Things really are non-stop here, very little space and time to think. Especially this past week – I worked extra hours Mon-Thu so I could take a short day on Friday and head to Seattle for the weekend. So the first part of the week consisted largely of work, gym and sleep.
Wednesday was an exception – we met up with a couple of locals who introduced us properly to sushi, complete with discussion on the history, etc. Vancouver is full of sushi places, but Dream Sushi, where we went, is one of the best. I had some very nice inari, nigiri, and .. I forget the names of everything. It was all yummy though! Veronica got to try lots of things too.
Then on Friday, we jumped on a bus to Seattle. It’s a lot cheaper than flying, and a little quicker than driving (the bus jumps the queue at the border). Apparantly easier to cross the border than in a car according to locals as well, because they can tell you have a return trip booked. It still takes ages to get across, but we didn’t have to queue, and there was a 70 minute queue for cars.
I got waved through because I still had a valid US stamp in my passport. Veronica had to fill in a form, be interrogated (and teased) by an immigration official, and pay $6. Then we were in the US.
Then another two hours drive to Seattle, a chance to watch a movie on the iPhone, relax.. and before I knew it, we were in Seattle. Our first view, under an amazing evening sky, was the Space Needle on the skyline.
The bus stops in Downtown Seattle, right by the Space Needle – and the Experience Music Project, where we’d be going later to see the BSG exhibition. But for now, we stayed on the bus. Our hotel was nearer the airport, so we grabbed a bus to there, then hopped on a cheap taxi ride to the hotel.
Saturday was a chance to hang out with Nick, who’d travelled up from Portland to meet us. Lots to catch up when you only see someone once a year or so
Then on Sunday, time for BSG! This was the opening weekend of the Battlestar Galactica exhibition at the Experience Music Project – so our ticket got us into the exhibit, and two museums as well. The main feature of the exhibition was three life-size spaceships – a Mark II Viper, a Mark VII viper, and a Cylon fighter. No Cylon though, I’d have loved to come face to face with one. Downstairs in the Science Fiction Museum, though, plenty chance to come face to fsce with robots – the Terminator, Robbie, Twiki, and others – lots and lots of original movie props.
The Experience Music Project is worth seeing itself – I especially like the Sound Lab, where you can play musical instruments with help and guidance. A little like Rock Band, but with real instruments. I could get hooked on bass guitar, I just love those deep sounds.
Lots more pictures from our Seattle Trip here: http://gallery.skirnir.com/v/travel/vancouver10/seattle/