On the Road Again and Again and Again

April 8

Up and at 'em at 7:15!  Got packed up, had some breakfast and walked to Starbuck's for coffee, packed Matt's car with our stuff and at 9 headed to Avis in Beaverton to pick up our convertible. Arrived there at 9:30 to NO CONVERTIBLE even though we'd reserved one a couple of months ago and Peter had checked with the Avis rep in Beaverton a couple of times this week!

After a half hour on the phone (9:45-10:15) with Hotline, our booking agent, a convertible was found for us at the airport. Back on the road!  Arrived at the airport a little after 11.  Left at 11:45 with a brand new white Mustang and drove back to Matt's to leave his car!!  It took me a lot longer than Peter because I had my GPS set on AVOID HIGHWAYS for the road trip!!!  What a total fiasco!! Oh, well!  Onward!!

Back on the road AGAIN about 1 PM (4 hours later!) to head on Rt.84 to Baker City OR, our destination for today. It was sunny and 83 degrees!  The top was down and we were in shirtsleeves!  We drove most of the way along the beautiful Columbia River Gorge, past snow capped Mt. Hood to the south, Multnomah Falls, the Dalles Dam, miles-long wind farms, the John Day Dam, the fleeting scent of wildflowers, forested hills replaced by forestless, green, rockyhills, then fairly flat land on the Oregon side of the Columbia,  cattle grazing, farmland and an enormous tree farm right next to the highway

At Boardman, Rt.84 turned SE away from the Columbia River. 

Temp 77 degrees at 5 PM. The landscape is flat, then rolling green hills approaching Pendleton with the Umatilla National Forest in the distance. We drove on the Blue Mountain Forest State Scenic Corridor or the Old Oregon Trail through the Umatilla Indian Reservation where the temp was 69 at 3400 feet at 5:30. At one point a big pick-up truck gave Peter a thumbs-up!  Coming down from the Blue Mountains, we could see the snow-capped Wallowa Mountains in the distance. 

The foothills to the mountains are beautifully tree-covered on the way to LaGrande where we stopped for gas and where our itinerary indicated we would stop for the night. But, we decided to push on a little further to Baker City. Approaching Baker City with the temp 73 degrees, we could see some snow on the tops of hills. We were driving on a high plane at an altitude of 3370 feet. 

We arrived in Baker City, did some grocery shopping and were in our Best Western r

room about 8. After a delicious dinner of salad with cheddar cheese, hard boiled eggs, cottage cheese and roasted chicken, we perused our itinerary for tomorrow and retired. But, first we congratulated ourselves for struggling through our fiasco. The Mustang is awesome!

Matt's Birthday

April 7  Matt's birthday!

Another BEAUTIFUL day:  63 degrees at 7:15AM,  81 at 7:15PM!  We did lots of walking in the neighborhood today, for bagels, for Starbucks lattes, for errands, for shopping, for lunch. I think we'll miss Nob Hill more than Matt and Kirsten. 

I had the opportunity to reorganize so I think we're all set for our road trip that starts tomorrow. We spent some quality time this afternoon with Matt and Kirsten enjoying the weather and easy conversation and opening presents!  It's been many years since we've spent a birthday with Matt.   

Later we walked with Kirsten down Overton St. to 19th and met Matt at Justa Pasta Co. For dinner we each had some variation of pasta: pasta with halibut, olives, tomatoes and arugula; pasta with chicken parm; ravioli with pesto sauce.   Mmmm!  Peter's been afraid he wouldn't get his "pasta fix" during this road trip!!!  Back at the hacienda, we watched the finale of the final season of "American Idol."  Good show but a little schmaltzy. AND our "girl" La Porsha did NOT win!   Wow!!!  

Tomorrow, bright and early, our three week road trip starts in earnest!  Thanks, Kirsten and Matt!!

AND WE'RE OFF.....

April 5 and 6

We left Barnstable on the 1:40 EST bus to Logan. It was 31 degrees and felt like 20!!!! Brrr!!!  The trip to Logan and the flight to Portland were easy!  We arrived AT 8:15 PST and Matt and Kirsten met us with no problem. After a brief chat and a renewed acquaintance with their dog Daisy, we retired about 10:30 PST in our suite in the "big house."

Up this morning at 8. Matt and Kirsten had already left for work. After breakfast at their place, we took off for a neighborhood walk. Beautiful day!  And such diverse and interesting architecture. Stopped at Starbucks where Mike found us on the Find Friends app! I guess we can't go ANYWHERE now without being found!  We saw some interesting mosaic sculptures. It is amazing how much further ahead in Spring Portland is than Cape Cod!  Flowering trees and spring flowers in bloom. It's sunny and 67 degrees. 

By 1 PM we were waiting at the end of the driveway for Kirsten's mother, Ginny, to arrive to give us a tour of the St. John's neighborhood in north Portland. We saw and walked around the magnificent St. John's bridge over the Willamette River. Built in the 1920s, the bridge was the center of recent protests against" Exxon-Mobil and their Arctic drilling. Protesters hung from the bridge!!! The park-like area under and around the bridge is bucolic!  Peter was especially impressed by the City Water Quality Control building!

Then we drove to the University of Portland, Kirsten's alma mater. The campus, right on the Willamette River, was bustling with student activity!  Azaleas, Rhododendrons and flowering fruit trees were ablaze with color!  We drove past Kirsten and Matt's new house and then arrived at Ginny's apartment. After a walk in her busy neighborhood, we relaxed at Ginny's until Matt and Kirsten picked us up for dinner. 

Dinner was at a restaurant called Firehouse where they served wood fired oven food......like pizza!!  Delicious dinner with lively political conversation!  We chatted a bit after we got home and now  it's 11 PM!!!Tx