I’ve done a little bit of hiking since our family’s return to Ohio. And I have to say that I am freshly impressed with the beauty of this region. It’s so green and bushy and wild! The forest floors around … Continue reading
I broke almost all of my regular vacation rules this month. Our two-and-a-half-week trip to the Pacific Northwest was lovely. But it seemed to be the antithesis to our typical vacation philosophy. We stayed busy! We covered a lot of … Continue reading
I enjoyed the experience of trying to distill our family’s trip from Ohio to the Pacific Northwest into a single hour. I chose an hour of togetherness. A focus on family (both historically and within our vehicle). And some particularly … Continue reading
Controversy can be fun! Well, at least if it’s about something as inconsequential as vacation observations. I know that I am making some flying leaps into subjective judgments based on extremely limited experience. But still… Why not?!? They’re all in … Continue reading
We just got back to Kent from our family’s vacation to the Pacific Northwest. It was a long drive! But I’m so glad that we got to get away — and I’m so glad that we made it back home … Continue reading
You’d be surprised how many Americans confuse “Ohio” and “Idaho” (and “Iowa,” too, for that matter). I guess it’s the vowel sounds. And perhaps the stereotype we’re all in some sense backwater. But the regions are very distinct: in climate, … Continue reading
Olympic National Park has been within range of our base of operations in the Pacific Northwest. But just barely. The southernmost portions of the park can be reached with about two hours of driving. Some of the more interesting sites, … Continue reading
I was excited to experience the coffee culture of the Pacific Northwest. I figured it would be most-accessible in the cities. Like in Seattle, the birthplace of the Starbucks coffee empire (though I was more excited to try Starbucks’ competitors, … Continue reading
We visited Seattle today. Our family defaulted to the role of “tourist” in almost every way — dutifully parking near the famous Pike Place Market and spending the better part of the afternoon wandering from there to the Space Needle. … Continue reading
We went to the beach in Oregon today. It felt like a spectacular, sunny, Spring day. You’d think “Summer,” right? But the wind coming off the Pacific Ocean was pretty chilly. Sweatshirts were comfortable. And none of us wanted to … Continue reading