Must See Stops 3: Seattle, WA Day 21 of 83
Introduction: John and I had plans to travel. We had plans to find a way to become full-time RVers, but in reality we knew that this would probably have to wait for retirement due to his medical conditions. When he was diagnosed with angiosarcoma cancer in May 2017, he ended up being trapped in a hospital room for 83 days. He was admitted for six different hospitalizations in four different hospitals in three different cities before unexpectedly dying in the hospital on Oct. 5, 2017. You can read about the day he died Part 1 and Part 2. I then made Big Plans to take a trip to the places we had wanted to go and see together. For months I planned the trip: an 83 day trip in my RV with my two youngest daughters, almost 14,000 miles around the United States in 83 days! Each day would take back a day that was stolen from John in the hospital. This is one of 10 stories from my “Must See” destinations.
When Kady turned seven, I managed to find a summer camp in Wisconsin that would take children her age for an entire week. I had searched for months for different options, both wanting the girls to have a great summer camp experience while also giving John and I some much needed respite.
The first year that they went to camp, we joked with one another, making bets on how many days into the week it would take before we got a phone call from the camp asking us to pick them up because of their poor behavior. We dropped them off on a Sunday morning, and I bet that we would get a call on Tuesday. John said we would get a call as soon as we got home on Sunday afternoon! Well, we were both wrong, not only did they make it the entire week, but Alena won an award for the camper with the most compassion! I think the sounds of shock that squeaked out of our mouths when they announced her name were heard by everyone there!
So, with that first week of summer camp having been such a success, we planned something for ourselves the next summer while they were away. The plan was to drop them off on Sunday morning and then head to the closest Amtrak station. We would spend almost two days on the train, heading to Seattle, WA. John wanted to see the Pacific Ocean, he’d seen the Atlantic several times, but had never been to the Pacific. I wanted to see the Public Market in Seattle and both of us wanted to eat some of the world renowned Pho we had watched Anthony Bourdain rave about on many of his television shows. Seattle was one of the best places in the country to get it. After spending a day in the city, we would get back on the train and be brought back to Wisconsin, pick up the girls, and everyone would be happy. The tickets were purchased in January and we were counting the days and learning everything about the trip, the train, and about Seattle.
But life had other plans. John’s diagnosis of angiosarcoma in May, two months before our trip, and his almost constant hospital stays made it clear that we would not be able to take the trip we had purchased for July. I had to contact Amtrak and give
them a doctor’s note in order to be refunded the full fare amount. On the day we were supposed to depart, John looked at my from his hospital bed and without needing to explain what he was referring to, he said, “I’m so sorry. This isn’t how today was supposed to go.”
“I know. I’m disappointed too. But the Amtrak runs everyday. We will just reschedule the trip for another time.” Except another time never came. He died unexpectedly three months later.
When I made my Big Plans to take an 83 day trip around the country, basically getting back each day that was stolen from John in the hospital, Seattle became one of my first “Must Do Stops.” After leaving Taylorsville, CA, which was Must See Stop #2, I drove to northern California to see the Redwoods, and then I drove up the Pacific Coast until I got to Washington. I kept my promise and took John to see the Pacific Ocean for the first time.
In the Seattle area, I stayed in Port Angeles, WA to be close to Olympic National Park. I arrived after a long day of driving, where I forgot to eat much of anything at all during the day. The views of Oregon and Washington were so beautiful and the girls were sleeping most of the time, the miles just ticked away and I enjoyed the views of forest and water along the way. But there was a huge problem. I had no idea how I was going to get into downtown Seattle. I didn’t want to drive there.. where would I park in the big city and how would I get around? I had searched google maps for days and days trying to figure out where I could park and take public transportation into the city. The train? A bus? A ferry? It was the night before our day in the city and still I had no idea of how we were going to get there. As we were walking back to CeeCee after going out for supper, I glanced up and saw a billboard on the back of a building. It advertised shuttles from Port Angeles to Seattle. Daily. I scoffed and thanked John for giving me a sign and helping me out. I had driven past the billboard at least four times and never noticed it. I had walked past it on the way to the restaurant and had never noticed it. Suddenly, in the final moments of the day, there it was! I quickly called the number and caught them minutes before they were closing. I booked our round-trip shuttle ride for the next morning. We would be leaving pretty early and arriving pretty late.
The weather forecast, typical of the Pacific Northwest, called for a full day of rain. Now, rainy days are my favorite, but not for a day where I’m planning to walk and be outside for much of the time. Do I bring the umbrella? Do I risk the weather actually turning decent and spare the extra weight in my backpack? The umbrella wasn’t huge, but the backpack was already pretty stuffed with extra layers of clothes, charging devices, snacks, and of course my knitting project.
The sun was just starting to peak through the clouds as we rode the ferry across Puget Sound from Kingston to Edmonds, WA. The shuttle then wound into the city and I found myself nodding off from time to time. When we were dropped off at our stop, the hospital complex…of course.. it HAD to be a hospital after all we had been through the past few years, I refused to go inside – but this was the closest shuttle stop to the market area. Oddly, for me, I had no sense of direction when I stepped off of the shuttle because I had been sleeping. If you’ve been to Seattle before, you are aware of the hilly nature of the city. For me, this was a complete surprise! The map LOOKED flat, no telltale signs of hills, no curvy roads, no notes of hilly walks from the websites I had researched, yet there I was…. standing in the middle of a hill trying to figure out which way to go when there were no clear physical landmarks to guide me. My phone map was also no help as it only showed exactly where I was, not which direction I should go. I rubbed my eyes to wake up a bit more, took a second to think about the reality of hills on a waterfront city area and decided to go uphill.! After half a block, I realized what an idiot I was to choose UPHILL, turned around, and we began our walk to Pike Place Market.
Once we got to the Market, the whining started. And it lasted for quite a long time. In all honesty, there really wasn’t much at the market that day, and even less for kids to do. A few flower booths, the fish store that I wanted to see, a bakery, and the dozens of tourist shops that you find everywhere. We walked up an down the market twice and then decided to find the gum wall. Alena was NOT thrilled. She didn’t want to stand close to the wall for a picture, so Kady and I did as Alena moaned about how awful the day was.
I fed them some sandwiches from Subway, and their spirits improved. A few blocks later I found MY food destination!! I wasn’t sure if they would like to try some Pho, so I stopped at Subway first, and then ordered the Pho for me. Alena refused to try it, but Kady loved it instantly and shared the bowl with me.
The minute I opened the door of the restaurant. I was greeted with the most wonderful smell. My soul even smiled.
I found a table and sat down to look at the menu, already knowing what I wanted. The Pho that had EVERYTHING in it. Beef, meatballs, tripe, tendon, … I’d take whatever they had. I ordered with a huge smile on my face and looked around the restaurant at all of the families slurping Pho while trying to ignore Alena and the faces she was making because to her, it smelled BAD.
The food was brought to the table, and I closed my eyes.. inhaling the best smelling broth I had ever had. I thought of John. We would have had such a great time here together. I filled my spoon with the hot liquid, just wanting to test the broth to see if it was as good as everyone had said. Oh. My. I closed my eyes and just smiled as the hot liquid slid down my throat and warmed my insides. THIS is what heaven must be serving! Every bite of the soup was amazing. And Kady asked the same question that Anthony Bourdain had asked about this soup, “Is it soup? Is it a noodle dish? Is it a meal? Exactly WHAT is this?” My answer was simply… yes.. it is all of those things. And I now have a life-long Pho buddy!
With overly filled tummies, we walked the few blocks to the monorail that would take us to the Space Needle and the International Fountain. I had no desire to go to the top of the Space Needle, not because I’m afraid of heights…. I love heights. I just had no desire. When I’m in a big city, I much prefer to just sit at a park an watch the people go by, I don’t particularly like most of the tourist attractions.. and Pikes Market had proven that.
We got off the monorail and headed straight to the fountain. I had no idea what a hit the fountain would be!
The girls played with a bunch of kids, running back and forth and squealing with joy when they were pounded by a stream of unexpected water. They were soaking wet from head to toe and having the time of their lives. I got to sit for a few moments and work on my knitting, which is something that used to be my favorite thing to do, but now it was an effort to want to hold a project in my hands. Strange how trauma and grief affect you in ways that you could never predict.
Within moments, the blue sky became cloudy and we began to feel some sprinkles. I remembered that it was supposed to have been a day of almost solid rainfall. One quick glance to the sky and I could tell that this wouldn’t be a long-lasting rainfall, but it could become uncomfortable to stay outside much longer. We walked through the mistiness to the Seattle Center. As we got closer to the building, we could hear music. Drums.
Kady was invited to dance during “The Spirit of Indigenous People!”
Once inside, it was clear that this was a Native American celebration from the how the people were dressed, and the sound of the drums pounding through the entranceway. John was, and I still am, so proud to teach at a school on a tribal reservation and to have been invited to learn more about he culture and traditions of the Ojibwe nation. While each tribe is very different in many ways, there are also many similarities. Sitting and listening to the music made me feel closer to home when in reality I was almost 2,000 miles away from my home. It also made me feel closer to John, and that he was there with us… guiding us through the adventures of the day.
We looked around at the many tables covered with colorful items for sale and then we heard the announcement that the rain had stopped and that they would now hold the dancing demonstration outside. It had been postponed due to the brief showers. I didn’t have to ask the girls if they wanted to go and watch, they both tugged on my arms and pulled me towards the doors with huge grins on their faces.
After a few dances, they asked for some volunteers to join them for an intertribal dance that they would teach. Kady’s hand shot up right away and she was one of about eight people in the crowd that were picked. As they taught her to dance and the music started and she joined them, my eyes filled with tears. This was becoming a day to remember.
After the dancing was finished, we were hungry again and it was getting to be time to travel back to the hospital to be picked up by the shuttle van. Inside the Seattle Center, there was food for the girls, and I had spotted a meat pie shop earlier in the day. As a high school student, I had lived in New Zealand for a year on an exchange program. One of the staple foods at school were meat pies. For years I had seen shops and tried their pies, hoping for that familiar flavor from New Zealand, and always, the pies fell short. This shop, however, had the same display case, the same looking product, and the same types of meat pies that I had remembered in New Zealand. I ordered a curry pie and a sausage roll. One bite, and I was back in New Zealand, and the tears found my checks once more.
It was truly meant to be that we would be in Seattle, and that we would be here on this specific day. “The Spirit of Indigenous People” was held for only one day. And if it hadn’t started to rain a little bit, we would never have gone into the building and experienced it.
It had truly been a remarkable day.
REAL!! AUTHENTIC!! NZ MEAT PIES!!
We took the monorail back to the downtown area and slowly began the walk UPHILL to the hospital, stopping often to catch our breath. OK, we stopped so that I could catch MY breath. Seattle, I like you, but your hills have a wicked bite!
As we waited for the shuttle to arrive, the skies opened and the rain that had been held back for us all day was suddenly released in the heaviest downpour I had seen in a long time. We got back onto the shuttle and the girls were asleep within minutes as I watched the city fade away and Puget Sound returned. It had been a long, tiring, emotional day.
One that I will remember always.
It rained all the way “home” to CeeCee as we sat on the shuttle.
If you would like to go RVing, here’s Everything You Need To Know!
If you, or someone you care about is dealing with grief, here are some tips for coping with grief from people who are dealing with it themselves!
- Must See Stops Series
- Stop 1: Kansas City – Day 2 of 83
- Stop 2: Taylorsville, CA – Days 9 – 13 of 83
- Stop 3: Seattle, WA – Day 21 of 83
- Stop 4: Zion National Park – Day 36 of 83
- Stop 5: Grand Canyon South Rim – Day 42 of 83
- Stop 6: Albuquerque, NM – Day 49 of 83
- Stop 7: Philmont Boy Scout Ranch – Day 51 of 83
- Stop 8: Galveston, TX – Days 55 – 58 of 83
- Stop 9: Exeter, NH – Day 73 of 83
- Stop 10: Acadia National Park – Day 75 of 83
