yelled at by an Amish guy...well ceramic pig ladies in public markets are not very scary.
April 28, 2008
#29 Colonial Williamsburg
Colonial Williamsburg
Colonial Williamsburg was nothing like I imagined it. I was thinking log cabins and dirt roads, and what I got was well constructed brick and wood siding homes, with cobblestone walks. Williamsburg it the kind of place where you should go, and you do go and have a fantastic time (and learn about wig-making...Louise’s favorite shop), but you probably don’t need to do again.
This was taken from the courtyard of the jail looking through the house courtyard and into the lane. How much more depressing would it make your confinement to know such beauty was on the other side. At least the gallows are located in a flowering green field. A last glimpse of beauty before...SNAP.
#28 National Mall and Monuments
National Mall and Monuments
Meh, it’s tall, and not where I thought it was.
I loved the Lincoln Memorial. It was powerful. His face, his hands, I was unprepared for the emotion I felt here.
Jefferson Memorial: It was raining so hard, and it was so windy I thought we’d be swept off the steps and into the Tidal Basin. But the highlight for me was actually reading the quote the circles the rotunda.
"I have sworn upon the altar of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man”
One of my favorite books is “Freedom Factor” by Gerald Lund. Its premise is what if the Constitution had never been ratified. They speak of this quote, and it was fantastic to see it in person.
This statue is at the Vietnam Memorial. Again, cold, rainy and spectacularly emotional.
We saw half the monuments on a day that was sunny and HOT, and the others on a day that was cold, windy, and rainy. The day we saw the World War II memorial, it was hot. And it was filled with people sitting, soaking there feet.
FDR Memorial. We went there sort of by accident...we were looking for the Jefferson Memorial. The FDR Memorial is huge and sprawling, and it was the rainy day so we didn’t linger as long as we should have.
#27 Historic Downtown New York
Historic Downtown New York
New York was kind of a “throw-away” stop. Yes we saw the Statue of Liberty, but we didn’t go to Ellis Island. We took the Staten Island Ferry past it. The whole purpose of the New York part of the trip was for JL to meet up with some friends who are serving an LDS couples mission on Long Island. So, we ferried past the SoL and then met them for lunch and chatting which lasted until it was time to catch the train back to Philly.
Also, speaking as a small town girl: Nothing will prepare you for New York City. It is huge. There are a gazillion people. The buildings are all really, really tall. The streets are narrow, often one-way, and I’m glad we were in a taxi. It was incredibly intimidating and it took quite a bit of courage to venture out to find a pharmacy. (I needed aloe for the sunburn Philly gave me.)
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