2016 Trip - Day 10 - Sleepless in Seattle

Ok....not sleepless in Seattle.   I just wanted to say it somewhere.

Today was another cold, wet day in Seattle.    Nothing really detracts from this city though.  I still think it’s just gorgeous.

Today is our last full day in Seattle which really is a shame.  There is still so much we would like to do here so we went full tilt doing as much as we could. I might just point out that we are fortunate that we are not on the same block as a massive explosion that rocked the city in the early hours.  A natural gas leak almost cost a number of firemen their lives.  It sure blew a couple of businesses clean off the map.

First up today we visited the Pike Street Markets at the recommendation of one of the Bears friends.    What an amazing place.  Floors and floors of eccentric little stores with every possible thing you could thing of to buy.  There were fresh food markets, fresh flowers of every brilliant colour (how they grow in this cold weather is beyond me), and countless things of interest.    If you ever couldn’t think of something to buy a loved one, this place would give you inspiration.   The markets conveniently (for me….not for the Bear) had a store which sold every “dog”.  This store was made for every person just like me who is so in love with their dogs that they are prepared to spend an obscene amount of money on the absolute ridiculous just so that they can promote our “l” word.  I call it “love”…..the Bear calls it “lunacy”.   It is almost as awesome as PetSmart.  I managed to keep  my spending down to a dull roar….and my end total included some gifts for my nearly equally obsessed Mother in Law (who is doggy sitting as we speak).

After the Pike Street Markets (where we simply did not have enough time!) we decided to go back to the Boeing Store…via the Moore Theatre.  What is the Moore Theatre?  It is where Pearl Jams “Even Flow” video clip was filmed.  It would have to be one of their top three most played songs. (And for those that don’t know/care, the song is about a homeless man.  You wouldn’t expect that from a grunge band eh?)  It’s not that I would be able to go in there and kiss the stage; its just that such “greatness” had been there.    In the traffic, and the rain, we managed to find the said holy place at which point I was able to enjoy and photograph it for approximately 3.5 seconds (ok…while we were at a red light) before we were on our way.

We made our planned stop at the Boeing Store before heading onto yet another Wal-Mart.  One might think of my Wal-Mart obsession as being unhealthy, but given that we purchase supplies there for a tenth of the cost of a restaurant it makes perfect sense.  We often have a Wal-Mart salad instead of eating out (the same as we do every trip) or a frozen meal should our hotel room have a microwave.   Today’s Wal-Mart visit however was not for this.  It was for first aid supplies….in particular Betadine.

On our very first night in the USA, whilst staying in L.A I received some sort of bite on the little finger on my left hand.  It hurt right from the word go and had managed to fester and become infected over the past 9 days.   I had already purchased some anti-biotic ointment however it doesn’t appear to be working.  My finger is swelling, throbbing, and turning a terrible shade of red.   I wanted to get something that I was familiar with using from home hence my shopping for Betadine.  As it turned our, Wal-mart didn’t have any.  We were not sure whether they simply didn’t stock it or had sold out of it, but we were not about to zip around to a thousand pharmacies to find it.  I showed the Bear a bottle of colourless iodine which claimed to have antibacterial properties for First Aid purposes.  The Bear said that would do as that is what he remembered as a child.

After I had a shower this afternoon, I decided I would dab some of the iodine onto my finger before bandaging it back up.  I undid the seal on the bottle and then the lid however there was a ridiculously strong scent of bleach.  I took a sniff of the bottle and my eyes watered.  Grabbing my glasses I read the impossibly small print on the side of the bottle, and sure enough it was meant for first aid purposes.  I was confused by this so went and gave it to the Bear to smell….which he did……before telling me it was exactly how he remembered it smelling.   I told him that the only time I had smelled anything like that was when I was soaking my children’s nappies or having my hair permed!  He assured me it was ok and after doing a quick Google search to confirm I was doing the right thing, went back into the bathroom and applied the clear yet disgusting smelling liquid.

Somewhere in the distance I could hear a Curlew screaming.  Did they even have Curlews in the USA?  And where the hell did that dust come from?  Once the dust settled it was clear my head was in the ceiling and my little finger was on fire.  WHAT THE F**KING HELL WAS IN THAT BOTTLE!!!!!!!!!!!  Apparently I was still screaming because the Bear came running.   He might have thought that because I didn’t bear his children he would never have me swear at him in pain.  Bullshit!  I was holding him personally responsible for the fact that my pinkie had now fallen off!  Jesus H Christ!!!  This $3.95 bottle of acid was on the verge of costing us $497 for a broken mirror, and a $10,000 swear jar bill with the cost escalating by the second.  Bloody hell!!!!!!!!!  The Bear hurriedly stammered that it might hurt but it was doing the very best thing for the infection in my finger.    Well that’s what I thought he said……I was still slamming my hand against the marble vanity basin to douse the flames…so couldn’t be sure.  Not that I cared.  I wasn’t putting that shit near my hand again.   Well not until the next time anyway.  Given the infection in my finger…..and given that the last time we were in the USA I had to go to the hospital and it cost us more than $1000 (which could NOT be claimed on travel insurance) I seriously wasn’t game not to do what I could to settle things.

*sigh*

2016 Trip - Day 9 - A little bit of Bavaria in the USA

This is just a short diary entry, and one that I have made without the usual humour.  My delight in experiencing my first white Christmas (in March) in a little German town was far too amazing to be wrecked with my usual waffle.   On this occasion I realise just how awesome it is….to dream a little dream…if but for a moment J

Today we head inland from Seattle, and travelled a couple of hours through the Washington Alps to visit Leavenworth – a piece of Bavaria in the USA.  I wasn’t really sure what to expect but the whole day was just amazing.

I have already fallen in love with Seattle and Washington State but what a treat we had in store.  We had already established that we would try to go to Leavenworth when we were planning our trip, but after having a conversation with our Vet who is originally from Seattle; it was a dead set certainty.  He had explained that the road up to there via “Stevens Pass” and “Mount Index” was just beautiful and highly recommended.  That was good enough for us.

Heading out of Seattle it became apparent early on that the scenery would be breathtaking.   It was fairly evident that the Alps still had plenty of snow on them, and despite the fact that I swore on the 2014 trip that I never wanted to ever see snow again, found myself excited that we might be going to see a little bit up close again.  The snow in New York and Washington D.C was dirty and often dangerous.  The snow on these Alps was a very bright white and simply stunning.  As we started our climb through the mountains, we found that every bend in the road was prettier than the one before.  It was quite a steep and winding road which would normally scare the baageeeeezus out of me however the scenery was just so beautiful it proved to be an awesome distraction.   There were never ending rivers and streams that were overflowing from the Spring thaw.  Random waterfalls appeared along the side of the roadside where the melting snow (at lower levels) had nowhere else to run.

What I wasn’t prepared for, was the very thick snow that was still blanketing the ski-fields through “Stevens Pass”.  It turned an already beautiful country side into a Winter Wonderland.  We pulled in to a car park opposite the ski resort, just to have a little bit of a walk around in the snow.  There was nothing dirty or dangerous about this.  It was light and powdery and an amazingly brilliant white.  The Bear threw a few snowballs and I ate a bit of snow (yes I am a weirdo) and we set off again towards Leavenworth.

Wow…what a surprise.    I have not ever been to Germany, but this is exactly what I have always pictured in my head.   This was a small town nestled between the mountains that was made up of little Bavarian buildings and chalets.  The snow capped mountains that surrounded the small community completed the Winter Wonderland.  Amazingly the on street parking was free which seriously astounded me.   The stores through the main street where all for tourists benefit however I assume that is the whole purpose of this town.  A shop keeper that we spoke to said that the council require each building to comply with specific requirements to maintain this Bavarian appearance and they are not allowed to alter from this at all.

I was interested to see that there were still Christmas trees and Christmas decorations displayed. I was curious as to whether this was a requirement also.   I didn’t ask though because I didn’t want to spoil what we were seeing.  I was afraid that if we knew that the Christmas adornments were compulsory that it would have spoiled things.   Just for a little while I could pretend that we were experiencing a white Christmas.

We checked out all of the menus so that we could try to decide where to eat.  Of course, most of the menus were of German cuisine although there were some typical yankie meals on there also.  The Bear was looking in particular for some place that had “Schweinshaxe” (Pigs Knuckle) on their menu.  He didn’t want one, however figured if they had it on their menu, they were the real deal.  King Ludwigs restaurant served this dish so this is where we ate.    The Bear had a schnitzel and I had some goulash, both which were served with pickled red cabbage and Spaetzle (German pasta) all of which was absolutely delicious.  Well most of it was.  I wasn’t a huge fan of the pickled red cabbage.  When I was putting it in my mouth, it was taking my breath away – a bit like when you inhale when smelling vinegar.

We had a browse through the stores on the way back to the car.  They were not particularly cheap but we were not there to shop.  It was just delightful looking before making our way back to Seattle.   We always like to pick up a fridge magnet from places that we go to (although this is becoming a bit ridiculous.  After 5 trips, we need a bigger fridge!) and a Christmas decoration if possible.  That was definitely not an issue in Leavenworth.

As I said this is only a short entry.  The day was too precious to wreck it with rubbish. I will write my usual baloney tomorrow.

 

2016 Trip - Day 8 - Eddie....We're Here!

This is our first full day in Seattle.  What an absolutely amazing city!  It is absolutely stunning.  We are staying in the suburb of Redmond, which is not within the CBD area and it is just gorgeous.  The whole of Seattle is just lovely though.  Quaint. Polite. Clean. I would live here even if Eddie Vedder didn’t.   That is a huge compliment coming from someone who hates metropolitan cities.

First up today we went to The Museum of Flight at Boeing Field.  This has been on the Bears bucket list since puppy was a kitten and probably that of every Boeing pilot. This is place which currently houses the very first 727 off the production line, the first 747, a Concorde, one of the past Airforce One jets, just to mention a few.    It has a collection of gorgeous war birds which would make even the most anti-aircraft women drool.  Unfortunately we had to be there on the couple of days that the 747/Airforce One/Concorde etc could not be accessed to hop on board.  The Bear had to settle for looking at them from a small distance, rather than get up close and personal with them.  I felt for him as he was bitterly disappointed.  We had come a very long way for him to visit the museum and it was bittersweet that we could not do completely what he had dreamed of doing.  He sucked it up though and made the best of what he could.  Interestingly when we paid for our entry, the cashier asked if we had a Boeing staff discount card. The Bear explained no, and that we were from Australia.  The cashier then asked if we were a member of something like RACV, NRMA, RACQ.  Well suck me sideways.  I have never been asked in Australia whether we are members of RACQ let alone overseas.  We couldn’t believe it!  Producing an RACQ card, we received a discount.

 

Always the supportive wife, I decided to throw myself into things and get with the program.  As hard as I have tried over the years to learn what I can about aviation and its industry, I apparently don’t absorb the information like a sponge.  I can nod and smile about what the Bear is trying to teach me, and I try to retain it, but I have nothing to convert it into my own language.  So when the opportunity arises where I can participate in something aviation….I am there with bells on!

Walking through the museum there were a couple of cockpits (soooo many lines here….but my Mother reads it) from old fighter jets on display with their canopies open, and an invitation to sit in them.    This would entail stepping down onto their impossibly small seats, and slide ones legs through two holes in perspex underneath the dashboard.  (Pardon my lack of technical jargon here.  I seriously have no idea what I am talking about).  I sidled up to the F18 Hornet cockpit and asked the Bear if he was going to hop in.  Apparently it was too warm for hell to have frozen over. He felt he would not fit.    I viewed the available space in the cockpit and did a bit of math in my head using height/width/depth/area/space and the answer = BIIKOWTH (Buggered If I Know Oh What The Hell).  I climbed down into the cockpit….ok I slid…ok….I fell….and took up my position as a US Fighter Pilot. 

Sitting there I could safely say “been there done that” and decided to hop out….or so I thought.  Apparently I was fairly stuck.  Ok…stuck fast.   Ok….was fairly wedged up shit creek without a block and tackle.    The Bear was looking at some nearby aeroplanes whilst a line of impatient children-come-wanna-be-pilots grew waiting for me to hop out.   Even with the threat of a hundred international news headlines hanging over my head, I could not get up.    I figured the only chance that I had to get out of this without shattering my pelvis was to recreate my own birth.  I mean how hard could it be?  I was there….I did it once….I could do it again!   I would have liked a set of forceps to come down and assist with my rebirth, but that was never going to happen.  Fortunately the Bear eventually saw my struggle and he reached down and helped me out.   I was able to move aside to let the next budding pilot to take the chair....with my dignity in tact. Almost.

After the Bear had seen enough, it was time to head to Eddies house.  I knew the address and I knew what it looked like.  We had to leave it up to the GPS to get us there.  I knew he lived at the end of a cul-de-sac however had no idea what the surrounding suburb or street looked like.    I was THAT FREAKING EXCITED!!!  What would I do if he was outside?  Would I say hello?  Would I throw myself at him?  Would I propose? MY GOD!!!!!!!!!  I should have started that diet a year ago.  Heavens I didn’t even have make up on!   As we were getting closer I noted that the area was very modest with unassuming homes.  No arrogance or obvious wealth.  I knew he had a big house however I felt that he bought it based on its location.  He has no pretentiousness about him and it was clear that there was no “showing off” with where he had bought.  Following the GPS we had to negotiate an “s-bend” that was almost a 180 degree tight turn and all of a sudden I was there.  Angels sang and there was the end of the rainbow. His house lay before me at the end of the street.  The reason he bought this home was for the privacy and the fact that it overlooked the waters of Puget Sound.   No-one would find him here and disturb his peace.  Well no-one other than myself and some whack-job who deliberately crashed their car into his fence a number of years ago.  I wondered if our rental car had insurance?

We drove right up to his gate.  I could see a vase that contained fresh flowers in a window on the second story.  I recognised his circular windows that have been i the background when doing interviews in his home. There was a PIN pad and intercom on the door leading through the large brick fence.  Both the fence and wrought iron electric gate had sharp objects on top to deter any other whack-jobs from jumping over the fence.  I started mentally calculating the height versus my short stature and decided it had a small chance of failing so was overcome with an overwhelming urge to press the damned buzzer.  I wasn’t out of the car yet, and nor was the Bear going to let me.  He broke into a sweat concerned that the neighbourhood watch supporters would report us as being suspicious and that we would in fact be arrested.  What a damned good idea…I hadn’t thought of that.  If I were to be arrested out the front of Eddie’s house, I would be forever tied to him in some way.    My poor suffering husband put his foot down and I was not allowed out of the car…and with that he turned the car around.  Desperate......I begged to have my photo taken in front of Eddie’s house, even if it were further down the street.  Something…..for me to hang onto and to show I had been there.  He relented and told me to make it quick.  I was out of that car before he could change his mind….and with both thumbs up; the Bear snapped a photo that I will treasure for always.    With that……we left the street as quickly as we had arrived.  *sigh* #lovemyeddiev #pjrockmyworld  #imnostalkerimjustafan

 

Given that the rain earlier had cleared somewhat, we thought we might visit the Space Needle on the way back to the hotel.  If you come to Seattle….you apparently must go to the Space Needle.  It is an icon on the Seattle skyline and whilst I had no real concept of its purpose, was keen to go there.  The Space Needle was not as tall as I had expected it to be and I still failed to learn of what its purpose was…but while we were there, we needed to go up it. 605 feet tall (with the observation deck being at 520 feet) its completion in 1962 made it the tallest building west of the Mississippi River.  This feat took only 400 days and was constructed as part of the World Fair in 1962 when the theme was “Century 21”.  This icon was built to withstand a 9.0 earthquake and to wind gusting at 200 miles per hour.   There is two ways up to the observation deck – in a glass lift which takes 41 seconds to go to the top, or climb up the 848 steps.  If it wasn’t for the limp I had gained since being stuck in the F18 I would have taken the stairs *rolls eyes* so had to settle for the lift.  The Bear panicked.

My husband is the only pilot that I know (ok…I only know one) that is scared of heights.   I have no issue with heights or flying, but he hates darned heights.  While I eagerly looked through the glass doors whilst the lift shot skywards at 800 feet per minute, the Bear started praying to whoever would listen.   I felt a sense of déjàvu remembering his antics when we went up the Empire State Building.   The block and tackle I wished I had have had at the Flight Museum was required to pull him out of the lift. Hopping out onto the viewing platform at the top we had a 360 degree view of Seattle and Puget Sound which was just stunning.  It was just about as cold as it was at the top of the Empire State Building but in my opinion was far more stunning.   The Bear hung on to the edge of the wall with his knuckles turning white, and I thought it was time that I took the poor fellow down.

Just as a footnote here:  I have two things I would like to mention having come across today.  Petrol here is around $2.11 a gallon which equates to approx 60 cents a litre.  Also…on our way back to the hotel we stopped at a Safeway Supermarket where we were served by a young man named Forrest.  Unbeknownst to each other, the Bear and I both had to bite our lips to prevent ourselves from saying “Run Forrest Run”.  Of course the poor lad was probably sick of the “Life is like a box of chocolates” spiel.  It was tempting though.

We had such a full day having achieved several things that we wanted to do.  I could live in this city.  It is just awesome.   Tomorrow we are heading out of town a bit to visit Leavenworth – a German Town within the USA.  Excited!

2016 Trip - Day 7 - I'm coming Eddie!!

Vale Nancy Reagan who died overnight.   If I were at home I would not have known about it at all, but given where we are and how she was respected by Americans (and given that her death has given as two minutes break every hour from Donald Trump) we are very aware of it.  Watching the news reports I am amazed to see the love story that played out between Nancy and her “Ronnie” and it is one that will last well beyond the grave.

Today we drove from Salinas up to San Francisco in order to say goodbye to California and visit Seattle, Washington (State).   Neither the Bear nor I have been to Washington (State) before and I am particularly excited as Seattle is the birthplace of my beloved Pearl Jam and has been home for the last 25 years for Eddie Vedder.

I am fully aware of his address and intend on at least being able to go there for a photo opportunity.  If the Bear allows me to get away with that I will be surprised however I will give it my best shot. Best case scenario is that I will be arrested and therefore forever tied to Eddie Vedder in the eyes of the media.  Do I love the man?  Yes I do.

To get to Seattle we drove to San Francisco in order to board a flight to Washington.  This was just awesome as we LOVE San Fran.  It is truly one of the most beautiful cities in the world with the most iconic attractions.  We were fairly keen to leave Salinas, as it really is a nothing town with no personality.  Very un-Californian.  We also wanted to make sure that we got to the airport in plenty of time, given that our flight was full and San Francisco Airport is such a busy place. We didn’t wish to jeopardise reaching the flight on time.   As it turned out, we arrived with plenty of time to spare so we were able to afford a bit of time, to drive half an hour north of the airport, right into San Fran. This gave us the unexpected opportunity to visit the water front to take in sights such as the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz.  The rain of the last couple of days gave way to blue sky so we had a beautiful and unobstructed view.    We took in another trip down the most crooked street in the entire world, which we have done before, however I wanted to do just one thing there that was new for us.  Given that Robin Williams died since we were there last, we decided to visit the house that “Mrs Doubtfire” was filmed in as I had read somewhere that fans had flocked there to leave loving messages on rocks outside the residence upon hearing of his death.  Sure enough, there were hundreds of rocks out the front bearing writing from strangers united in grief.

The house itself was part way up one of San Francisco’s famous steep roads, and in order to stand in front of it, we had to park on street and walk down to the house.  The street would have to be on a 30% gradient (at least….although it dead set felt as though it was completely vertical) which would be testing on even the most committed fitness junkies. Do you know how an avalanche collects more snow and debris, whilst picking up speed the further it goes?  Well that was me x 100.  To make matters worse, as we would be catching a flight, I wasn’t wearing joggers.  It would have appeared to any bystander that I was trying to prove both the theory of velocity and acceleration AND Newtons laws of motion however I would have been able to guarantee that this was not something I did voluntarily.   The fact that I was rolling down that hill with more emphasis than an Acme anvil dropped on Wylie Coyote however turned out to be the least of my worries.   I had to get back up the rotten hill.  If there had been a cable car passing that I could have caught to take me the 10 metres back to our car, I would have.

Once at the airport we jumped through all of the usual hoops that are required when flying anywhere.  Unfortunately it meant taking our place in the kilometre length line and subsequently had to wait a fairly significant amount of time to get through security. The half an hour it took us, seemed like a day as I had one of my legendary heartburn attacks, and had no water or antacids on me.   I am thinking this would have been because it was after lunch and we had yet to eat.  Once we were through, we found we had only a short amount of time before we had to board our plane, however as we were hungry grabbed a quick bite to eat.  And when I mean quickly I mean totally shovelled the food in.  When I suffer heartburn quite often I can actually be sick and unfortunately this was one of those times. Hurrying to the plane I had to make a stop in the ladies room to throw up.  Our flight was going to be called soon however there was nothing that I could do to prevent this particular call of nature.

I only just made it into the ladies, where I managed to say goodbye to my whole lunch whilst I strained to hear if our flight was being called.   I straightened myself up and went to flush the toilet.  Hmmmm this was an automatic flushing toilet. I have had massive troubles with these stupid things on previous trips however have never had the need to throw up in one.   I waived my hand vigorously over the toilet bowl however there was no response.   I waived two hands over the toilet bowl yet still nothing. I threw my sandaled foot up onto the toilet seat hoping that would trigger a sensor however the toilet remained silent.  The more desperate I became to flush this toilet, the more violent my movements came and before I knew it I was doing a German “thigh slapping dance” in a ridiculously confined space.  I am almost positive that there would have had to be a manual flushing button somewhere however couldn’t be 100% sure as I hadn’t brought my glasses into the loo.  I blindly fumbled around the back of the toilet bowl and the wall behind it but all that achieved was me worrying that there would not be a strong enough disinfectant in the world that would kill the germs I was picking up. I toyed with the idea of just simply leaving the toilet as it was, but my conscious wouldn’t allow that. And then it dawned on me.  Sit on the damned throne and get back up again.    Bloody hell I am thick. So I sat down on the toilet, fully dressed, and got back up again.  Voila.  Good lord.  

Racing outside it turned out our flight was boarding so the Bear and I had to pick up the pace to get to the gate and we climbed on board the United Airlines 737.  Interestingly we were not greeted at the door by a flight attendant which seemed odd however that point seemed mute at this time. Domestic airlines in America are similar to the budget airlines in Australia.  You pretty much pay for a ticket in order to get from A to B.   If you want a drink onboard you need to buy it, and there is no “entertainment”.  In the USA however you will still expect to pay a premium price though. If you pay for an expensive first class ticket though, you will be privileged enough to get a soft drink in a plastic cup and a small packet of chickpeas.  When we have flown domestic within the USA previously we still have received service with a smile, which, when you are in a foreign country, goes a long way.  This was not the case today.  The bush pig of a Customer Service Manager (head flight attendant) had the personality of a toilet brush.  She was rude, abrasive and totally full of shit. She made everyone’s flight a miserable one, and managed to somehow do that despite reading the paper during the whole flight.  She had the manner of a bulldog and looked like she should have been turning tricks on Hollywood Boulevard.  Fortunately for me, I fell asleep pretty quickly and spent most of the hour long flight throwing up Zzzzzzzzzzzzs.   I am surprised she didn’t throw me out of the plane over Oregon for making noise or drooling on my shirt.

I woke up just as we were descending into Seattle and I am so glad I did.  Seattle is just stunning from the air, although I can honestly say that seeing Mt Rainier was just something really special. Mind-blowing.  It overlooks Seattle and completely dwarfs the city.  It is an absolutely mammoth snow capped mountain that it just short of 15,000 above sea level.  It is honestly spectacular.   Looking down on Seattle I wondered which one of the houses was Eddie’s.  I was getting SO excited at the thought that I would be in the same town as he as I do know that he is at home at the moment.  #imnostalkerimjustafan  #lovemyeddiev  #pjrockmyworld

Tomorrow is going to be a GREAT day!

2016 Trip - Day 6 - Do you know the way to San Jose?

Before I relay today’s events, I need to tell one and all….if you thought that politics in Australia to be a shit fight….then that has nothing on the absolute codswallop in the USA.  When the Bear and I came to the USA in 2012 they were in the grips of an election (Barack Obama had been up for re-election) and I thought that was laid on thick….but I tell you what…..what is happening now is an absolute disgrace.  What’s more, we have to listen to this rubbish 24/7.    But it’s the idiocy of this that creates hype that the media is hungry for.  And the more that Donald Trump makes a dickhead of himself….the more the journalists are lapping this up.   The more they lap it up, the more he hams it up.  The truth is he is a baboon who has pulled his arse over this head therefore everything he says is just the baboon-shit flowing from his mouth.   

 

Anyway today we went to San Jose and Santa Cruz.  We were going to go to Carmel to eat in Clint Eastwoods’ restaurant however we just simply didn’t get there.  In San Jose, there is something called the “Winchester Mystery Mansion” which we wanted to have a look at.   This was the home of Sarah Winchester, whose father-in-law founded the Winchester Repeating Arms Company (it made rifles).  Sarah’s husband William had died from tuberculosis and she subsequently inherited 20.5 million dollars and 50% ownership of the company that her father-in-law built.   They unfortunately had no live children.  They had one daughter, Annie, who died at the age of 6 weeks.    It was said that Sarah mourned for the rest of life.  Her new found wealth did nothing to ease her pain.   A friend suggested to her to speak to a psychic medium, which she did.  She was told by the psychic that her husband was present and he said there was a curse on the family. That is what took his life and that of their daughter!  He said the thousands of people who had died at the hands of a Winchester rifle were seeking vengeance.   The medium said that she had to sell her property (currently at New Haven) and head towards the setting sun.  She was to start a new life and build a home for herself and the spirits who have fallen from that “ terrible weapon”.  She was told to NEVER stop building the house, because if she stopped, she would die.

 

Sarah Winchester moved to San Jose and purchased a modest farm house (along with its 162 acres) , after which she employed a team of 22 builders/carpenters.  They started to build onto the farm house, and continued to do so 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, until she died 38 years later.   The modest farm house had grown to 7 storey’s (although the top 3 storey’s collapsed in the earthquake of 1906) and still has 160 room with 2,000 doors, 10,000 windows and 40 stairwells. The house is said to be one of the most haunted in America.

This…..was right up my alley.

Today was dank, cold and wet.  In other words, perfect conditions to be visiting a haunted mansion.  Given that I had been concentrating on visiting my first haunted property, I had not given any thought to how I would move comfortably around somewhere that had stairs.  In fact, it never even occurred to me that a mansion with 160 or more rooms would have stairs. No 40 stairwells.  Bloody hell.   Given my bad back/hip/knee and my poor attitude towards exercise and healthier living, I naturally assumed that this place would have elevators.    Alas…..no it didn’t.

Fortunately for me, Mrs Winchester was less than 5 feet tall.  In her later years she suffered from bad arthritis.  She renovated some of her stairwells to be only 2 inches high.  Excellent.  As the tour began and our tour guide explained the reasons for this, I mentally high-fived Mrs Winchester for this.  I might survive the tour after all.

Mrs Winchester did all of the designing (without any plans being drawn) herself.  This meant the rooms, hallways, doorways and stairways, were made for her size.  Given her short stature and slight build, not only were some of the steps only 2 inches high, the width of the stairwells and doorways were so narrow, most people had to walk through them side ways.  I sympathized with the Bear who was banging his head on the top of the door frame and having to stoop through each door.  I was grateful being vertically challenged (5 feet 3 inches….and shrinking)…until I got jammed….in a doorway….by my hips and ample  derrière.   Unfortunately given that we were with a tour group of about 25 people, I couldn’t really make light of the situation and yell for someone to “PASS THE BUTTER”.  Fortunately due to it being so dark in there, the other tourists generally couldn’t see this happening, and the resounding “pop” that occurred each time a room gave birth to me, could have been passed off as anything.

Mrs Winchester created doors that opened onto a brick wall, stairways that lead to ceilings, windows in the floors and many other seriously strange things.  How the hell anyone could find their way around this place is beyond me….although the tour guide thinks that Mrs Winchester might have been trying to make sure that the spirits couldn’t find her.   The further we went into the bowels of this house, the more the walls seemed to close us in.  Given the poor weather outside and it being so dark inside……it became a little claustrophobic.  We were warned not to break from the group, because if one of us got lost…..well…….you know…..mmmwwuuhhhahahahahaha! *insert scary music here*

(Ok…nothing would have really happened.  Someone would come and get you).

I felt myself getting caught up in the romance, the sadness, and the absolute loneliness and desperation that this poor woman felt.  She was terrified of these spirits even though she really had nothing to do with the rifles that killed people.  She just married into the family.  I had actually forgotten that this was alleged to be a house with several hauntings….until I was out walking towards the front windows of the bedroom that Mrs Winchester was sleeping in at the time of the 1906 earthquake.  (Mrs Winchester was not killed….but trapped until she could be rescued)  The room was significantly damaged, and although the building around her house went on for another 16 years, she shut the door on the room and it remained in that state.  She did not request that the carpenters repair this.  Standing in a room trapped in time, bearing the extraordinary damage from a 9.0 earthquake, it wasn’t hard to imagine how terrifying this must have been.  I was walking towards the windows just to try to figure out why Mrs Winchester hadn’t been rescued via a window (the door that was jimmied open still bears the scars) when a small puff off smoke seemed to shoot up from the floor. I rubbed my eyes but I swear the remnant was there.  Startled, I looked to the lady beside me and was about to ask WTF??  She didn’t appear to notice anything.   I looked the other way…..and no-one else seemed startled or to have noticed either.  At that point, I remembered the house was allegedly haunted, and turned to walk out.  The Bear was already leaving the room so I hurried up to go with him.  I went to mention this to him and then thought better of it. I am a believer….he is not.

I thought I must have been seeing things, so let it go.  When we had been in the “séance room” earlier, I felt nothing which I was sure that I would if there had been anything there.  Mrs Winchester had a séance room that only she was allowed to access, to consult and seek guidance from the spirits.  Given that I believe that the Bear and I have someone who roams the hallway at night, I was searching for that “feeling”.  There had been nothing there so I trusted my instincts.  I might just point out, that I believe that the person who visits us is watching over the Bear.  I think that this totally sucks given that he doesn’t even believe in the supernatural!  I want my own ghost!  I thought my puff of smoke in Mrs Winchesters bedroom may have just been one of the dirty blokes who had been dropping his guts all the way around, might have farted the dust off a piece of furniture.

A couple of moments later, we stopped in another area, where the tour guide was explaining how one of the people that now haunted the mansion was one of Mrs Winchesters carpenters.  He apparently continues to try to repair a fireplace that is situated in the ballroom downstairs.  As she was telling the story, I felt the sensation of ice come over my face.  I will call it a sensation, as it was not a wind or breeze.  The chill went down over my shoulders even though I had several layers of clothes on.  Again I looked to see if anyone noticed anything, but no.  I looked about for an open door or window, but there was none, not that I expected to find one.  This was a cold that I could not describe.  It goes without saying……I considered crapping myself.

Once the tour was over, we head to Santa Cruz which was another town on.  The Bear had wanted to go to the Santa Cruz Boardwalk as this was the location where a “Huey Lewis and the News” video was filmed.  In the film clip it is a bright, sunny day…clearly in summer…where the beach was covered with bikinis and lads.  Today was a significant contrast given that it was grey and wet.  But…we were there…so we had to check it out.   Not really much to tell here but at least we can say “been there, done that”.   The Bear did get to go to a place that he had really wanted to see, and though the weather was atrocious, I am glad he got to do that.

After we got back to Salinas we decided that we would have dinner at “The Outback Steakhouse”.    This is a chain of restaurants that apparently serve good Aussie tucker.  We have eaten at one of these in Las Vegas on a previous trip also, and found that nothing could be further from the truth.  Tonight was no different.   The restaurant was decked out in everything Australian, yet the staff wouldn’t know an Aussie if they were poked in the eye with a prawn.  I would have thought that this should have been a condition of employment.   However if the proprietors have a menu that doesn’t fit, how can the staff be expected to know better?  Let’s explore some items listed on the menu:

Aussie Chicken Taco’s:  Three grilled chicken tacos topped with coleslaw, fresh pico de gallo, melted Monteray Jack cheese, and herbed aioli.    The problem here?  It’s a Mexican food topped with an American Cheese. Kudos to anyone that can eat the Pico de Gallo.  Lord knows I have tried.

New Zealand Lamb:  Lamb finished with a Cabernet wine sauce and served with garlic mashed potatoes and seasonal veggies.  The problem here?  Hello?  New Zealand Lamb?

Aussie Fries:  Potato fries topped with melted cheeses, bacon and spicy ranch dressing.   The problem here?  Self explanatory really.

Alice Springs Chicken Quesadillas:  Stuffed with fresh grilled chicken breast, sautéed mushrooms, bacon, melted Monteray Jack cheese and honey mustard sauce.  The problem here?  A quesadilla is Mexican!

Toowoomba Pasta:  Pasta with prawns and clams.   The problem here?  Toowoomba has nothing to do with pasta, and we don’t live anywhere near the ocean….so prawns and clams?  Pffft!  Not to mention that Toowoomba is not in the “outback” How do I know this?  I have lived there for nearly 30 years!

This is just a couple of examples.  The food isn’t bad however the experience, if you are an Aussie in a foreign country, is terrible.  Staff in the restaurant pick us for being British even if we say G’day.  *sigh*

Tomorrow we are driving up to San Francisco to catch a flight to Seattle.  Eddie Vedder country.  Excited much!!!

2016 Trip - Day 5 - Rain, rain go away!

Well we are not a week into our holiday yet and I am missing my dogs like crazy.  How I will make it through the month is beyond me. *sigh*

Today we left Los Angeles and started making our way north towards Seattle and Vancouver.  I really love L.A but it was silly to stay there for too long this trip as we have other things we want to do this time.  It will be an interesting month given that we are going north to Canada and then south to Texas, followed by a Caribbean cruise.  We will be going to the very cold, and then the very warm.  My lily white thunder thighs could do with a decent splash of sunlight and if it wasn’t for the fact that Greenpeace will try to roll me out to deeper water, I would be doing that when on our cruise.   By the time we get there I will be absolutely busting to shake off the cold and a good bit of sunbathing would do it.  Mind you given the sights I saw on the last cruise, I would appear to be quite the glamour-puss. Whilst I have fat that might threaten to fall out of my bathers, the elderly people sunning themselves on the top deck DID have something falling out.  In most cases it was their very saggy genitalia. I don't think I have had a strong enough stomach to eat raisins ever since.  

The drive that took us to Salinas, our spot for two nights was long and boring.  There was quite a bit of rain on the way up which meant I could not do my usual and take photos of everything possible from the passenger seat.  The rain also meant that the nutters were out in force driving like kamikaze pilots.   As we have seen on previous trips, the bad weather will bring out the worst in drivers and also as per previous trips, we came across many accidents.  Some were truly made of the stuff that would sell an insurance commercial.  Also whilst on the road, the Bear made an observation and commented that on this drive there was next to no road kill.  On previous trips we have come across racoons, skunks and foxes that lost after playing chicken in the traffic.  Today we only saw one solitary squashed skunk.  RIP Pepe le Pew.

Just while I think of it - I am just going to point out that in Australia we are getting ripped blind at the bowser.   Today the Bear put $25 litres in the rental car and this was for 40 litres worth of fuel.  That is probably the equivalent of under 70 Australian cents per litre.  This is insane.   Its cheaper here to buy petrol/gas than it is to buy water.  I just find that crazy.  What is crazier is how we get fuel from the same place as the yanks, yet we get charged what we do.  Insane.

Arriving in Salinas in the late afternoon, in the pouring rain, was interesting at best.  This was because our GPS had an absolute mind out in the town and had us running all over the place.  I am thinking that because we haven’t had our American GPS updated in a few years. What was more than interesting though was the Bear having a complete smashed out argument with Siri.  It was so awesome anyone would have thought they were married. I just couldn’t tell how it would end.  Divorce papers or make up sex.   What’s more the town was not easy on the eye (not that I can talk) and had weird road markings…and just weird streets that did not make any sense what so ever.    So we were driving in the pouring rain, in an unfamiliar place, with nutter drivers out, and the Bear fighting with Siri.  I was seriously hoping they would quickly get to the “no speaking” stage. 

Somewhere south of Salinas we stopped at a gas station which had a general store next door.  After the Bear had put in the fuel we decided to go next door to the general store to have a look just in case and buy a drink.  Usually the stores away from the metropolitan areas sell some amazing stuff.  Its seriously weird what you can get in the regional parts of the country.  We entered the store and found that it stunk of something that was like a mixture of dirty armpits and boiled cabbage.  We could not identify it, but noticed that there were too elderly men sitting at a card table next to the counter.  I didn’t look to see what they were doing as one of the men got straight up and came behind the counter.  He gave us a welcoming smile and with that I realised what the smell might have been.  The stuff growing between his three teeth. Was that cheese and baked beans? I am sure some vomit came up and into my mouth.   The Bear and I got a drink and the he asked me if I wanted anything else.  I looked around but all I could see was RV sewer kits, RV sewer pipes, cleaner for RV sewer pipes and the like.  There was not much more in the store other than a few grocery lines so I shook my head.  I couldn’t wait to get back outside to breath in some fresh air.   I have no idea why they called this is general store.  Although in its defence it really was very, very general.  If I was in the market for a shitter….I would have been set!

Pulling up at our hotel, we felt a sense of familiarity. We always stay with the Marriott chain, and on this occasion we were staying in Marriotts Residence Inn (more of a budget motel but is awesome because it has a kitchenette).  We stay with the same chain as it does make us feel more familiar with things given the amount of places we stay when we are overseas.  It was no different this time.  Familiar hotel, familiar décor and smell, and of course a familiar bed.  On this occasion however, unlike the places that we have stayed in the past which are used to getting tourists through, I had the feeling that this place did not.  It’s a country hick town in North West California and clearly they didn’t come across too many Aussies.  They could simply not understand our accents.  The Americans say that we talk too fast, which I had never noticed until watching the Bear try to talk with someone.    More Americans speak with some sort of drawl which stretches their words out.  The length of the drawl is dependant on which part of the USA you are in.  In fact, on a previous trip two years ago, when we went into a fireworks outlet in Alabama, the lady behind the counter who sold us a fridge magnet, is probably still trying to end the sentence that she was uttering when we left  “Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaave  aaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy naaaaaaaasssssssssss daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay yaaaaaaaaaaaa’lllllllllllll”

Repeating ourselves is par of the course when we are over here, but it was particularly bad in this town.  However tonight I found that I also didn’t help in making myself understood.  We were doing some laundry (another reason we like the Residence Inn locations) and I was checking our clothes in the dryer.  I found that they weren’t quite dry and was glad that the Bear had given me a dollar to change at the desk if I needed coins to run the dryer again.  I made my way down to the front desk to ask for some change for the dryer. I spoke with a young Hispanic gentleman.

 

Me:   G’day.  I was hoping that I could change this dollar into coin if possible please?

Dude behind the counter:  Pardon Ma’am?

Me:  I was wondering if I could change this dollar into coin please?

Dude behind the counter:  Ah yeeeaaaaa.  Wert wuld ya’ll like?

Me:   Ummmmm…….quarters I think.  Is it quarters that go in the dryer in the laundry?  Or is it dimes?

Dude behind the counter:  Pardon Ma’am?

Me:  I need coins for the laundry.

Dude behind the counter:  The lowandry? Do ya’ll mean the wash room?

Me:  *confused*  Ummmmm…..I guess?

Dude behind the counter:  Yeeeeaaaaa sure we caaaaaaaan Ma’am.

Me:  Thankyou

Dude behind the counter:  Will therrrre be anaaaaything more Ma”am?

Me:  No thanks.  I’m all good.

Dude behind the counter:  Sorry Ma’am?

Me:  No thanks.  I’m all……um no thanks”

For those that are interested, the washing machines and dryers take quarters.

 

After going to put my coins in the dryer, I got in the lift to take me back to my floor.  Just as the door was shutting, a man wearing an overcoat got in with me.  He said he noticed I was going up, and although he wanted to go down, figured he may as well come for the ride.  I gave him a small smile and a nod in response before continuing to look at my feet.   This apparently was not hint enough that I didn’t want to talk although I still did want to be polite.  He wasn’t in my country, I was in his.  So when he started talking again, I looked up politely.  The man said….and I quote “  Do you know what would make a really good horror story?  If someone went to join you in the lift and the doors closed and cut him in half”.  Bloody hell…..WTF? Psycho alert!  When the door opened I was out of there almost running out of my socks.  I kept looking over my shoulder to make sure he wasn’t coming!  What a toss-pot though

Tomorrow we are going to San Jose and Santa Cruz for a drive.  We have been past San Jose before (and I will now have that song in my mind for the next couple of hours) and have not been near Santa Cruz.  We have a number of things that we would like to see there, so I have my fingers and toes crossed that the rain has gone by then!