Jul 31,
Since I am in Seattle for a work conference, this afternoon went on a tour of the Microsoft Visitor Center. Lionel and I were not sure what to expect, but I mainly wanted to go because I thought the girls would like it - which they did. The actual tour was only about 40 minutes long, but you were allowed to linger for as long as you wanted before they closed at 5:00 pm. Both the girls and Lionel got to experience first hand a ridiculously expensive gaming chair that I would NOT buy now or in a million years. So it was nice that they got to try it out for free. We also got to check out some facial recognition software that guessed your age (and that guessed you were older every time you smiled), one that would do a famous person comparison (that one did not work so well) and one that would pick a breed of dog based on the shape of you face (that one was weird, and it changed depending on what face you made).
Jul 31,
This morning I started the day with a 3 mile run. Since we are staying in a new part of town, which means new buildings and not a whole lot of charm, I just ran on the treadmill. After that we got the girls out of bed, got ready, and headed to downtown Seattle. We had to be back at the hotel at 2:30 at the latest, to go on a Microsoft tour, so we wanted to go downtown at a decent time.
We went straight to Pike Place Market where we hit the must-do spots: The fish stand, the gum wall, the original Starbucks, and Piroshky - the polish pastry shop. Bella initially said that she would contribute to the gum wall, but once we were there decided it was completely disgusting and barely posed for a picture in front of it. After a few minutes of walking around the market she said she wasn't feeling great (because she did not sleep well) and that she had a headache. Luckily I had Tylenol with me, which helped. But I think what helped the most was a crown we bought at the market that made her feel special and lifted her spirits for the rest of the afternoon.
After the market we walked to the Underground Tour, which I had done before and though they would enjoy as well. It is interesting because you learn about the history of the city, but they also make it fun. By then it was a bit after 1:30, so we only had time to walk back to the market, buy sandwiches to go, and get an Uber to get back to the hotel. By them the sun had fully come out, so although a bit rushed it was a nice walk.
Jul 30,
Today was one of those days where you don’t do much and yet finish the day exhausted. All we did was have brunch in Portland, stop by the famous Voodoo Donuts on our way out, drive to a Seattle, check into the hotel, walk around, and have dinner. And yet, here we are all exhausted and ready to go to bed.
Jul 29,
Tonight we had dinner at a restaurant called Trifecta. It was really good. Lionel did a good job taking us there.
Jul 29,
This morning, after brunch at a nearby place, we got in the car to drive to Multnomah falls. Little did we know though, the exit was closed because the exit is pretty much the parking lot, and the parking lot is ridiculously small. We had to keep going and got off the highway at one of the next exits, which happened to be the exit for the Bonneville Dam. So we went. We learned that it was built during the great depression, that there is a particular section built to let the fish back and forth (which I am assuming is the case for all of them), and that there is actually such a thing as a "fish counter" job. They count fish in 8 hour shifts, with a 10 minute break at the end of each hour.
On our way back from the dam we were hoping the waterfalls' parking lot would be opened, but that was not the case. We didn't want to go back to the hotel yet though, without seeing some more of the area, so we made a stop by Forest Park and hiked for about an hour. It was hot outside, and even though it felt better in the shade we definitely needed showers before dinner.
Jul 29,
This morning I got 4 miles in by the waterfront park in Portland. Although the view was not as picturesque as in Cannon Beach (let's face it, that will be hard to top), I am glad I convinced myself to run outside Vs just going to the hotel gym. Nothing like a good outside run to start your day.
Jul 28,
This morning we left Cannon Beach to drive to Portland and decided to take the scenic route at least for a while. On the way we drove by Manzanita, which seemed like a cute little town, Garibaldi, which was not necessarily our style, and Tillamook. Since we were there, we did the self guided tour of the cheese factory which surprisingly Sofia was interested in.
After a not-so-quick lunch, and Bella and Sofia starting to feel really tired, we got back on the road and made it to Portland in the late afternoon. The girls wanted to go to the pool, so I took them for a little while. They also played with a giant chess they had on the patio. It was a nice activity before going back to the room, taking showers, and heading out for dinner to a French restaurant.
Dinner was good, but it was hot inside and the food took a little while to come out, so the girls and I started to get tired. We managed to hang in there though, and on our way back we walked around the block for a few minutes before getting back to the room and getting ready to call it a night.
