After early-morning dimsum, we started heading down to the States. For some reason, we chose to go down Steveston Highway to get on the 99, which lead us into lots of traffic as expected. Once we got past the tunnel, though, it was smooth sailing all the way to Pacific Crossing.

Before we entered the US of A, though, we stopped at the Duty Free shop. There, I proudly demonstrated my knowledge of smelling strips and coffee beans that I learned at Nordstrom. I also poked around the toys and accessories, where I found Hot Wheels, Beanie Babies (remember those??), and a Relic wallet that was almost a carbon copy of the Fossil one of the shelf above. We probably spent an hour or so in there, but after a quick washroom break, we were on our way.

Day 1

I’ve crossed the border dozens of times within the past three years, but the conversation we had with the agent this time probably takes the awkward turtle cake. While he was doing his due diligence and asking how we (as in my parents, sister, and I) were related, he, probably absentmindedly, asked if my sister and I were married. A couple awkward chuckles later, however, he decided to run with it and started on about how a relationship like that may be normal in some places (but probably not in Canada, he said). However weird that conversation was, I gotta give him props for taking the time to converse with travelers. Not something you see every day.

Pedal to the floor, thinking of the roar

[metaslider id=2884]

After the border, we drove another two hours or so towards Seattle. I gotta tell ya though, the i-5 is MASSIVE, especially near the city. We were in the fast lane but needed to take the next exit, and we had to cross like eight lanes to get to the correct one. This was during rush hour though (but still, crazy). Nevertheless, we were able to exit the i-5, pull ourselves into the city, and head towards our first stop: Pike Place!

Throwin’ fish to a playa at Pike Place

[metaslider id=2895]

After driving the city towards Pike Place, we found parking on a steep hill (scary). We also paid for 3 hours of parking, using about 600 quarters that we got from the convenience store down the hill (seriously, how are you expected to pay for parking with cash if the highest common coin denomination is $0.25?). The parking ticket is pretty cool though; instead of placing it on your dash, you remove the adhesive and stick it on your driver-side window (or on the passenger-side, depending on whether you parallel parked or backed-in).

Pike Place itself was pretty awesome though. It had a public market, and not-so-much touristy, kind of feel, with some quaint shops to boot (including the first Starbucks which I’m sure you’ve seen countless times on your Instagram feed). One highlight of the place was when a salesperson invited a spectator to take a closer look at a fish. The fish was no ordinary fish though, but instead barked loudly like a dog when the said spectator approached, scaring them pooless. We also walked up the street to look around, entering a Target which was surprisingly small and dirty. But maybe I was just spoiled with the Targets in Canada. You know, before they closed up shop less than two years later.

Chillin’ with Chihuly at the Glass and Garden Museum

[metaslider id=2913]

Next, we drove downtown and ended up at the Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum. We actually entered the Space Needle parking lot first but wasn’t able to park there, so we found a spot in one of the back alleyways, paid for parking (again with a ton of quarters), and stuck the ticket on the window (passenger side this time- parallel parking!).

For those of you who don’t know (I know I didn’t), Dale Chihuly is a artist who works with glass-blowing. He originally did the sculpting himself (and even founded a school for it), but an unfortunate body surfing accident left him unable to continue. Not to be deterred, however, he now uses his artistic talent to teach and develop talent, choreographing most of the displays. The museum itself was pretty long, but worth it, as it contained some crazy things including tentacle-like objects, multi-coloured glass balls, and even a autumn-coloured ceiling decoration. Seriously, the vibrancy of the colours in this place was impressive, as was the educational film at the end detailing Chihuly’s life and the art of glassblowing.

The Armory

[metaslider id=2934]

After leaving the Chihuly Glass Garden, we made our way to a small mall next door to grab a bite to eat. Inside, what looked like an appetizing food court turned out to be mostly closed, with only two places were still open at the ungodly time of 7:20: MOD Pizza and KEBAB. My mom and Christine opted to build their own pizza at the former, which was delicious but a little small. My dad and I, on the other hand, chose to go to KEBAB. My beef souvlaki was good, but my my Dad’s lamb platter looked amazing. With our food in hand, we took a seat in the middle of a food court next to a really cool train set which, unfortunately, wasn’t turned on.

Living large at the Ramada Inn

While eating, Christine used an app called Trivago to find a Ramada Inn near the airport to stay for the night. This worked out perfectly since we were planning to go to the Museum of Flight (which is a short drive away) in the morning. So off we drove, arriving at the Ramada about 20 minutes later. After we parked in the guest parking lot, we checked in, moved the car to the back of the lot, then went upstairs to the room. Then, we went back downstairs because I forgot to put the parking pass on our dash (fun).

The hotel was actually pretty nice for the price. There was free wifi (and ethernet cables can be rented for a crazy $5/night), although there weren’t any complimentary water boilers or toothbrushes.

Day 2

Waking up refreshed, we went downstairs to grab breakfast at the hotel restaurant. The only knock I have is that they overcooked my “medium rare” steak in the morning. To be fair though, it was a thin minute steak and it probably would have cooked itself regardless of how long it was on the flame for.

After eating, we headed to our final stop in Seattle: The Museum of Flight.

Getting lost in the Museum of Flight

[metaslider id=9316]

Boy, is this place huge. The first thing you see when you walk in is a replica of the Wright brothers’ flying contraption hanging from the ceiling. Walk in a bit further and there’ a huge A-12 Oxcart staring you in the face (what an amazing bird). We spent about four hours in the museum, and still had to rush through the WWII and Hanger sections of the museum.

A few highlights: Because the museum is located at the end of Boeing Field, there were planes taking off and landing all day. And even better, there is a control tower-like room facing the runway so you can watch the planes in style complete with radio chatter from the nearby airport. Also, the hanger section houses one of only four Concordes on display outside Europe, as well as the first jet-powered Air Force One and first flight-worthy 747. Did I mentioned that all three of these planes (as well as a couple others) are open for walkthroughs?! Definitely an amazing and unique experience.

My only regret is discovering the F-14 display at the tail end of my visit. The Tomcat has been my all-time favourite plane since I was 6 years old and watching Top Gun on repeat, and I would have loved the chance to check out the plane further.

Check out more pictures in my Seattle Museum of Flight gallery!

After visiting the Museum of Flight, it was off to Portland we go. I sat in the back for the ride, and passed out right away so I have no idea what the three-hour drive was like. The only thing I remember was that it was snowing slightly when we left, not snowing at all the first time I woke up from my nap, and snowing heavily the second time I did. Weird. By the time we got into the city, though, the skies were clear.

At this point my camera didn’t turn on for some reason, so no photos sorry 🙁

Burning time at the Woodburn Outlets

Our first stop in Portland was the Woodburn Outlets. We arrived at around 7pm, and started off at Banana Republic. My dad and I were already bored at this point, so we decided to split up and find some electronic stores or something. We stopped by a T-mobile store, then a Just Sports which stocked a lot of football and basketball merch (but nothing hockey- disappointing). Finding something interesting seemed like a lost cause at this point, so my dad and I headed to Starbucks and waited for mom and Christine.

Merry Tex-Mex at Juan Colorado

Once they finished up, it was time to head to dinner. I was checking out places to eat in the area, and came across Juan Colorado. Their reviews were stellar, pictures looked great, and was right next to the hotel. We exited onto the highway all excited to eat…. before we realized we were going in the wrong direction. We then drove and drove until we found an exit some 25 minutes later (jeez lol). There, we turned around and headed towards the restaurant.

We arrived about 20 minutes before closing. The staff was getting ready for their Christmas Party, but were kind enough to let us in anyways. Good thing too, because the food was amaaazing. My dad ordered one of the special dishes which definitely looked the best. Meanwhile, Christine ordered some dish that turned out to be insanely spicy. She took one bite and noped right out of there, taking everyone else’s food. While all this was happening, my mom was putting salad in a tortilla shell and eating it. Needless to say, it was a fun evening.

Snoozin’ at the Snooze Inn

Following the very satisfying dinner at Juan Colorado, we drove across the street to another place found through Trivago. This time, it was a more conventional motel called Snooze Inn. At first glance (and with the raised expectations from the Ramada), it looked pretty crappy. However, we got settled in pretty quickly and it turned out to be nice and cozy. The heat worked really well, and there was free Xfinity Satellite TV as well as wifi.

It was a nice, relaxing evening after a fun-filled day, and you really can’t ask for much more than that.

Day 3

After waking up at Snooze Inn and grabbing some complimentary bagels, we were off to shop! With Sunday being our last day of the road trip, we decided to make it count by taking advantage of the Tax Free State™. We first hit up the Fry’s down the street. I spent about an hour walking around the store (it was almost like a Costco and Best Buy put together, with like three aisles of routers), and ended up walking away with a game controller and USB stick. We then drove into town and stopped by the famous Voodoo Donuts, whose selection included interesting flavours such as Peach Fritter and Voodoo Bubble. I grabbed a much more boring Chocolate Cake donut, which I only ate half of because it was really, really, really sweet.

Paying 0% tax at Lloyd Centre

Next, we made our way to the Lloyd Center mall where we had lunch. The food court was better than the one we visited in Seattle, consisting of several regular options like Subway, as well as some I’ve never heard of like McDonald’s Express (what’s the point? How much more express can a fast-food place like McDonald’s get??). I ended up getting a pulled pork sandwich with mac and cheese on the side at Dickey’s Barbeque Pit. It was great Southern-style food, but a little heavy especially after eating the donut.

After eating, my mom and Christine went their separate way to go shopping. While they made a beeline for Ross, my dad and I walked around the gigantic mall (which housed an ice rink similar to Coastal City in Shenzhen). There was actually a Winterhawks jersey for sale in the Portland Smash store which, I admit, was very very tempting. At the end of the day, I walked out with two pairs of Nikes from Ross. Good thing too, because my current pair were just about worn to shreds.

Homeward Bound

After visiting the Lloyd Center Mall, it was time to say goodbye to Portland as we piled into the car to head home. Before returning to Canada, however, we made one last stop at The Cheesecake Factory in Kent, WA for dinner. There, I had the fettuccine alfredo with chicken, which was great especially paired with the Tropical Smoothie that my dad ordered (and everyone else stole). The portions were extremely large and satisfying, barely leaving room for dessert. It was, however, the Cheesecake Factory so there was no way we were missing out on their specialty. We opted for the Godiva Chocolate Cheesecake which was excellent, but the creamy chocolate was definitely the dominant flavour. In hindsight, probably should have gotten something more plain to really appreciate the cheese taste.

Overall, I had a great time, especially since we don’t often get a chance to go on a trip as a family. It was my first time in Seattle in over a decade (I think?), and my, have things changed from what little I remember. I was definitely a little bummed out when we crossed the border back into Canada, but it was good to be home again to see the cat. Until next time, Emerald City!