Author: Judy

Dear Liza,

Since your Great Grandma Billie was both a school and public librarian, I was practically raised in libraries. As a teacher, I spent thirty more years loving these places dedicated to protecting and sharing books.

And in Seattle, we found revolutionary architecture combined with a love of books and community service.

Opening in 2004, this 11-story steel and glass building was designed by Rem Koolhaas and Joshua Prince-Ramus. Nothing in it seems to be at right angles, which made Grandpa Nelson uncomfortable for a while. There is also a three story overlook that lets you appreciate the amazing architecture ( and give you the willies!).

The library uses elevators, escalators and stairs to help folks get around, but also something new to me, the “Books Spiral.” Starting on the ninth floor, books are shelved according to the Dewey Decimal System (most libraries use it), but instead of dividing the sections up by floors, you walk down (or up) the spiral on gently sloping ramps. The floors are flat and level, and the ramps go around the outside walls.

This is great for browsers like me, who hate stairs! I wandered by books on cartoons (I pulled out a Doonesbury and read a few), biographies, plays, and old sheet music, enjoying the books like they were art in a gallery. It was comfortable, fun, and very friendly.

Adding to the friendly feeling was the cafe downstairs, with lots of light, sunny seating. A security guard explained that his loved his job because he worked in a safe, welcoming community space dedicated to people and learning.

Homeless people, especially in cold, wet weather, will spend a lot of time in public libraries. Instead of chasing them away, Seattle’s library has certain areas where they are welcomed, so they can rest, use the bathrooms, and stay warm. It is working well so far, said the guard.

On the level with maps, I found an amazing experience that I didn’t take a single picture of, because it all happened in Virtual Space. With a VR headset on, I found myself in a canoe on the Duwamish River, paddling, gathering berries, cooking salmon, and picking up trash. It reminded me of camping trips with your Great Grandpa Lowell, who loved and respected the forests we visited.

The experience also helped teach me the history of this area. Seattle was founded by white people on the banks of Puget Sound, along the Duwamish River. These folks weren’t the first people here, though.

Before they came, the river was the center of life for the Duwamish people, who used the river for all their needs: food, transportation, clothing, and cleaning. As white people moved in, they wanted to use the river for different things, and have straightened, deepened, and polluted the river so that it isn’t good for anything but moving big ships through.

We all enjoyed our hour or so in the library, but the rest of the city was waiting to be explored, so we headed off, knowing we would come back soon.

Love,

Grandma Judy

Dear Liza,

We woke up at 4:30 to catch a 6:00 train. Why, You ask? Because Vancouver is in Canada, which is a different country, and it takes a long time to make sure a whole trainful of people fill out the right forms and have their passports.

I realized that as early as 4:30 was to me, it was nothing compared to the mother of two young boys, one of whom had misplaced his stuffed toy. Mummy did a fine job calming him down, letting him know that the stufftie was indeed in the pocket of his raincoat, and was safely in the duffle, though he couldn’t get it just now.

We got to know other children on the train. There was a toddler whose first language was Spanish who enjoyed talking to the cows in the fields along the way. Long after the cows had been left behind, she kept saying “Yeeeeee Ha!” in an amazing variety of voices. Auntie Bridgett and Grandpa Nelson put in their earphones.

There were a group of Chinese ladies across from us, enjoying the views and taking lots of pictures. They spoke only Chinese to each other, but could read English from signs and booklets. It was fun watching them react with such surprise to things that are common sights to us, like lumber mills and mud flats.

And finally we pulled into Seattle!

We walked up hill after hill from the King Street Train Depot to the Arctic Club. This wonderful building was built in 1917 by a group of men who had made their money in the Alaskan gold rush. They actually tried to join another popular men’s club in town, but were turned down because they were “new money”.

The building has walruses as decorations along the outside of the building and next to each hotel room door inside. They are on rugs, napkins , and coffee mugs.

For a bit of variety, the lounge is decorated with a giant glass polar bear.

This looks like the sort of place Phileas Fogg, the hero of Jules Verne’s story ”Around the World in Eighty Days” would have stayed.

More on our adventure in Seattle tomorrow!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Dear Liza,

On our last day in this pretty, grey-ish city, we all had different things we wanted to do, so we went our separate ways for a while.

Grandpa Nelson and Auntie Bridgett wanted to return to Granville Island, to see the harbor and buy a color of acrylic paint mixed only here in Vancouver, called Vancouver Grey. Having spent some time here, I think they mixed it perfectly well.

For my own last day, I chose to walk out along the path we had ridden on bikes, back into Stanley Park. I enjoyed being slow and looking at everything from every angle, waiting for the crows to be in just the right position.

I stopped for a good look at memorials and sculptures off the path, like this “is it whale’s ribs or ship’s ribs?” sculpture placed right on the sand. Turns out, it is called “217.5 degrees x 13”, a reference to the curve itself. I like the way it frames different views of the harbor.

This is the AIDS memorial, with hundreds of names cut right through the steel, as well as quotes with living thoughts. There were some small children there with their mother, and she explained that these were people who had died and this was the way their friends chose to remember them, and aren’t the roses pretty? Then she mentioned ‘lunch’, and they dashed away.

Further on, I saw Inukshuk, which was used as the symbol for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. It was, fittingly, accompanied by a seagull.

I found this memorial to Air India Flight 182, which was destroyed by a terrorist bomb in 1985. The stone wall, which symbolizes the interrupted flight path, was engraved with the names of the people killed. It was understated, sad, and lovely.

At that point, I realized that I was hungry as well as sad, and needed lunch. I found the Stanley Park Brewing, which besides dozens of locals beers, offers great lunches! I had a salad with chicken and a delightful hard winter wheat ale.

I continued back into town, found Auntie Bridgett and Grandpa Nelson, and we all hung out until an early bedtime. We had a 4 AM wake-up to catch the train!!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Dear Liza,

Did you know they perform Shakespeare here in Canada? It makes sense, really. Canada was part of England (in the same way America used to be) for a long time, and Shakespeare himself was English.

So, of course, we went to see it! To get there, we walked across the Burrard Bridge. This bridge was built in 1932 and dedicated to an English Military hero. It is beautiful for walking, and nicely lit by large, bonfire-colored lamps, which were designed to honor the World War One soldiers who kept warm by bonfires.

Across the bridge we found Vanier Park, which has a small astronomical observatory and, for the summer, giant tents! The Bard in the Beach is really a Shakespeare performance in these tents. The play we were there to see was The Taming of the Shrew.

Many directors will set Shakespeare plays in different times and places, and this time, Katarina and Petruccio were battling it out in the old American West of 1870….yep, Padua City, West of the Pecos.

You know I didn’t take pictures during the performance, because that is rude, but the sets and costumes were delightfully rustic, and the dialogue changed just enough to give it a western flair. For example, when Bianca’s suitors were bragging about their wealth, Lucentio said his father owned three railroads that went straight from Pisa to San Francisco!

But the changes that made it fabulous were mostly what wasn’t said… the gestures and personalities of even the smallest bit player. One of the characters, who was a musician, hid behind his tuba during a gunfight.

But for me, the best bit of re-interpretation was that Kate’s “taming” was a ruse, a trick agreed upon by her and Petruccio. It was well played and hysterical, with our two newlyweds collecting the money from Petruccio’s bet about whose wife would be most obedient, and rode off like bandits. It was laugh-out-loud funny.

When the play was over and we had clapped ourselves silly, we walked back across the bridge and enjoyed the lights of the city under the cloudy skies.

Love,

Grandma Judy

Dear Liza,

On Saturday, we went for a bike ride … a nice, long bike ride!

Auntie Bridgett and I had meusli and yogurt for first breakfast at the apartment, then we all walked to Breka for seconds. They have doughnuts for Grandpa Nelson and the coffee was very good, as well.

Then we walked the Pacific Sports Bicycles and some friendly folks rented us bicycles and helmets and gave us directions, and we headed off.

On Hornsby Street, which is the main road right through downtown, there is a dedicated bike lane! We felt so safe and easy, riding along without having to worry about being squashed by traffic. We rode past public art and beautiful old and new buildings.

and along the waterfront, all the way to Stanley Park.

In the park, we found that everyone else in the city chose today for their ride in the park, as well. There were actual traffic merging issues and crosswalks for pedestrians. Fortunately, good manners and smiles ruled the day.

The park and the city merged together very well, with just the right combination of views of high rise buildings and thick green forest.

There were views of historical statues and places, cute beaches if you wanted to get your feet wet, and places to buy snacks. We enjoyed fish and chips for lunch, then headed out of the park and into the city…

Where we found this!! This grouping of 14 statues had everyone posing and taking each other’s pictures. It was so much fun! Each was about ten feet tall, and showed the same man in various poses, laughing like crazy.

We rode along the Harbor on the bike path and ended up right where we started, at the bike shop. It had been a busy day, but we weren’t ready to head home yet.

We took the water taxi back over to Granville Island and wandered a bit more. We visited the Public Market, got some snacks and sodas and watched the parade of people, babies, and dogs go by. We visited Malaspina Printing and got a tour of their wonderful shared studio space from Stefan, a woodcarver. After a while, though, there was no denying it. We were pooped.

An hour or so later, and Grandpa Nelson had not only rested, but found us the perfect place for dinner… about a block away at The Tap House…salmon salad, huge baked pretzels, wine, beer, and a lovely waitress named Julia who just got back from her first-ever visit to Portland! Considering this was our first-ever visit to Vancouver, we all had a good laugh about how life is funny that way.

We walked a bit, wishing the grey sunset was a little bit pinker, then got home to read until bedtime.

Love,

Grandma Judy

Dear Liza,

Since Auntie Bridgett is an artist, we love to visit art museums when we go traveling. The main museum here is the Vancouver Art Gallery.

Inside the museum, we found Maura, a fellow sketchbook artist from Connecticut, and she and Auntie Bridgett talked about art supplies. They were like two kids comparing toys! It was sweet.

Moving along, we found the Alberto Giacometti exhibit. You would recognize his work by his very tall, thin figures.

The exhibit also included artists whose work influenced Giacometti, including this work by Kenneth Armitage. It shows three figures standing together. I like it because it reminds me of Grandpa Nelson, Auntie Bridgett and me, going through life together.

Upstairs was a show of Robert Rauschenberg, a printmaker who worked in the 1950s and 1960s, including using some NASA-provided materials to make wonderful modern art about the moon launch.

We walked some more around the Gallery, but really liked the building itself more than any of the exhibits, so we headed off into the rain. We found yummy soups and ciders at The Lennox Pub and then onto a very spectacular library. Yep, the library.

Built in 1995, the design of this magnificent place was chosen by competition and public voting. It soars 9 stories, reminds us of the Roman colosseum, and has roof top garden!

There is a floor just for kids’ activities, another for “study groups”, another as a “Quiet floor.” It really has something for everyone, all in a a bright, innovative space. We never wanted to leave, but we had reservations for dinner.

After some downtime, we got a cab to Frankie’s Jazz Club. The Aintzler Quartet, lead by their ninety-something clarinet-playing patriarch who goes by “Pop”, played jazz by Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, and lots of other greats. It was a musical, delicious evening. We got in late and slept like dead people.

Love,

Grandma Judy

Dear Liza,

Yesterday we set off on our big trip north. We got Mouse and the house ready to be without us for a while by hiring Garrett the cat sitter and moving plants to a kitchen counter for him to water. The laundry and dishes were done.

We ate all the perishables and packed our own equivalent of “sandwiches for the train”.

At 1:30 we got a Lyft car to the Union Depot. This beautiful, historic train station was built in 1896 and I used it in my story of 1903! I am excited to be able to travel from this piece of history.

After finding our seats and loading our luggage, we got settled and experienced “Train Peace”. This is an expression I coined years ago while we were traveling in Europe. It is that feeling when you know you can relax once you are on the train, because now it is up someone else to get you where you are going.

We pulled out of Portland and headed north, crossing first the Willamette, where we got to see the St. John’s Bridge from a whole different angle. It was wonderful.

Then we crossed the mighty Columbia!! It is wide, sparkly and full of industrial shipping for a while, then we traveled with the river on one side and open fields, lumber yards, back yard sheds, and cows on the other, usually seen through the trees planted as a screen between the landscape and the train.

Since the train ran at ground level, we went under as many bridges as we went over, and as the sun went down and the light changed, we lived for the occasional flicker of a city or reflections on the Puget Sound.

Running late, our train got us into Vancouver well past midnight. We stayed awake through customs, getting a cab to the 7-11 where we picked up our key, then walked to the airbandb.

It is a modern apartment on the tenth floor or a nice, but rather noisy, building. Earplugs for sure tonight!

We have views of a freeway bridge, all sorts of old and new buildings, cyclists, bendy busses, and four high-rise buildings under construction.

I will tell you more tomorrow!!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Dear Liza,

Today we leave for our first big trip away from our new home in Portland. We are taking an Amtrak train called The Cascades all the way to Vancouver, Canada, with a stop or two in between.

Since we haven’t left yet, I can’t tell you about it, but I can remember other trips we’ve been on.

Grandpa Nelson first took me to London in 2004. It was our first time “overseas”, as they say, and it took some getting used to. Traffic, foods, ways of getting around…they were all different. But we learned and had a ball!

Our next trip was in 2006, when we started out in London but branched off to Stratford on Avon (to see Shakespeare’s home town) and then Cambridge, just because.

Grandpa Nelson’s surprise for me was that we then had a three day, experimental trip to Paris!!! This was BIG. I didn’t know any French at the time, and it was a real challenge to even travel or order food. But again, we learned.

In 2008, we got to take Auntie Bridgett to Europe. Our world got bigger as we went back to Paris and on to Calais, Amsterdam, Brussels, and Tournay. We got better at figuring things out as we went along, and less scared about new places.

As we kept traveling back to Europe, we saw Christmas Faires in Strasbourg got rattled by New Year’s fireworks in Amsterdam, sat by the ocean in La Rochelle and celebrated comics in Angouleme.

This trip To Canada should be less culture shock, because the main language is English. Still, none of us have been to Vancouver. I am so excited to see new things!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Dear Liza,

Last night, we went out to dinner with Auntie Katie and the Cousins! We met up at Pastini, a nice Italian place on SE Division. Since Grandpa Nelson wanted to have some wine, we took a Lyft car through the rain.

Pastini is an informal, family sort of place, with really friendly wait staff. They offer fun Children’s Menus and will make changes to dishes as needed for picky eaters, and make sure you have boxes for your leftovers of their generous servings.

The Children’s Menu, in our case, served as blank pages for drawing on. Jasper and his Mom drew a Pokemon scenario and Kestrel and I decorated spirals.

Being a certified picky eater, Kestrel got Perfectly Plain Pasta. I love that such a thing is even an option. I enjoyed half my lasagna (the rest will be lunch today) and Auntie Bridgett brought home half of her giant chicken artichoke salad.

After dinner, Jasper navigated us through the neighborhood (he is good at that, at almost ten years old!) to Fifty Licks, an ice cream parlor with unusual, subtle flavors. Auntie Bridget and I shared a horchata cone, Grandpa Nelson had a chocolate milkshake (he had skipped dinner, not being a fan of Italian food).

We enjoyed the sweets and conversation as the kids read the wall, which is covered by hundreds of Tintin comics.

By eight o’clock, the rain had stopped and we all hugged and walked to our own homes. It’s a little more than a mile from Division Street to our place, but after such a yummy evening, we had lots of energy.

Love,

Grandma Judy