At the beginning of the week I bussed from appointment to appointment–basically making up for the zero time I had to go to the doctor, dentist, mortgage broker, etc. while I was teaching. I spent a couple of hours training for my new job working as a teacher/desk jockey at a chi-chi studio that provides full spa treatments while your kid takes class. This job is already looking pretty laid back in comparison…sure, it’s a vast and gorgeous space sometimes filled to the brim with screaming toddlers, but it’s a far cry from the past nine months.
Anyway, towards the end of the week Josh and I treked out by car and ferry to Port Angeles and Port Townsend. I had heard from various sources that the Olympic Peninsula was gorgeous, and being that we have traveled all over Colorado it seemed strange that we have done so little exploring in Washington. Josh took two days off, and after consulting several time tables and gassing up the Honda we boarded a ferry and took off. At one point during the trip Josh asked me to photograph him impersonating the tragic Leonardo Dicaprio “I’m the king of the world!” Titanic schtick that I’m sure the ferry captains are sick of watching people reenact. Josh chickened out, but I didn’t:

While driving through Sequim, I marveled over the bread sticking out of the back of this passing truck:

We found Port Angeles to be largely unglamorous…filled with strange little shops filled with kitchy sand-dollars, fabric flowers, and ‘local’ art. Because the ferry to Victoria BC is in the heart of the town, these shops saturate the area as it begs for tourists coming on and off the ship. Josh and I saw a store aptly titled “Precious Things” and realized that none of the stuff inside was precious or needlfull. The town had a strange mix of hippie, hick, and Rennaisance Fair intermigled with a dark underbelly that surfaced occasionally. The crystal loving, sword brandishing, Magic player would certainly love this store:

We wandered over to the sea aquarium that was right next to the ferry terminal; we decided against paying the five dollar admission fee and hung our heads over the railing and looked down at the sorrounding tide pools for free. Josh posed (somewhat naughtily) for me in front of this historic mural:

You seldom see public telephones anymore, so I feigned a very important call. (What I didn’t know was that at the top of the stairs were two homeless men making out).

We stayed at the Red Lion Inn, right on the water, but still felt a little unsatisfied for the amount we were paying. An air conditioner wailed all night long nearby, so any hope of waking up to the gentle sounds of the Puget Sound were ruined. Josh and I had originally thought that Port Angeles was ‘where it was at’, but decided to take off to Port Townsend on our second day of vacation. Hands down, Port Townsend wins for coolest Port town. OK, sure the tourist stuff was still there, but the main drag was adorable; It was filled with cool artsty shops, espresso joints, and restaurants all housed in ancient turn-of-the century buildings. We admired the sailboats, and once again, Josh swore up and down that eventually he is going to buy a boat:

We saw the new Pixar flick, Cars, at the historical Rose Theater. The movie was excellent, and it gave us the chance to observe the locals: plenty of hippies, pierced spiritual types, and loads of restless teenagers.

We turned a corner and found this bike cop who had evidently pulled over this car of teenagers.

I loved all the old signage in Port Townsend, most of it was painted on the side of aging buildings.