Christmas Break 2 of 3

So, after things quieted down from Christmas and the wedding, Jodie and I went to Seattle for a day.

We took the ferry across the water- I've always enjoyed the ferry. Being able to get out of the car and look around makes the travel to Seattle go a lot quicker. However, you also have to time the ferry right, because waiting for it isn't very exciting. But anyway, here's the boat as we got ready to board.

Jodie as we get ready to board.
After boarding, we got out of the car and went to the upper deck and snagged a few pictures. It was kind of foggy/cloudy, but not bad for Seattle winter time weather.
Here we are approaching the Seattle skyline.

Afterwards, we went back to the car and got ready to disembark into Seattle.
The first stop we made in Seattle was the city underground tour. For those who haven't heard about it, they have a tour that goes underneath the downtown area to the original Seattle streets. Seattle was originally built at sea level, but the rising tides sometimes raised the water level up to ten feet- a small problem for the sewer system that relied on gravity and emptied into the harbor. So, eventually after a fire, the city rebuilt the road from 10-30 feet higher over the next 10 years. However, the land owners rebuilt immediately and ended up having their 1st floor underground. Anyway, it is a really cool tour and we highly recommend it. They start you off in this old saloon and tell you some of history of Seattle and the area.
After about 20 min, they split us off into smaller groups and we went underground. Here is an example of what you walk through. The floor is the original sidewalk from the 1890's. On the left is the original storefronts. On the right is the wall the city built to elevate the road. The ceiling is the current Seattle sidewalk.
An old storefront.
Every so often, they built skylights into the sidewalk. Many of the skylights still exist- if you see purple glass tiles in cement, its an old skylight and this is what the other side looks like.
Jodie standing in front of an old bank.
Me by one of the old doors to the bank.

At one point in Seattle's history, they used sawdust to raise the ground level and built on top of it. Over the years, many of the building's first floor, like this one, began to collapse as the saw dust biodegraded. However, the rest of the building was fine because they were required to put post 40 feet down into the ground to support the buildings.
Here is a historic photo of the above building.

This would have been looking out the front windows to the street.

Me during the middle of the tour- we were going to another area of the underground city.

In all, the tour was amazing and very cool. After finishing the tour, we made a stop off at pike place market.




We didn't stay too long, but it was fun to see them throwing the fish. Afterwards, we walked back to the car and I got this shot of Jodie. At first she didn't want her picture and and covered her face. However, after I told her I would just take the picture with the hand, she decided to show her smile.

Our last stop in Seattle was the Space Needle. For Christmas, Chad bought us tickets to go up to the observation deck- a real treat because neither of us had done it before. So, here we are heading towards the Space Needle.

Here we are on top of the Space Needle.

The view of Seattle- it was the perfect day to go walk around Seattle and go to the Space Needle, especially during the middle of the winter.
Jodie and the Seattle skyline
Myself
We wanted to get a picture of the both of us, so I found the guy who had the nicest camera and asked him to take our picture. I figured that he would know what he was doing and I think it turned out very nicely.
A nice picture of the the water from the Space Needle.
Another shot of Jodie.
One last picture of the Space Needle before we left to go home.

On the ferry ride home, we got some nice pictures of Seattle and the water front.



As we were starting, a 787 Dreamliner flew overhead on a test flight- the thing is huge. I was also really amazed how much the wings bowed too. Apparently, the flexing of the wings act as shock absorbers and gives it a smoother flight that other planes.

Here was a nice picture of the Sunset and a passing seagull.

After getting home, Chad found the old, original nintendo system and we played mario brothers and duck hunt for family night.


After a few rounds of duck hunt, we felt pretty good about our skills and Chad and I took Jodie out shoot for her first time ever. Here is Chad explaining a few of the basics about the shot gun.
It made me laugh to see that the gun was about as tall as she was, but this was Jodie's response.

Here are some shots of Jodie shooting.

Afterwards, Jodie wanted to try the pistol too- so, here's another picture.

It was fun going shooting again with Chad, but, as before, the only birds that need to worry about my hunting skills are those on duck hunt.

When we got home, Chad showed us his new mountaineering equipment by climbing up the excavator. Jodie, Mom, and I came out to watch and cheer Chad on.
Here's Chad getting started.
After a few minutes, he was quickly at the top of the roap.
Jodie got this picture of me as I was watching Chad climb down the rope.
That's all the pictures of a very fun and memorable Christmas trip to Washington. Thanks Mom and Dad for all you did for us and letting us come and stay with you.