From Sea to Shining Sea

We've been keeping ourselves busy. Yesterday we took the subway (metro? I'm not sure what they call it in these parts, especially for the bits of track that are above ground) all the way out to Coney Island in the south of Brooklyn where we ate hot dogs and went to the New York Aquarium (The Seattle Aquarium is better, with considerable less school children.) The trip to beach in Brooklyn made it official: I've been from sea to shining sea this month.

We came back into Manhattan to get Broadway tickets, then stopped by Grand Central Terminal and the lobby of the Chrysler building, then grabbed a bite to eat and squeezed in some souvenir shopping before the evening's show.  I've developed an unnatural affinity for Magnolia Bakery cupcakes and as such, am beginning to look like one. 

We saw In the Heights on Broadway -- it was fine, not my favorite musical. I found some knowledge of the Spanish language necessary to full appreciate it. Unfortunately, I opted to take French in high school and college. In hindsight, that really wasn't my best choice, especially since my handle of French is so poor, I can barely understand a word of the French dialogue that swirls around me whenever we're at the hostel. 

The hostel is fine. Now that all the Europeans stranded by the volcano have gotten to go home, we have a fresh influx of French to take their place.

Today is the Sex and the City tour, then the Met, Central Park, and maybe some shopping. I have a dinner date with a hometown friend tonight as well.

The weather has been gorgeous. I think we're all a little sunburnt. It's been a great adventure so far. I fear the travel bug may be biting me again, hard.

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Happy Easter!

I’m happy to report that the Sea/Tac airport is in no need for baggage retrieval reform. After our plane landed (it was slightly ahead of schedule) we made our way to the baggage retrieval in the main terminal where we waited approximately two minutes before my bag came spewing out onto the baggage carousel. Since they’ve started requiring a payment for checked bags, I’ve tried my hardest to avoid having to check any bags. Although I’ve flown into Seattle before, I’ve never had to retrieve a bag. But like everything in this trip so far, checking a bag proved delightfully straight forward.

I suspect Andy and I are kind of like what hobbits would be like if they went on vacation, as long as they weren’t bothered by any of that nasty ring business. “Oh look, food!” they would exclaim. “Oh look! Nice things to drink!” Because we come from such a rural area where options for food and drink are limited, eating out tends to be a big focus of our travels. Last night we had a lovely meal at the Coastal Kitchen. Tonight we found a little gastropub just a few blocks south of where we’re staying. Some clam chowder and plenty of microbrews have also been consumed.

It’s so nice to be where everything is green and flowering.

It seems most Minnesotans like to “make a break for it” come April when their home state is reduced to nothing but rotting dead grass and mud. Here the trees are flowering, along with violets and primroses. The weather has been fine: a little chilly with some spitting rain.

We had a day of wandering today. We’re about a 25 minute walk from downtown. We wandered through Pike’s Place Market and spent a good long time in the Seattle Aquarium where I tested out the “aquarium” setting on my new camera extensively.

We headed up to the Seattle Center where we went through the Experience Music Project and the Science Fiction Museum. (Admission to the SFM is free with admission to EMP – I’m not sure how many people would head through the SFM if admissions were separate!) Since we won’t rent a car until Tuesday, we walked everywhere today. Now we’re both nursing sore feet.

Not sure what tomorrow brings: more exploring of some sort. Right now Andy's trying to set up the mini DVD/TV in our room and has succeeded only in dropping it on my leg. Here's to hoping he's slightly more successful in his endeavors.

Hope everyone’s had a lovely Easter! It's been a low-key one here, but nevertheless, a good one.

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