Highlight #2

2) Vacation to the Pacific Northwest in July!

We decided to escape the heat of Utah for the cooler climate of Seattle and Vancouver. We flew into Seattle, rented a car and drove north to Blaine, WA, which is right on the border of Canada. We stayed there 2 1/2 days and explored this cute coastal town.

We were able to take a Whale Watching cruise that took us through the San Juan Islands, where we found a pod of Orcas and followed these 20+ whales as they leapt, "spy hopped," and hunted Salmon to eat. It was awesome to see these animals in the wild and really a huge highlight of our whole trip!The Peace Arch in Blaine, WA. It sits on the border with Canada representing an open gate between our two countries.
They call these "Tall Ships," there were two of these old sailing boats that were docked in Blaine for the weekend. They travel up and down the West Coast, giving tours and cruises. The sailors on it all dress in pirate type costumes!

Then we drove up to Vancouver, British Colombia. It was quite the change from the sleepy Washington coast. Vancouver is a pretty big city with lots going on. We went to China Town and visited one of few genuine Chinese Gardens that exists outside of China.

Walked around "Gas Town" the old part of Vancouver, that has a steam powered clock.

Walked, though we wished we would've rented bikes, around Stanley Park, a huge park on a penisula on the edge of Vancouver that is popular with cyclists, roller bladers, and joggers, that gives you great views of the sea!
I really enjoyed visiting Granville Island which is home to an awesome Farmer's Market that has pretty much whatever your heart and tummy desires! I became reaqquainted with my favorite french pastry, a "Mille Feuille" or "Napoleon."

We stayed in Vancouver for 2 days and then drove south and back to Seattle. We really enjoyed Seattle. It's got it's own sort of charm. We went to the top of the Space Needle, which had some great views of the city.

We took a fun one hour cruise around the Puget Sound and got to see Seattle from the water.

Here's Pike's Market, where they are famous for their fish throwing.
The Aquarium was pretty neat. Here's Brandon getting hands on with some Star Fish. There was actually several different types of star fish in this area and the weird thing was, is that some were spiny and hard while others were squishy!

All-in-all it was a fun vacation for us. We loved spending time together and making new memories.