Flash Back Friday

This flash back only goes back to June of this year.

Ches and I celebrated our 15th Wedding anniversary, in Seattle. My parents kept the kids for a few days so we could go and play. It was the first time we had been on a vacation, just the two of us, since our honeymoon. We had a fabulous time. We discovered how much fun it is to vacation as a couple and how beautiful and fun Seattle is.

I still haven't perfected the picture thing so some of them are in a random order.

Seattle skyline from the roof of the Mediterranean hotel we stayed at.

Ches at Pikes Place Fish Market, home of the famous "flying fish"

Enjoying some clam chowder at Ivars on Pier 55

Seattle has underground streets. In 1889 the city of Seattle burned to the ground. The city officials decided to raise up the level of the city, because the original city was built at sea level and it kept flooding with the tide (founders were not so smart). So they saw this as a chance to build the city the right way. Brick retaining walls were built, some over 8 feet tall and the streets were paved. However most of the businesses had their store fronts at the original street level. For a while there were open ditches, but eventually the old streets were paved over and the underground tunnels remained. This is a picture of the "skylights" built to give light to the tunnels.

This is the same place from street level.

There are many brick archways and storefronts you see on the tour. There is even a haunted bank vault.

Standing in front of the famous Pike Place Market. It was almost overwhelming with all the vendors and shops, but it was a must see.

We visited the Science Fiction and Music museum. They had a huge column of guitars and drums. Ches' favorite room was the "Jammin Room" where you could play different instruments, and of course he totally rocked.

One of the tours we took was the Duck Tour. It is on this old WWII amphibious landing craft. You drive around the city then you drive into the bay. The driver was really crazy and it was a bit cold, but a lot of fun.

This is the famous "Sleepless in Seattle" floating house we saw on our Duck tour.

Jelly Fishing, Jelly Fishing!!

We went to the Seattle Aquarium. It was fascinating to see all the different kinds of sea life. We loved the tanks where you could touch sea creatures.

Some of the starfish and anemones we touched.

This is what we feed, a sea urchin

Feeding the sea urchin some seaweed

View of the Seattle skyline on the Puget Sound.

Another tour we went on was the Argosy Cruise to Blake Island. We took a ship across the Puget Sound to this island where a Native American Village was set up. On the island we learned about the NorthWest Coastal Native Americans, watched a stage dance about the histories of the people and enjoyed a Salmon buffet. It was the highlight of the trip.

Ches found this star fish while he was exploring the shore on the Island

Ches down at the shore on Blake Island

Inside the lodge/ visitors center on Blake Island. I loved learning about the native cultures. They explained why the NorthWest Coastal Indian had such a rich art history, it's because of the abundance of food from the salmon. That left a lot of time for them to develop their art.

This is one of the head pieces worn during the dance. It is made of solid wood, and very heavy. There is a string in it that allows the dancer to open and close the beak throughout the dance.

I tried taking a lot of pictures of the dance performance, but they didn't turnout so great, this is near the end during the mask dance.

This is a view of the shore on Blake Island. There were trails to explore the forest, but unfortunately not much time to do so.

Ches enjoying a clam, they were SO good!

When we arrived on Blake Island we were given a cup of clams in broth. As we ate our clams, we were asked to throw the shells on the ground and step on them. This is a tradition of the native people. The paths around the lodge was real pretty with all the purples and black colors from the crushed shells.

Inside the lodge there were some fire pit that they used to smoke the salmon for the buffet. The salmon was attached to Alder wood stakes, then cooked over the pit. This style of cooking is the traditional style of the NorthWest Coast Indians. It was, by far, the Best salmon we have ever eaten. The man by the pit is Joe, he was our guide on the cruise over to the Island.

This is Blake Island. The big long building is the lodge house where the salmon buffet and stage show "Dance of the Wind" is performed.

This is the ship we took our cruise on.

This is us at the Argosy, on Pier 55

We had such a great time together. We enjoyed the leisure and freedom of having no kids. I am so grateful for the time we had together and look forward to our next one (and it better not take another 15 yrs for it to happen :)