Fort Ward State Park Bainbridge Island

... the water. We then went in the back way to a very upscale residential area. See the Pix of a most interesting evergreen tree below. Perhaps a type of spruce? Anyone know? Check out the weird little shoots that look like mushrooms growing right out of the limbs!! Nice tree!!! Andy had me take the pic of the runner who was catching his breath under the road sign...."Toe Jam Road"....really! Good grief...a runner on Toe Jam Road! It started to rain and ...

... then went on a ferry to one of the many beautiful islands near the city. On the island I had the most amazing ice cream I have had in my life - and was totally worth flying the thousands of miles for - a must for any ice cream fan to visit if you are ever in this part of the world! I had the cheesecake and brownie flavour ice cream with hot chocolate sauce - it was good ...

... concrete more interest and color, is substantial and yet soft at the same time. Most effective,charming and sexy. My (Andy writing now) senses of sight, smell and touch are all fully aroused as soon as we reach the building. Alec's use of clear cedar, glass, aluminum, steel and concrete made me appreciate what a building can be if you let go and break away from conformity. I had to keep stopping to either feel the smooth surface of the aluminum, smell ...

... where our picnic awaited us. I spread out the cloth Carlee had packed and set out curried tofu salad and a smoked turkey, maple mustard salad. We wrapped tortillas around the salads along with some romaine lettuce from Carlee's garden. Yum!!! After some nap time in the sun, off we rode around to the other side of the Island where the Lummi Indians have a long house and serve up a salmon buffet done in ...

... this home. What a resource! A great beach with incredible views, walkways and a heartfelt beautifully crafted memorial to the American Japanese interned during the War. The texture of the wooden beams is like polished granite! No kidding! I'll keep adding pictures as Welfare Ave continues to be finished for renting. so check back in to this entry for updates......

Well, I figured I'd kick off this travel blog while I have internet access. We should have some on the boat, so I hope to be able to keep you all updated with my adventures! So far, the only adventure is worrying that the American Airlines cancelations will somehow affect our flight (not very likely). But I know I won't totally relax until we're on our plane. All packed and ready to rock ...

... want to pound the drums and dance. Both the mochi and the history of the Japanese Americans on this island are fascinating. Prior to the start of World War 11, this group owned property and businesses on the Island. The novel/movie "Snow Falling on Cedars" chronicles their lives. Then in the spring of 1941, they were ejected from their homes. Given only a few days notice to arrange their affairs, they gathered at the ...

... of my trip (back to Hong Kong), and more hours searching for just the right device on which to save the many digital photos I hope to take. I tracked down the book in which Eric Shipton, "discoverer" of Shipton's Arch, described the task of getting to the arch, as well as the book in which Shipton's wife's described the same journey. Yes, I'm a fanatic. Despite all the preparation I've done, I'd still like another week or two, or maybe a month, or perhaps two, to read ...

... bus, people who are trying to attract attention. Usually it is a distraction technique and someone is digging through purses. China had some good scams, again, all people approaching us on the street and speaking English well "Hello! We are art students and we are having a showing of our school's art! Can you come to the gallery to look at our art?" They bring tourists to high priced art dealers to get ripped off. We also got ...

... contemplated the Golden Gate Bridge. And then we drove some more... and it rained... and we drove some more... and then we reached Seattle. (ok, it was a short trip) But the day was so very beautiful I could hardly keep my eyes on the road. I was pretty undisciplined when I was driving (I tried not to let Becca catch me too often) but it was so hard to look at someone else's taillights when you have the Cascades on your left and the ...