Indeed, I have broken a few promises to my followers (if there are any left at all). Having been severely neglectful of my blogging responsibilities, a great deal of shame engulfs me. Particularly when after Ramadan I waxed on about how things would be better, how I would persevere in updating my blaberring on endlessly with some semblance of regularity and yada yada. However the proof is most certainly in the written pudding. I have slacked, slacked badly with little to excuse myself.
So I will not try. Seems futile anyhow. I doubt by now any of you would take my word for even a grain of salt.
Okay so now that I've addressed the 'broken promises' part of the title, let's go on with the adventures. And oh yes I've had a few in the last few days (now weeks).
The blog just prior to this one seemed pretty optimistic by that title, didn't it? Day 1. As if day 2, 3, etc. would follow quick upon it's heels but alas another broken promise, even if not declared outright. But it was certainly an assumed. If any of you had been checking back periodically to see what the rest of the days would hold, you would once again be disappointed. Seems like the norm around these parts of late. Hopefully though anyone who has traveled alone can at least somewhat identify as to why I couldn't, didn't sit down in front of my computer and bang out blog after blog.
I was all over the place as you will come to realize as you read.
The rest of this blog and a few to come will be my effort to retell all that happened during my first (and hopefully not last) visit to the great northwest...Seattle. You will notice that P's name is hardly mentioned. That is because he was unable to make it due to work obligations.
So here goes nothing...
August 15:
The day I arrived in Seattle, I stepped out to a fine misty rain. Nothing about this surprised me since I had been warned forwards and backwards about the usually damp climate so I took this as the norm and powered off to get my rental car, which ended up being this goofy lil thing called a Sonic. (Me to the rental agent: Back at home, a Sonic is either a hedgehog or a fast food place. Rental agent to me: I know, right?!) I had to ask the young lady what the hell a Sonic was and she just looked at me deadpan and said 'girl it'll get you from point A to point B'. She was right but I wistfully thought of my baby at home with her power and awesomeness. I had to remind myself over and over again that not all cars could be as kick-ass as my Stella. The Sonic ended up being a little black thing that my Audi could probably have eaten for an afternoon snack but still it actually gave great gas mileage (precisely what I needed considering how much I would in fact be driving) and indeed it took me where I needed to go. Check it out:
But the friendship between me and this car didn't start immediately. I recall once inside of it for the first time glared around almost resentful, then sighed in resignation and was soon on my way through the rain to the hotel, an agonizing 20 minute drive way. Why was it agonizing? Because I was in an unknown car, in an unknown city, in rain, with a GPS which hated me.
The hotel itself was clean and the room was comfortable, nothing fancy nor luxurious but safe and secure. I checked in, unpacked then headed out to get some lunch, deciding to also pick up some staples for my stay. Discovering that Downtown Bellevue had a lot to offer including a super pricy fancy mall which boasted such stores as Gucci, Armani, Teslar (is that how you spell it?) and other such retailers which gave me heart palpitations, I wandered a bit but felt as if my legs were protesting and my body was unhappy with me. Both were demanding rest, including my eyes which were tired of staying open. After a fish and chips lunch which I barely finished and most certainly didn't linger over at a pub called Paddy Coyne, I stopped at the grocery store (Whole Foods), bought a dozen bottles of water, some jalapeno cheese cubes and whole wheat crackers, a whole host of fruits and a bottle of fizzy tangerine water, oh yes, and a few yummy chocolaty tarts. By the time I got back to the room, I was tired enough to be able to take off my boots, make a few calls and fall asleep by 11pm, looking forward to the next day.
August 16:
Waking up surprisingly refreshed, excitement coursed through my geeked out being. Today was Forks! For those who have no idea what Forks is then let me give you the 411. It's the town in which the book Twilight was set. Yes, I admit I am a Twilighter. There is no shame whatsoever in me to admit this out loud. I am perfectly okay with it and if you don't like it or are presently harshly judging me, that's fine, not much I can do about this fact anyhow. And because of this hereto aforementioned designated title, there was no way I would have missed out on the visit. So armed with directions to the Chambers of Commerce off I went with a few bottles of water, dried mango slices and no coffee. Yes, that's hard to believe, right? I had been in Seattle for less than 24 hours and had yet to stop to taste java. But my mind was occupied with Edward, Jacob and Bella hence I barely noticed my body clamoring for the rejuvenating nectar of life (which I have called it before if you can't remember).
Prior to making the decision to go and partake in the place where the specter of these three characters resided, I had found out that Forks was approximately 146 miles one way. That translates to 3 hours and 45 minutes without breaks. I admit I mentally paused at this idea. 4 and a half hours with stops...yikes. But I managed to convince myself that it would be fine since the drive through the Olympic Mountains probably would be breathtaking (I was not incorrect there). Off I went. And where things could go wrong that a.m., they went wrong.
First, my dratted hand held GPS decided that it hated me (still) and refused to give me directions that made any sense. I quickly downloaded another direction app (MapQuest) thinking surely that would work better. I was severely wrong. Lastly, I pulled out the GPS that I had brought with me from home, plugged it in and prayed. Now the reason I hadn't started with using that was simply because although it was working just fine, I couldn't hear the audio. At least the day before it wasn't working from the airport to the hotel. What a mess. Normally back in my own place I don't need to use audio but seeing as how I was floundering around in unfamiliar territory, the vocal warnings for turns seemed important. Unfortunately due to the cluster-F the car one had been the day before, I was leery of using it the next day during such a long drive. However after about an hour of chasin' my own proverbial tail around, I had enough and pulled it out.
Meantime I stumbled upon a Starbucks, scored me some java and muttered a thanks to the Almighty for at least making it a beautiful bright sunny day in which I was systematically getting lost in. Subsequently P called asking me where I was/what was I doing and I reiterated to him about the problems I had encountered. I nearly wailed into the phone about how the audio wasn't working on the GPS when my eyes spied a speaker icon with an slash through it. Yes, it was on mute. Feeling sheepish and silly I unmuted it only to have the car interior flooded by a familiar low husky voice (no not P's, the GPS woman). Finally, nearly an hour after having departed from the hotel, I was on my way. And about another 45 minutes later, as I gaped at the scenery all around me, my GPS informed me (yes, informed me, out loud...yay) that a ferry crossing was approaching. I did a mental 'huh?'. Me, being from the east, had never had much reason to use ferries. Apparently in that area it was common, that area of course being Seattle and it's surroundings. Had I thought about it, it would have made sense, seeing as how there was water everywhere one looked but no one can ever accuse me of being insightful. I was stumped, having no idea what I was supposed to do, wondering how one drove onto a ferry without tipping the damn boat over. Questions flew through my head as I drove to where the cars were about 20 deep waiting patiently.
A very friendly albeit gangly gentleman came strolling over, motioning me to lower my window, realizing belatedly that it was already lowered. He flashed me a friendly grin and nicely informed me in an almost lazy drawl that I had to do a U-turn and head to the 'ferry staging area'. Apologizing for being such a dunce, I smiled and indeed turned around not sure where this staging area was although he had told me. Honestly, I'm great at directions but this trip to Seattle, or at least the initial day, had me questioning my own abilities. Turns out that there was construction which made finding this staging spot a lot more difficult proving that in fact I wasn't the biggest nincompoop around.
However, my very eastern mind had assumed the crossing would be quick. Oh boy, I was super wrong. Once in the staging area, I craned my neck and saw that it was at least 150ish cars long. :| Yes, I was horrified, then resigned. Turning off the engine I sat there listening to music and reading a book until it was time to move forward. By the time I reached the spot I had started at, I was the 15th car back and had about another 40 minute wait. Again I was resigned but not in the least stressed since no one was with me to bitch and moan about the wait. Besides, it wasn't as if I was trying to get somewhere at a certain time. It felt to me, for the first time in such a long time, that I had all the time in the world. It was a nice feeling.
I also quickly discovered that people would get out of their cars, walk around, get coffee or food, use the facilities or just stand and stretch their legs as they waited for the next boat to approach. I followed lead and used this as an opportunity to snap some photos Here are some pics of the ferry as well as the actual crossing:
I bet you didn't expect this blog to be a pictorial, right? Yes, well a good friend of mine suggested it and I thought, why the hell not? I mean I have a lot of making up to do for my past transgressions so at least I can do this much.
Anyhooo...come to find out that I had no reason to wonder over how to get onto the ferry and all that, the attendants were efficient and friendly. There was also no threat at all of my one puny Sonic tipping the launch over since it thing housed about 300 cars. The crossing took 20 minutes, the debarking about another 20 and soon I was off towards Port Angeles, the half way mark between where I was and where I wanted to be.
The drive was as splendid as I had imagined. So much so that I was almost (and I mean almost) loath to reach Forks. I was also a bit tremble-y with excitement at the prospect of seeing Port Angeles since this small port city (city being a very lose designation) was also featured in the book. I thought I would stop, look around and then drive on but thanks to all the delays from earlier I figured that I needed to keep going since the rest of the drive was pretty much through mountainous areas and I wanted to make it back before darkness started to descend. By no stretch of the imagination am I chicken, however the idea of driving through winding mountain roads in the dark of night alone with little to hardly any cell phone bars, was not all that appetizing an idea.
But here are some of the sites I did see (you will agree, breathtaking):
Literally every single bend that I took offered a feast for the senses, which is why it took me longer than it should have to get to Forks. I entered the small town by 2ish I believe, it's hard to remember so many weeks later, but I had to stop to snap this pic also:
I was there, really and truly there! I couldn't believe it as I feverishly texted my Twilight bestie F and told her where I was. She whooped in response as I drove into the town...and then about a mile later, I drove right back out.
:|
What the...I pulled over in shock. The blasted town was only a mile long. I was stunned. Well hell, who knew. It seemed a lot larger in the movie, or so I thought. Tired of all the misdirection's, I did a quick U-turn (hoping it would be one of the last) I came to the Chambers of Commerce, parked, walked in and announced to the lady at the counter without batting an eyelash or blushing, "Hi, I'm a Twilighter". Unlike anywhere else in the world, she did not scoff, mock nor fall over laughing in gales of laughter. Neither, may I mention, did she gape, snicker, titter nor jeer. She instead nodded pleasantly as well as knowingly, chirped a "well welcome to Forks" in a funny almost Wisconesque like accent and handed me a map. Attached are a few highlights:
This is Dreamy Dr. Cullen's lab coat *sigh*
The map of forks that I had with me
From left to right: Alice, Edward, Bella and Jacob
The two cars that were Bella's, one used in the movie, one in the book.
There are more pictures of Forks but I'll spare you non-Twilighter's the agony. Oh and on the very, very, if-you-blink-you'll-surely-miss-it, short drive through town, I had been able to note how desolate the town seemed so I decided to ask about this. I casually commented to the bubbly woman helping me that it didn't appear as if the area had actually benefited from the Twilight phenomenon. Her face fell a slight bit as she nodded sadly and said 'unfortunately that's true, after the initial hype, it basically died down other than die hard Twilighters like yourself.' That was when I cringed. I also bought a t-shirt that says "Forkes Bites" hoping I had somewhat did my part.
Armed with the map, I took a few more pictures, climbed into my hot car and headed for Bella's house. The desolation of the place actually got worse as I approached her street and it overwhelmed me totally by the time, less than 45 minutes later I left town headed for La Push Beach which was/is located within the Quileute Reservation. The beach was where...nvm, that's too much info about the book. Suffice it to say, there wasn't much going on in Forks, I took the pictures I needed and was bizarrely happy to get away from the sad little town.
La Push was a 30 minute drive through more winding roads, although not terribly mountainous. I was still quite riveted and as I drove to 1st Beach, my eyes rounded with astonishment. Speechless I parked, grabbed my camera and walked down to the beach. There were people there, a handful at most, but otherwise deserted. The beach was in the form of a crescent moon and quiet, so very quiet. I could hear my own breathing being swept away by the gentle breeze, heard the waves break into the shore and closed my eyes for a moments, just standing there. At that moment, Twilight was lost to me. I was much more aware of this beautiful piece of Mother Earths handiwork.
I walked a lot, from one end of the moon to the other, stopping, taking pictures, sitting, pondering, sighing a lot. If you were to ask me if I had thought of something specific, I can not answer that but if there was a place where brilliance could be realized it would have happened there or if one was a hidden poet at heart, then I assure you the discovery and subsequent writing of whatever masterpiece would have happened then. It was there in the warm breeze and in the salt of the air. Alas, I did none of that, preferring to sit and watch a few children play in the water, screeching and screaming in delight, observing and capturing surfers through my lens who were much further out waiting endlessly for the perfect wave. I saw a few couples walk by hand in hand, goofily smiling, stopping to kiss while holding onto shoes. Gulls cawed overhead while dogs woofed in the distance as they romped in the sand.
Here are a few of the things I captured through my camera:
I admit there was a momentary sense of loneliness since P wasn't with me, or anyone else who I could share the vista with but that lapsed as I eyed the sun and knew it was time to go. My feet reluctantly dragged my body back to the car and with one more glance at the water, I shook loads of sand out of my sneaks and was off.
By the time I was truly on the road, it was nearing sunset, here are some more pics of what I saw:
Here's a sign you don't see often in DC :| Thank God
Oh, this is Jacob's bike *dreamy sigh*
On I went, winding through the mountain, the sun sinking lower and lower, the shadows growing longer and longer and yet still I stopped over and over again to take pictures, I couldn't resist and I'm sure you wouldn't have been able to either, just see for yourself:
And as I neared Port Angeles, I stopped and took one or two more:
Eventually I knew it was time to head for the ferry that would take me back. I had been told that the last ferry left at 12:30am, and I had no intention of missing it so I said bye bye to Port Angeles without really looking around much. The drive through the dark was peaceful as I listened to old Hindi movie songs (singing along naturally), the windows open, only stopping to get gas and thinking wistfully what a pleasant day it had been. I was wonderfully exhausted and I admit I was looking forward to getting back to the hotel no matter how terrific the experience.
You will note I made no mention of stopping to eat, correct? I actually picked up something from Jack in the Box, a fast food joint that has zero presence in the east coast (which I adored when I lived in L.A...btw, it wasn't as good as I remembered it being) for lunch on my way to Forks and dinner was nothing. Eating wasn't the most important thing on my mind, a common reoccurrence through the rest of my trip you will see as I continue my narration. I can tell you this much, trail mix became my best friend.
Back at the hotel, closing in on 11pm, I kicked off my tennies, changed and slipped into bed with a grateful groan. The next day was Saturday and I had every intention of taking it easy, getting up late in an effort to recover from all the driving I had done that day and generally being super lazy. I can tell you this much though, even as I write all this down, I do not begrudge any of the incidents that had happened during those first few hours of my trip to Forks, not when the memories from the rest of the day are so blessedly dear to me.
And I also can tell you, or rather admit, that I've watched Twilight again since returning home, not because I'm so terribly in love with the movie(s), but because all those roads, mountains, structures now have a different meaning. I can tell myself (and have), "you were there!"
Okay, so there we go, one longgggggg update but at least I published (finally). I sincerely hope you enjoyed reading this. Look out for the rest of the trip blogs : )
Ciao!
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