My Oyster

36 Hours in Seattle...

Seattle Aug '08 003, originally uploaded by dcjay64.

Breezing through town for a meeting. This was my view in the morning. I had a great view of downtown and Elliot Bay.

I am amazed every trip here, and there are lots, at how much the city has changed since I moved here in 1988 for grad school and since I left in 1992 for a career and DC.

To me, the changes seem very positive. Lots more people living downtown. Lots more to do and see downtown - restaurants, galleries, shopping, etc.

I have to say though, there was some kind of pioneer charm to the edgier downtown that used to be. It was very "Seattle". Maybe that is still here too - but I just don't see it from the 44th floor of the Westin.

I will get out and about more next trip.

Vacation Challenge 2008

I am not good at vacationing. I need help.

I am good at taking long weekends or a day off here and there and do that a lot as I travel around the world.

I usually only take a proper vacation every couple of years.

• I traveled in Colombia in June of this year.
• In 2006 I traveled in Italy with Ma, Suz, Grant and Daryl.
• I vacationed in Poland in 2004 with my family to reunite with distant relatives.
• Back in 2002, I traveled in Norway with Ma, Tut, and Daryl to reunite with my high school exchange family.

All great vacations – but not that many over 8 years.

The Vacation Challenge: I have a lot of vacation time that I need to use up by the end of the year or lose it. I need to think through where to spend a good chunk of time and what to do when I get there. I can get restless pretty quickly.

Oh, there are a few other factors…

• Timing – well before the end of the year – maybe in early October. Maybe in December.
• Location– Probably in Asia or Europe. Hey, I would consider the US too. Probably not LATAM this time.
• Budget – minimal. Maybe the developing world is the best idea. Not Paris. Not Tokyo. Too pricey. I don’t want to spend a ton of money on a hotel, so cheap or somewhere that I can stay with friends is the best option.

So that’s my challenge.
Any Ideas?

Buddha, Blue Angels & Berries...

Not in that order.  But each part of a wonderful summer Sunday in Seattle. 

I started the day with a morning walk through Pike Place Market - coffee and camera in hand.

I bought some of these berries and a fresh peach to snack on.

I tried, several times, to take a picture of myself.  It kept getting washed out.

At one point, a very odd and persistent guy who claimed to be Bruce Lee's brother, offered to take a picture. I declined.

After the Market, I made my way up to Capitol Hill and the Seattle Asian Art Museum.  The museum is in a beautiful arte moderne building that was originally home to the Seattle Art Museum's main collection.  There was an exhibit on Buddhas that I really wanted to see and enjoyed. 

Here is the SAAM...

After enjoying the museum I went out into Volunteer Park.  Gorgeous.  On a hill with views of the city and water.  I love the trees.  Very Pacific Northwest.

I plopped down on a bench in the park to watch and try to photograph the Blue Angels - who were performing in the skies over Seattle as part of the SeaFair festival.  The view from my bench...

Oops.  And here are the Blue Angels...

Seattle is great in the Summer.

Sickness in Seattle...

That is my little play on sleepless in seattle. And the pic above is the ER at Virginia Mason Hospital on Pill Hill in Seattle. That's where I spent the morning today.

And here is the outside of Virginia Mason.  Kinda pretty... 

It was just walking distance from my hotel - so actually an easy addition to my travel-related infections & hospitals series.  Everything is fine.  I just needed some drugs. 

I blame United and the hour on the Dulles tarmac breathing the same gross air.  Over and over.

Needless to say - not much touring this trip.  This is my typical view so far...

And here is the view from my room.

I think I stayed at the Roosevelt once.

Greetings from Seattle...

Greetings from Seattle Washington postcard, originally uploaded by Smaddy.

This postcard is from 1977. The city looks different now.

I arrived tonight. Late. Slow bags. The W hotel is booked up, so I am at a Sheraton. Blah. Big conference in town so the only rental Avis had was a mini van. Blah. Blah. A Chevy Uplander?!

Oh well. I still like it here - but I am here for a long time this trip.

That's me. I wanted to stay...

Colombia June '08 002, originally uploaded by dcjay64.

I saw this big tourism (?) ad at the Bogota airport today on my way home.

I thought it was interesting - using people's fears for their safety in Colombia as a marketing tool. I wonder if it works. I was compelled to go over and get a pic and I defintely did want to stay - so maybe it does resonate.

But tonight I am home in DC after an amazing vacation in Colombia with Jean and Dr. David and the other David too.

We were in Bogota, Medellin, and Cartagena. It was my first trip to Latin America and I am hooked. Big time. I am gonna start learning spanish. I am gonna try to spend more time down there. Buy a vacation house. Who knows. :-)

Colombia absolutely amazed me. I am so lucky that I got to see it with two close friends who are also natives.

I was surprised by a few things. How economically developed the country is. How safe the country is. How geographically diverse the country is.

I was nearly overwhelmed by the foods (arequipe - sweet sugary something, plantains - in every possible form/combination, coffee - nuff said, and the largest selection of fresh juices imaginable), the people (very generous, very knowledgeable and proud of their culture), and the sights (natural, man-made, good, bad, ugly - all fascinating)

So yeah - for me there is definitely the risk of wanting to stay in Colombia. I will definitely return. Soon, I hope.

Last Day in Colombia...

This is amazing trip is winding down.

We spent our last day here in Cartagena much as we did the first - just roaming around and soaking in the sunshine, the sunshowers, and all the colors and activity of this beautiful city.

Here we are at breakfast at the hotel - starting our day.

Here we are ending our day at dinner at Plaza San Pedro - a favorite spot. The restaurant is the yellow building in the pic above. The view for dinner can't be beat.

Here I am doing one thing that I really like to do when I travel - buying a ring that reflects the local culture and is made by local artisans.  This ring is silver, with an emerald (this region is big for those gems) and has a precolombian figure on it.  Ok, I have doubts about the quality (legitimacy?) of the emerald but I love the ring and he gave me a certificate of authenticity.  :-)

Here is the sun setting on the Caribbean and on our vacation...

Colón and Color in Cartagena...

That is Christopher Columbus and some other woman.  The statue is in Plaza de la Aduana – just a few steps from our hotel.

The word "Colombia" comes from the name of Christopher Columbus (Cristóbal Colón in Spanish). It was conceived by the revolutionary Francisco de Miranda as a reference to all the New World, especially to those territories and colonies under Spanish and Portuguese rule.  The name was then adopted by the Republic of Colombia of 1819 formed out of the territories of the old Viceroyalty of New Granada (modern day Colombia, Panama, Venezuela and Ecuador)

Since we are in Colombia, his namesake, I thought it was important to give CC a little play here on my blog.

 

Today Jean and I ventured outside the walled old city to a monastery on the highest hill here in Cartagena.  It was nice and fun getting out into the less preserved and touristy Cartagena.

Here is the monastery on the hill (look past the woman)…

 

And here is the view of the city from the monastery…

 

 

One of the things that Jean really enjoys about Cartagena is the colors – the Caribbean influence.  Here are a couple colorful shots from today.

The Portal de los Dulces (where they sell good sweets)…

 

And here is the string of gift shops at the Bovedas…

 

And finally, this is the Plaza de los Coches on our way back from dinner.  They sold the slaves in this square just inside the wall…

Capital of the Caribbean - Cartagena de Indias...

That was my entertainment tonight at dinner in Plaza Santo Domingo. This city is too much fun. It is the perfect spot to be on vacation.

Jean and I did as the guide book advised. Just roam the narrow streets of the old, colonial city. We roamed for 10 hours today and stumbled across historic places, odd sites, beautiful sights, artisans, performers, and more good food and drink.

This was the view from our balcony this morning. The dog is adorable.

This is me in Parque De Bolivar – this city’s monument to Simon.

Here is the same park, at night during a coach ride.

Here are Jean and I on the fortress wall that surrounds the old city. We later learned that it took 80K (of the millions) of the slaves brought through Cartagena to build the wall.

We took a tour of the monastery where St. Pedro did his work with the slaves.

We also took a siesta to escape the mid-day heat. This is me in our room – the “Viceroy Suite”. Very nice.

Here is one of the houses we passed.

And here are a couple of the neighbors.

This is the ocean at sunset.

And here are our dinner companions – all of us enjoying the warm breezy night in the open plaza.

It was such a nice first day in Cartagena, that we decided to stay an extra day – so we could roam some more.   More pics here.

Medellin to Cartagena...

I am in Cartagena tonight. The town looks great and I can't wait to start exploring it with Jean. More on this city tomorrow.  Umm, no - the pic above is not Cartagena. 

We spent most of today in Medellin with David, Mauricio, and David's family.

Today we rode the Metro to the cable car and up to the Spain Library. It is amazing. A beautiful modern, art-shaped library built at the top of one of the city's highest slopes. It is also in what was one of the city's poorest and most violent neighborhod. David tells me that it was so violent there in the 80s that the police would not even go in. Pablo Escobar's gangs were often fighting each other and killing lots of others in this very poor neighborhood.

Spain built the library and it has become a model for new approaches to addressing violence and poverty. We were all very moved by it and the neighborhood and the people living there.

More pics from today at the library...

Biblioteca España, originally uploaded by el DVD.

After the library, we went home for lunch with the family - my favorite part of the day - took a quick pic and then said goodbye for now to David's wonderful parents...