Seattle things to do - museum

A friend of mine suggested the Museum of Flight in Seattle. The boy was immediately excited so we will be going there for sure. It looks kinda cool!

Geared Up

On Saturday, we went shopping. We bought the cold weather gear. We spent a fortune. All I can say is, I'm glad it's winter here right now so we are getting some use out of the cold weather gear.

I bought:

• puffy down jacket
• ski pants
• polar fleece pants for inside
• merino wool zip up hoodie (WAY cool)
• waterproof/windproof cool jacket
• thermal underwear
• socks
• beanie
• gloves

The boy bought:

• puffy down vest
• base jumping pants (no, I don't know why either)
• polar fleece pants for inside
• thermal underwear
• merino wool zip up hoodie (not as cool as mine)
• waterproof/windproof cool jacket
• goretex jacket
• polar fleece shoes (for inside, they are hideous, he loves them)
• socks
• beanie
• gloves

Notice the boy's list is bigger than mine. And we discovered that they have charged us twice for his puffy vest. But he is so pleased with it he thinks he might just ask for another one anyway.

The Rocky Mountaineer - the other train trip

As I mentioned, we'll be travelling over the Canadian Rockies via train. We're both really looking forward to it.Hmmm, that picture doesn't quite look like I thought. Oh well. We spend one night in Kamloops, then the next night in Banff, before heading to Lake Louise for two days.

Apparently the train slows down at all the really scenic points so you can get good photos. And of course, since I now have the magnificent camera, we'll be getting loads of great pictures.

Vancouver things to do

My sister went to Grouse Mountain and said it was awesome. I want to go too.


The sleigh ride looks like fun too. I hope there's snow so we can go on it!

I have the new camera. It's going to be great!

Things to do in Vancouver #1

I want to go to the Capilano Suspension Bridge. I think it looks awesome! And I'll be able to get some really great photos.

$28.95 entry fee? That's a bit steep! Oh well, you have to pay the big bucks when you're a tourist I guess.

Itinerary Part 5

After we leave Churchill, we fly back to Winnipeg for the night before heading back to Vancouver the next day. We'll be staying in Vancouver (at the Listel Hotel again) for another 5 days before getting back on the plane and heading home. As we are flying Singapore Airlines we have to go via Singapore, so we're stopping there for 2 nights and staying at the very glamorous Ritz Carlton Hotel. Total pampering and luxury for 2 days. Then we come home.

4 weeks and 1 day of awesome fun. We are both so excited. I'm getting the new camera this weekend and we are both going to buy puffy jackets for the cold bits.

I'd better do some research about things to do in Vancouver.

Itinerary Part 4

After we have spent two days at the Chateau Lake Louise, we'll be travelling to Calgary to get on a plane and fly to Winnipeg for the polar bear trip! This is the whole reason for this holiday. I am so excited about it. This is what we'll be doing on this trip:

Tundra Buggy Lodge Adventurer
Dates Oct 19, 2008 - Oct 22, 2008
Tundra Buggy Days 2
Lodging 3 nights Tundra Buggy Lodge
Average Day Temperature High/Low -1 ° C (31 ° F)/-7 ° C (20 ° F)

Sample Itinerary
Day 1
Early morning departure from Winnipeg. You'll have some free time in Churchill before being transferred to the Tundra Buggy Launch mid afternoon. Board the Tundra Buggy and begin the trek to the Lodge, meandering along the tundra. Providing opportunity to view, photograph, and learn about Polar Bears, other arctic wildlife and the environment. Arrive Tundra Buggy Lodge for your first overnight stay.

Day 2 - 3
After breakfast, depart the lodge by Buggy, spending the day on the tundra in search of wildlife. Overnight Tundra Buggy Lodge.

Day 3
After breakfast, depart the Lodge, spending the day on the tundra and returning to Launch for your return transfer to Churchill. Spend a short time in Churchill before being transfered to the airport for an evening departure back to Winnipeg.

Activities
Tundra Buggy Adventure
The best way to experience an intimate encounter with a wild polar bear is on an authentic Tundra Buggy. All of our Tundra Buggies are all furnished with dual-pane frost-free windows and contain propane heating systems that closely resemble a cozy fireplace, with real flame (behind glass). Each day, we depart early and board our world famous Tundra Buggies looking for polar bears and other wildlife out on the tundra. You will enjoy picnic style lunches and refreshments while you are bear watching.

Churchill and Area Tour
A guided bus tour of local and historical points of interest surrounding Churchill, including such attractions as Cape Merry, Port of Churchill and Manitoba Conservation's Polar Bear Holding Facility (weather permitting).

We've also included an optional helicopter flight over the tundra, during which we are guaranteed to see polar bears (or our money back). I'd rather see the polar bears!

Itinerary Part 3

After we leave Seattle, we are flying to Vancouver. We'll be staying at the Listel Hotel for one night, before getting on the Rocky Mountaineer and spending two days travelling to Lake Louise. I'm so excited!

Seattle things to do

Okay, we will!

One of the train trips

These are the places we'll be travelling through on the train from San Francisco to Seattle. Apparently its 23 hours and some minutes so it's a long trip. At least we don't have to drive!

Emeryville, CA (EMY)

Martinez, CA (MTZ)

Davis, CA (DAV)

Sacramento, CA (SAC)

Klamath Falls, OR (KFS)

Eugene, OR (EUG)

Albany, OR (ALY)

Salem, OR (SLM)

Portland, OR (PDX)

Vancouver, WA (VAN)

Tacoma, WA (TAC)

Seattle, WA (SEA)

And we'll get to see some of the country side, and not have to fly any domestic american airlines.

We'll be travelling on the 14 Coast Starlight route. Sounds cool, eh? I am not so sure about the millions of guidelines you have to follow but I'm positive it will be a good experience.

Mount St Helens

This is what Mount St Helens looked like in July 2007. The boy is very excited about going to see it. Two years ago we saw an active volcano in Vanuatu so I'm not sure about the attraction of this one. I suppose it's considered active, having erupted only 28 years ago. Anyway, since the polar bears are my thing, the volcano part is for him. I'm sure it will be interesting.

Itinerary Part 2

After we leave San Fransisco, we'll be heading to Seattle. Only we're catching the train! We decided it would be a much better way to go - we won't have to fly domestic American airlines (always a dodgy proposition) and we'll get to see some of the scenery along the way! It's a 24 hour train trip so we have a sleeper car.

Whilst in Seattle we are going to see Mount Saint Helens volcano park. I'm not sure what else we will do; probably see the Space Needle and whatever other touristy things there are to do. I'd better do some research so I know what to expect!

Itinerary Part 1

Our first stop will be San Francisco. I'm very excited, I've never been there before and it looks gorgeous. We'll be staying at the Argonaut Hotel, on the recommendation of a friend. I hope it's nice. We are not sure what we'll do in San Francisco but we have five days to look around and see a few things. The Boy is keen to do a helicopter flight over the Bay area so we might do that at some point.

But just as excitingly, most of our flights are business class! And we are flying with Singapore Airlines so that's all good. They are excellent!

Talking about our holiday

So this is the blog for my big adventure to the US and Canada this year. I'll be going with my partner (forever referred to as the Boy).

We leave on October 3. It's very exciting.