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I considered posting these as individual backdated entries but frankly that seemed more spammy and nuisancy than was warranted. We've been home since about 10 or 11 this morning - the coast was lovely and we had a great time, but we were both also very ready to be home by this morning, and so here we are. I did get photos, I don't have them up (and haven't processed all of them, even) so I will post separately to link to those when they're up. Meanwhile, here's the stuff I wrote up while on the trip (had the laptop, but no network).
5/31/2006 7 am
We drove yesterday by the south route - and drove south first, to go to the Newport Aquarium. If we're going to do an Aquarium, I vastly prefer a real one like that in Newport to the run-room crowded place that is the Seaside's store-front aquarium on the promenade. They had a new exhibit up about crabs, which was interesting in a couple places, but I confess I enjoyed some of the older and standard stuff (jellyfish, sea lions) more. Then we drove (Scott drove, because he's sweet and he drove all the way) back up the coast to Seaside. My energy for anything dropped rapidly - I have no problems driving, but put me in the passenger seat on a long trip and I take naps. I can resist it, but it's easier to give in. So I dozed off and on up the coast.
I considered asking to stop at some of the beaches along the way, but I've been to most or all of these up here on past trips, and I really wanted to get to the resort more than anything.
As for that: we are staying at a Worldmark/Trendwest place (courtesy of a wedding gift), and it is a really nice room (suite, more accurately, as we have a full kitchenette including oven, among other things). Ironically, for this otherwise gorgeous and spacious room at this trendy "resort" hotel, what we do not have is internet access. There is no access, wireless or wired, from the room, although the motels on the highway often boast free wireless. I find this ironic. Access to the internet is from the "business center" only, which appears to have no access other than from its three computers. Well, bully for them, but....
Still, maybe that will keep me from being too distracted by the computer. This could be a GOOD thing.
We got in, took a little walk around Seaside to find dinner, then had to figure out what to do. We ended up going to the outlet mall, then doing the grocery shopping. (I dropped the outlet mall in because we wanted postcards, and I wanted to hit it at some point, and frankly we had to take the car out to get groceries so we might as well also run that errand at the same time.) *laughs* Classic first vacation day, huh? The beach is maybe a stone's throw - not more than that - from one of the exits of where we're staying, and we go shopping. But I really didn't want to trudge along the sand last night. I was tired.
That may have been a mistake. The forecast for our whole trip was cloudy/occasional showers last I checked (which was last Friday). But when we got here, it was mostly clear with some cloudy. It was GORGEOUS. We did go down to the promenade for a while, not too long before sunset. Just gorgeous. This morning seems more cloudy than not. I hope it is planning to clear off, rather than rain on us.
Current plans, wholly subject to change: One day this week (probably tomorrow as we'd like a rest from driving), we'll go driving again - around to the Lewis & Clark stuff, other parks. Probably today will be "wander around Seaside, check out the Carousel mall and tourist traps, enjoy the beach, try for sunset photos" (which I was too cold before sunset to bother with yesterday - oops - that's why I brought my coat but I do have to wear it for that to work). As long as it doesn't rain on us today, that'll work nicely. I'd also like to go down to Cannon Beach, stroll around, enjoy the beach there. It's between us and our route home, though, so that makes more sense for Friday, I guess.
On the drive out yesterday, I saw the following sign at a little bridge: "Muddy Creek". I can just hear how that happened. "Sir, what is this creek called locally?" "That? That's just an ol' muddy creek!" And you're off and running.... *laughs* Or maybe they did deliberately name it that, but really I suspect it was just one of those things. I saw some other good signs but I've forgotten them. Oops.
Scott's up, so I'm going to stop for now and go have a vacation.
5/31/2006 12 pm
Mmm. Also, youch, my poor feet. But it was lovely and sunny - the clouds burned off - we enjoyed the beach here at Seaside after we had breakfast at the Pig 'n' Pancake. Very pretty beach, did a bit of walking and then tried for the stores. But the stores were mostly not open yet so instead we drove to Cannon Beach, to Tolovana Park at the south end, and walked to the rocks to enjoy the tidepools. Then we went to downtown Cannon Beach and wandered the shops, but it's mostly galleries, and the pizza place I liked so much last year is still there but was not open yet.
My feet really dislike me after that. But it was fun. We decided to take a break and are back in the hotel resting (and watching a movie, which I'm already coming to dislike - Mr. and Mrs. Smith, which is just not entertaining me as much as it is making me uneasy). We'll probably head back to the Carousel Mall and other points (hopefully now open) later. I have been taking photos, I don't know if I will process them and have them up before I post this or put them up later.
5/31/2006 5:45 pm
Well. That was an anticlimax. After the movie (Scott watched it; I left the room and read as I really was finding it annoyed/disturbed me rather than entertaining me), we went out to stroll the shops. The promised rain was finally here, steady but not too heavy, still a bit warm. We went to the Carousel Mall which (except for the Carousel) wasn't actually that great. Alas. The shop across the walkway from it, though, had some nice stuff. I restrained myself to buying just a few more Tree Free cards. Sigh. Those things are an addiction. But the "Pathways" cards are sooo pretty.
We did not stay out long: Scott's legs were tired and my back was protesting. So we came back to the hotel and proceeded to nap, which may have been the ideal use of this afternoon and was at any rate wonderfully pleasant. Fortunately, it didn't last - quite - long enough to cause my contacts to go all gummy on me. They were thinking about it but were still willing to be dissuaded. :)
On our walk back to the hotel, we passed a shop selling bumper stickers; one of the visible ones literally caused me to not only do a double-take but to take three steps back so I could see it again, then make Scott read it. In red letters on yellow, it read, "Are you having phone sex, or do you always drive like that?" ...
Not sure what we will do for the evening yet. If the clouds permit a sunset show at all, I would like to photograph that, but other than that I have no real designs on the rest of the day. I may try to get downstairs to the business center and see if I have any better chance of getting online, but if I do, it will be just to check my email. There's at least one, maybe two internet cafes in the area, but I hope you will forgive me if I say that finding them and hauling my laptop there (not to mention myself) sounds far too much like work. If I were going to be here a couple weeks, I might, but as it is, two days from now I will be home and in the meanwhile I can save all these chattery messages to torture you with when we get back. Mwahahaha.
Maybe I should move the photos onto the computer and start editing them so they'll be easy to put up when we get home. I could read, but so far every book I brought along or bought here that I've tried has not interested me, and I don't think they're all duds (though at least one is).
6/1/2006 7:45 pm
Not too bad. Drove up north to Cape Disappointment in Washington - very much a disappointment, you have to take a shuttle to get to basically anything. Skipped it and checked out the other nearby lighthouse, then stopped at Dismal Nitch and came back down through Astoria, stopping at the Column, which must be glorious in clear weather; sorry I saw it in the pouring rain, but glad I saw it at all. Then on down through the forts where we basically didn't stop - we could have but I think we just weren't in the mood any more.
Back at the hotel then; took a walk, then watched Constantine on DVD (it's not something I would normally have watched; but I actually enjoyed it, somewhat) and hung out. I've been reading since then. This would be why I declined to spend an entire week at the coast. I couldn't fill an entire week at the coast without growing bored. Very bored. But a few days is nice. I'll be glad to get home tomorrow although I've very much enjoyed being here.
The sun did come out this afternoon. Mind you, it stayed thoroughly cloudy and rainy, but there was sunlight in amidst it. I was hoping that signalled good odds for a sunset photo, but the clouds have never cleared off so I doubt it. Oh, well. That was my mistake the first night and if I want a sunset photo I shall probably need another trip - maybe a weekend trip in midsummer, when it will be horribly expensive. Or I could just buy an extra postcard and call it close enough, which is, on balance, cheaper and probably going to yield a better image (since the folks what produce postcards can lie in wait and otherwise pick and choose to get the really glorious sunsets, after all).
Kage Baker's book Sky Coyote - er. Not so impressed with the book or the story which, among other things, felt like it left more stuff unfinished than finished. But, whatever. What did impress me was the basic theory of the main characters, as described in the first chapter. That is just a really cool premise, that could go in several directions or be used in several ways.... (Unfortunately, still not sure what "reality" was in the book although I have finished it. This was part of the problem. But an interesting premise, at least.)
6/1/2006 9:58 pm
Whee! I got sunset photos after all. At 10 minutes to sunset or so, I headed down to the promenade along the beach, knowing that I was probably going to get soaked and it wouldn't break through the clouds. But if it did break through the clouds, I had 50-50 odds it would be really showy, and I'd feel like a dork for missing it in either case. Well, it did. It wasn't really-really showy but it was nice and I stood there for 20 minutes or more taking photos. I have looked through them, and there are some keepers; I haven't processed them, so this post will likely go up before photos do. I'll have to play catch-up.
The funny part came as I was walking away. I noticed a photographer in the center of the circle, taking photos of the sunset. Except I would have been right in his shot. I assumed at the time that he was just setting up (apparently, I'm slow), and someone else commented he'd come down just to take photos of me standing there. By the time that conversation was over, however, he had taken down his camera and gone back inside, so I never got to talk to him, which is a pity - I'd have liked to ask if I could see the photos (or scans, if it was real film), as it seems amusing. I can't imagine they'd be great without some editing as I was carrying my camera bag and purse, had on my black coat, and was soaked from the edge of the coat down on my legs - but I can see where I might have been interesting to photograph. I was standing relatively still (moving sometimes, because, dude, wind and rain) and since it was raining, I had my umbrella - which is very brightly colored. I adore it, it's gaudy and pretty and it would have stood out against that background fairly well. Then again, it stands out against plain ol' clouds fairly well. Ahwell. I'll never know what those photos look like (or even if I was really in any photo he took), probably, but I am amused. And I got sunset photos. And now I go to bed and tomorrow I go home and these all sound like good things.
5/31/2006 7 am
We drove yesterday by the south route - and drove south first, to go to the Newport Aquarium. If we're going to do an Aquarium, I vastly prefer a real one like that in Newport to the run-room crowded place that is the Seaside's store-front aquarium on the promenade. They had a new exhibit up about crabs, which was interesting in a couple places, but I confess I enjoyed some of the older and standard stuff (jellyfish, sea lions) more. Then we drove (Scott drove, because he's sweet and he drove all the way) back up the coast to Seaside. My energy for anything dropped rapidly - I have no problems driving, but put me in the passenger seat on a long trip and I take naps. I can resist it, but it's easier to give in. So I dozed off and on up the coast.
I considered asking to stop at some of the beaches along the way, but I've been to most or all of these up here on past trips, and I really wanted to get to the resort more than anything.
As for that: we are staying at a Worldmark/Trendwest place (courtesy of a wedding gift), and it is a really nice room (suite, more accurately, as we have a full kitchenette including oven, among other things). Ironically, for this otherwise gorgeous and spacious room at this trendy "resort" hotel, what we do not have is internet access. There is no access, wireless or wired, from the room, although the motels on the highway often boast free wireless. I find this ironic. Access to the internet is from the "business center" only, which appears to have no access other than from its three computers. Well, bully for them, but....
Still, maybe that will keep me from being too distracted by the computer. This could be a GOOD thing.
We got in, took a little walk around Seaside to find dinner, then had to figure out what to do. We ended up going to the outlet mall, then doing the grocery shopping. (I dropped the outlet mall in because we wanted postcards, and I wanted to hit it at some point, and frankly we had to take the car out to get groceries so we might as well also run that errand at the same time.) *laughs* Classic first vacation day, huh? The beach is maybe a stone's throw - not more than that - from one of the exits of where we're staying, and we go shopping. But I really didn't want to trudge along the sand last night. I was tired.
That may have been a mistake. The forecast for our whole trip was cloudy/occasional showers last I checked (which was last Friday). But when we got here, it was mostly clear with some cloudy. It was GORGEOUS. We did go down to the promenade for a while, not too long before sunset. Just gorgeous. This morning seems more cloudy than not. I hope it is planning to clear off, rather than rain on us.
Current plans, wholly subject to change: One day this week (probably tomorrow as we'd like a rest from driving), we'll go driving again - around to the Lewis & Clark stuff, other parks. Probably today will be "wander around Seaside, check out the Carousel mall and tourist traps, enjoy the beach, try for sunset photos" (which I was too cold before sunset to bother with yesterday - oops - that's why I brought my coat but I do have to wear it for that to work). As long as it doesn't rain on us today, that'll work nicely. I'd also like to go down to Cannon Beach, stroll around, enjoy the beach there. It's between us and our route home, though, so that makes more sense for Friday, I guess.
On the drive out yesterday, I saw the following sign at a little bridge: "Muddy Creek". I can just hear how that happened. "Sir, what is this creek called locally?" "That? That's just an ol' muddy creek!" And you're off and running.... *laughs* Or maybe they did deliberately name it that, but really I suspect it was just one of those things. I saw some other good signs but I've forgotten them. Oops.
Scott's up, so I'm going to stop for now and go have a vacation.
5/31/2006 12 pm
Mmm. Also, youch, my poor feet. But it was lovely and sunny - the clouds burned off - we enjoyed the beach here at Seaside after we had breakfast at the Pig 'n' Pancake. Very pretty beach, did a bit of walking and then tried for the stores. But the stores were mostly not open yet so instead we drove to Cannon Beach, to Tolovana Park at the south end, and walked to the rocks to enjoy the tidepools. Then we went to downtown Cannon Beach and wandered the shops, but it's mostly galleries, and the pizza place I liked so much last year is still there but was not open yet.
My feet really dislike me after that. But it was fun. We decided to take a break and are back in the hotel resting (and watching a movie, which I'm already coming to dislike - Mr. and Mrs. Smith, which is just not entertaining me as much as it is making me uneasy). We'll probably head back to the Carousel Mall and other points (hopefully now open) later. I have been taking photos, I don't know if I will process them and have them up before I post this or put them up later.
5/31/2006 5:45 pm
Well. That was an anticlimax. After the movie (Scott watched it; I left the room and read as I really was finding it annoyed/disturbed me rather than entertaining me), we went out to stroll the shops. The promised rain was finally here, steady but not too heavy, still a bit warm. We went to the Carousel Mall which (except for the Carousel) wasn't actually that great. Alas. The shop across the walkway from it, though, had some nice stuff. I restrained myself to buying just a few more Tree Free cards. Sigh. Those things are an addiction. But the "Pathways" cards are sooo pretty.
We did not stay out long: Scott's legs were tired and my back was protesting. So we came back to the hotel and proceeded to nap, which may have been the ideal use of this afternoon and was at any rate wonderfully pleasant. Fortunately, it didn't last - quite - long enough to cause my contacts to go all gummy on me. They were thinking about it but were still willing to be dissuaded. :)
On our walk back to the hotel, we passed a shop selling bumper stickers; one of the visible ones literally caused me to not only do a double-take but to take three steps back so I could see it again, then make Scott read it. In red letters on yellow, it read, "Are you having phone sex, or do you always drive like that?" ...
Not sure what we will do for the evening yet. If the clouds permit a sunset show at all, I would like to photograph that, but other than that I have no real designs on the rest of the day. I may try to get downstairs to the business center and see if I have any better chance of getting online, but if I do, it will be just to check my email. There's at least one, maybe two internet cafes in the area, but I hope you will forgive me if I say that finding them and hauling my laptop there (not to mention myself) sounds far too much like work. If I were going to be here a couple weeks, I might, but as it is, two days from now I will be home and in the meanwhile I can save all these chattery messages to torture you with when we get back. Mwahahaha.
Maybe I should move the photos onto the computer and start editing them so they'll be easy to put up when we get home. I could read, but so far every book I brought along or bought here that I've tried has not interested me, and I don't think they're all duds (though at least one is).
6/1/2006 7:45 pm
Not too bad. Drove up north to Cape Disappointment in Washington - very much a disappointment, you have to take a shuttle to get to basically anything. Skipped it and checked out the other nearby lighthouse, then stopped at Dismal Nitch and came back down through Astoria, stopping at the Column, which must be glorious in clear weather; sorry I saw it in the pouring rain, but glad I saw it at all. Then on down through the forts where we basically didn't stop - we could have but I think we just weren't in the mood any more.
Back at the hotel then; took a walk, then watched Constantine on DVD (it's not something I would normally have watched; but I actually enjoyed it, somewhat) and hung out. I've been reading since then. This would be why I declined to spend an entire week at the coast. I couldn't fill an entire week at the coast without growing bored. Very bored. But a few days is nice. I'll be glad to get home tomorrow although I've very much enjoyed being here.
The sun did come out this afternoon. Mind you, it stayed thoroughly cloudy and rainy, but there was sunlight in amidst it. I was hoping that signalled good odds for a sunset photo, but the clouds have never cleared off so I doubt it. Oh, well. That was my mistake the first night and if I want a sunset photo I shall probably need another trip - maybe a weekend trip in midsummer, when it will be horribly expensive. Or I could just buy an extra postcard and call it close enough, which is, on balance, cheaper and probably going to yield a better image (since the folks what produce postcards can lie in wait and otherwise pick and choose to get the really glorious sunsets, after all).
Kage Baker's book Sky Coyote - er. Not so impressed with the book or the story which, among other things, felt like it left more stuff unfinished than finished. But, whatever. What did impress me was the basic theory of the main characters, as described in the first chapter. That is just a really cool premise, that could go in several directions or be used in several ways.... (Unfortunately, still not sure what "reality" was in the book although I have finished it. This was part of the problem. But an interesting premise, at least.)
6/1/2006 9:58 pm
Whee! I got sunset photos after all. At 10 minutes to sunset or so, I headed down to the promenade along the beach, knowing that I was probably going to get soaked and it wouldn't break through the clouds. But if it did break through the clouds, I had 50-50 odds it would be really showy, and I'd feel like a dork for missing it in either case. Well, it did. It wasn't really-really showy but it was nice and I stood there for 20 minutes or more taking photos. I have looked through them, and there are some keepers; I haven't processed them, so this post will likely go up before photos do. I'll have to play catch-up.
The funny part came as I was walking away. I noticed a photographer in the center of the circle, taking photos of the sunset. Except I would have been right in his shot. I assumed at the time that he was just setting up (apparently, I'm slow), and someone else commented he'd come down just to take photos of me standing there. By the time that conversation was over, however, he had taken down his camera and gone back inside, so I never got to talk to him, which is a pity - I'd have liked to ask if I could see the photos (or scans, if it was real film), as it seems amusing. I can't imagine they'd be great without some editing as I was carrying my camera bag and purse, had on my black coat, and was soaked from the edge of the coat down on my legs - but I can see where I might have been interesting to photograph. I was standing relatively still (moving sometimes, because, dude, wind and rain) and since it was raining, I had my umbrella - which is very brightly colored. I adore it, it's gaudy and pretty and it would have stood out against that background fairly well. Then again, it stands out against plain ol' clouds fairly well. Ahwell. I'll never know what those photos look like (or even if I was really in any photo he took), probably, but I am amused. And I got sunset photos. And now I go to bed and tomorrow I go home and these all sound like good things.
