Wicked, Fox Theater, St Louis, MO

While I was in Seattle I noticed that Wicked was playing there. It was impossible for me to get a ticket for less than $175 so I decided to pass on seeing the show. But wouldn't you know that it opened in St Louis in mid December through mid January and I was able to snag some tickets for $75 each. My cousin, her friend and I went to the show and a good time was had by all. I saw it first in New York about eight years ago and was ready to see it again. It was just as good the second time around.

I really liked the restored Fox Theater in St Louis. It reminded me so much of NYCs Radio City Music Hall, though on a decidedly smaller scale. One day I will have to make it back to St Louis on a Saturday morning so I can take one of the theater tours and hear all about the restoration and the history of this fine theater.

Both of the shots were taken in the entry area of the theater using my Iphone.  Had I known photos were allowed I would've brought my good camera.  Better luck next time!

Horse Program, Shawnee National Forest, Illinois

After I finished my whirlwind trip to the Pacific Northwest, I continued on to Shawnee National Forest located in southeastern Illinois for an All About Horses Program which was sponsored by Road Scholar, a non-profit organization that focuses on travel and education.  It was all I had hoped it would be and more, since it took place during the most picturesque time of the fall and the weather was absolutely perfect the entire time.

Camp Ondessonk was our home base for the week and for a retreat/summer camp it was downright comfortable with large rooms, private bathrooms and beautiful views of the surrounding forest from every room you found yourself sitting.  They prepared very interesting meals for us and we even had a campfire sing-along that lasted a lot longer than I thought it would.  We were all having too much fun to leave.

There were two programs that week; one for horses and one for hiking and both groups seemed happy to share their day over the joint evening meal.  We each tried to bring folks from the other group to our activities, but there were no takers.

 We learned a lot about horses from grooming, to feeding, saddling and bridling, using curry combs, riding, walking and turning, cantering and trotting. Then we found out just how delicate these animals are and for those who might have be harboring thoughts of actually owning one, the time, money and effort far outweighs the ability of most to even consider it.

Here we are preparing for a lesson of the day in the fenced area.  A safety check is made before we proceed to more complicated maneuvers.  That is me on my horse Smokey.

 We took a two hour ride through the forest on day two; a preparation for the all-day ride later in the week to the waterfalls...

 The retreat grounds have lots of interesting attractions including zip lines, tree houses, many open air bunkhouses, several lakes and loads of trails.  This covered bridge looked so nice on that beautiful day

The hikers were looking forward to the long hike to the tallest free-falling waterfall in the state of Illinois and the riders were anticipating the ride to the same place, but on different days.  As luck would have it, the hikers went the day before the rain, so there was no waterfall to view.  The riders went the day after the nighttime storm so not only did we get water, but there was also a rainbow.  Perfectly fitting for my birthday, I thought.

This was a most enjoyable way to wrap up my Pacific Northwest trip.  Now I guess I better start thinking about what I will do next year.  So many places, so little time!

Pikes Market, Seattle, Washington

I toured Pikes Market while in Seattle.  I had been looking forward to it the entire trip, but truth be told...after seeing the Granville Market in Vancouver, I was a little disappointed.

Fortunately, there was a little 'action' outside the market that put this part of the trip right up there at the top of the list for me.  I hope you get a smile out of the shots I got of this panhandler.  It still brings a smile to my heart.

On the Road--Victoria, Vancouver to San Juan Island, Washington

I took a walk along the waterfront in Victoria and found these cute houseboats docked all in a row. It was apparent to me that the folks that lived there made the deliberate choice, cramped in a little and really enjoyed everything about it. It was interesting how many different ways they found to store their kayaks

So just because you choose to live on the water doesn't mean that there will be no traffic issues. Here the traffic normally is made up of boats but often it is a plane or two as well. Folks here come up with all sorts of ways to get around.

Later on the group traveled to San Juan Island, which is actually a part of the United States, there we took several tours including one of an historical farm site and a one room school house.  I always like to tour them because I actually attended a one room school house when I was a child.  Almost always the ones I tour are nicer than the one I attended.  Hard to believe huh?

I could not pass up taking a picture of this sign.  The folks on San Juan Island are SERIOUS about smoking and littering!

On the Road...Butchart Gardens, Vancouver Island, BC Canada

After taking the ferry from the City of Vancouver, we stopped at the north end of Vancouver Island in order to most easily travel to world-famous Butchart Gardens.  I had heard about the gardens first from my dear friend in NJ at least 20 years ago.  I remember it well because she was quite taken by them when she visited and I knew if they had that effect on her...well then, they must be spectacular.  And they are!

The admission tickets were arranged for in advance and box lunches were prepared so all that was necessary was to go and pick them up. Then wander through the gardens at a relaxing pace and eat whenever the mood struck.

What is pretty interesting is that the gardens were really an after-thought.  Originally, the land was used for mining limestone for the production of cement...not a very good start for world-famous gardens.  The wife of Robert Pim Buchart was mortified at the devastation caused by the mining technique used and decided that she would truck in some soil and start a garden to make the place pretty again.  Fifty-five acres is a lot of soil and I have to say she did a heck of a job turning an eyesore into spectacular gardens.  OK that is really the story, I will let the pictures speak for themselves... if you double click  you can see enlarged photos.

This is an overview of the actual pit left from the mining operation

Then I wanted to get up close and personal with a few of the flowers that really got my attention

 if you closely at this pretty yellow flower you will see a very attractive bee near the center, that was a bonus for my patience!

 Don't ask me what these are, I only thought they were picture worthy.

 Off in a little nook they built a carousel for the childern.  Not using standard horses though.  Here I caught a shot of a reindeer, a cat with a mouse and a frog...ah the fantasy of it all!

These flowers were just so pretty, I kept saying  (out loud -- to anyone who would listen) they are so pretty they don't look real!

 We then boarded the bus to travel to the southern end of Vancouver Island where we stayed for two nights to the Royal Scots Inn and Suites.  They had a real, live Bag-piper to "pipe" us in.  You don't find that everyday!

This was one of the most enjoyable days of the entire trip.

On the Road...Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

We left Seattle early in the morning on another Amtrak excursion to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.  This was not the exclusive train that was the Amtrak Cascades, but the ride was pleasant enough and I got to see a lot of the coast on the four hour trip.

Vancouver is a very special City and it seemed everything about it beckons to the senses.  They are proud that there are no major highways into the city, and it doesn't seem like any are needed.  It is a city that is made up of neighborhoods where the folks live in the city and have at their disposal all the comforts they could want within easy distance.  So there is no crazy rush hours or heavy throngs of people at rush hour. It was very refreshing to see.  We stayed in the city for several days and it never felt crushed, tense or overly busy.

We used our first afternoon visiting the waterfront and Stanley Park.  Here they had a large collection of Totem poles.

 Then it was on to Gastown or the older section of Vancouver.  Some of the buildings begged to be photographed.

 The following day we toured Granville Island which is a high-end crafters community with a large Public Market of produce, meats, fish, cheese, baked goods and all sorts of goodies to eat.
This was a broom craft shop, they construct the brooms from the hand-hewn wooden handles and the brush materials and cord to hold it all together.  Very high quality and sturdy.

 I was most impressed by the public market.  Below is a cheese stand.  If you look closely, you will see they have six different varieties of Feta Cheese.  Six different varieties...well, it was just amazing to me!

 Three kinds of fresh figs and lots of other fresh fruits.  Sweet!

 You can really see how they care about presentation...look at how they stacked the cherries!

 The meat markets were simply incredible, this shot below is only lamb, and I wasn't able to get everything that they had to offer in the way of lamb in this shot.  It just went on and on.

 In Morton Park, nearby our hotel, we got to walk among some wonderful sculpture called "A-Maze-Ing Laughter" by Yue Minjun, a Chinese artist. He used his own iconic face in a state of hysterical laughter as a signature trademark for each of the pieces shown below.

You just cannot help but feel fabulous among these laughing statues!

On the Road...Seattle, Washington

We arrived in Seattle with enough time to have dinner and a quick presentation at our hotel before calling it a day.  Then we got to tour the city and visit the Hiram M. Chittendon Locks.  We also saw how they  adjust for a 20 foot change in water level, as is demonstrated by the sail boat utilizing the locks from the Puget Sound side to the Lake Washington side.  It had just entered the lock as shown below and the gates behind the sailboat are closing.  The lock will then fill with water and the boat will rise to be level with the tan looking thin horizontal line just about at the top of the gate. 

Once that level is achieved, the sailboat can then proceed through the other end of  the lock and on to Lake Washington.  The whole process took about 15 minutes.

What I found even more interesting is the Lake Washington Ship Canal Fish Ladder which is located just opposite the locks on the other side of the river.   This Fish Ladder was constructed on July 4, 1917 and refurbished on June 1, 1976 and is used annually by the many different types of Salmon that spawn through this section of the canal.   Below is a guide explaining how the fish ladder works, while you can see in the background a rather large Salmon using the facility.

 Here is a view of the fish ladder from the top and outside...the depth of course is as deep as the canal which in this section is at least 20 feet.  I think it is pretty amazing that the fish are able to utilize a man-made structure so they can complete their naturally driven spawning requirements.

 Then it was on the the University of Washington Conservatory.....yep, more flowers.  No roses here but lots of tropical plants, carnivorous plants and other wonders that kept me mesmerized.

 These are some of the carnivorous plants that they had on display; they were so colorful and inviting, it's no wonder the bugs don't stand a chance

 Orchids, orchids and more orchids....so much eye candy!

On the same campus as the conservatory was a museum of Asian artifacts, where I had to visit with this poor lonely camel.