Dinner with Friends

July 31, 1982

In the mid-to-late 70s, Mui and I briefly worked at the Turkish American Association (TAA) in Ankara, Turkey; he was an administrator and I was a language instructor.  In fact, that’s where we met … he still claims he hired me so he could get to know me better!  But that’s a different story.

The TAA Director at the time was an American named Aneitta Albright.  She and her family became good friends of ours.  In fact, by introducing us to their friends, the Haggarties, the Albrights were instrumental in us starting life in the US in Washington State instead of on the East Coast where I had family.

So, when Aneitta and Marsden came to Seattle for a few days with their kids (Andawnette, Ariadne, and Anthony), we naturally got together at the Haggarty residence for an evening of reminiscence.

Aneitta passed away in 2004; Marsden in 2010.  May they both rest in peace.

Victoria, British Columbia: A Weekend Getaway

July 16-18, 1982

We had so much fun in Victoria on our day trip in June that it wasn’t long before we crossed the Strait of Juan de Fuca again for a return visit to Canada. This time, instead of sailing from Seattle, we opted to take the M/V Coho from Port Angeles (shorter distance; and we were able to take our car across with us).

I don’t remember where we stayed exactly, but I think it was at a hotel somewhere near the Inner Harbor. I know we spent very little time in the room, so it’s no wonder that our accommodations didn’t leave a lasting impression on us.

Boy did we cram a lot into that short weekend! We started out with a quick evening visit to Butchart Gardens (didn’t even come close to doing the place justice) …

… went to Sealand the next day to see the Haida Show (the place apparently closed down shortly after the death of an orca trainer in 1991) …

… toured Craigdarroch Castle, built between 1887-1890 for Robert Dunsmuir, a Scottish immigrant who made his fortune from Vancouver Island coal (the story goes that he promised his wife that if she accompanied him from Scotland to Vancouver Island, he would make a fortune and build her a castle) …

… visited the hand-built, storybook house and charming gardens of Fable Cottage Estate (after spending 11 years building their home, the Rogers family was apparently so plagued by sightseers that they sold the house on the understanding that all the handmade furnishings and family heirlooms would be retained for the public to view) …

The picture on the right is of what was considered
to be the world's largest rotating flower basket
at the time; it weighed 1 ton.

… wandered around the Inner Harbor to see the Princess Marguerite II leave port (that brought back great memories of our June trip); strolled around the Parliament Gardens; listened to the chimes of the Netherlands Carillion …

… and enjoyed the totem poles at Thunderbird Park.

Though the photos we took at the Ye Olde English Inn (replica of Shakespeare’s home) are not worth posting, this blog entry would be incomplete without a mention of the tour we took of Anne Hathaway’s Cottage (replica of the thatch-roofed cottage where Shakespeare’s wife lived in England). It was during this tour that I learned the source of such sayings as eating a square meal, cleaning off your plate before you can have dessert, and burning the candle at both ends.

OK, OK … I’ll share the information as it was told to us.

Eating a square meal: the dinner plate was a square piece of wood.

Cleaning off your plate before you can have dessert: you had to finish your food (usually stew), wipe the wood plate off with a piece of bread, and flip it over to eat dessert (if any was served).

Burning the candle at both ends: if a father wanted his daughter’s beau to leave early, he’d burn both ends of the candle so that it would melt faster.

By the time we were back on the M/V Coho for the return trip back to the US, we were dead-tired, but oh so satisfied with our weekend adventure.

It sure would be interesting to go back and recreate this weekend someday; but maybe do it over a longer period of time so we can do justice to those places that are still around.

Space Needle

July 5, 1982

You can’t live in Washington State and not go to see the Space Needle at the Seattle Center — a fairground, park, and arts and entertainment center built on the site of the 1962 Century 21 Exposition.

Bird’s eye view of the Space Needle from Bing Maps.

Both the 605 feet (184 m) tall Space Needle and the
International Fountain were built for the 1962 World's Fair.

Seattle Center

A fond memory of the Space Needle involves having dinner at the revolving restaurant that sits atop the tower.  I’m talking a fancy, expensive restaurant that we were able to afford only because my boss had given me a “thank you” certificate for a job well done.  We had a great meal, but every time we remember the occasion, Mui says the same thing: “It’s the only time I paid $100 for dinner and walked away still hungry!”  (No photos from that evening; sorry.)

Got My Driver’s License

June 30, 1982

I took lessons when I reached the legal age for driving in Turkey, but I never took the test to get a driver’s license.  After all, I could get anywhere I wanted to in İzmir on foot or by taking public transportation.  Why mess with traffic and parking headaches!

After we moved to the US, it quickly became apparent that a driver’s license was a necessity, not a luxury.  Still, I dragged my feet as long as I could.  As Mui’s departure date for USAF basic training drew closer, however, the choice was taken out of my hands.  I would no longer be able to rely on him to drive me around; I had to be my own chauffeur.

After Mui gave me a couple of refresher lessons in an empty parking lot, I went to the DMV to take the written test.  Passing that with flying colors, I proceeded onto the road test.  Passed that one too; though I was told to practice my parallel parking skills I a bit more.

Putting the DL to use after the road test.

By the way, I still go out of my way to avoid parallel parking!

Richard Gere Wasn’t There

June 26-27, 1982

One of our most cherished memories is a trip we made to Fort Worden State Park in Port Townsend.  The fort is on Point Wilson, an area discovered by Captain George Vancouver in 1792.  The first fort, constructed in 1855, was named Fort Wilson.  It’s mission was to protect Port Townsend from the Indians.  The fort was abandoned in 1856, and remained so until the 1900s when it became part of the harbor defense system for Puget Sound.

Fort Worden, along with the heavy batteries of Fort Flagler and Fort Casey, guarded the nautical entrance to Puget Sound to prevent a hostile fleet from reaching such targets as the Bremerton Naval Yard and the cities of Seattle, Tacoma, and Everett.  The fort was named in honor of Admiral John L. Worden, the commander of the ironclad Monitor in the Civil War battle with the Confederate ship Merrimac.

Fort Worden is the only army installation named for a naval commander.

In modern popular culture, the fort is known as the locale for some of the scenes from the movie An Officer and A Gentleman (Richard Gere, Debra Winger, Louis Gossett Jr).

Battery Kinzie (1912-1944) was part of the harbor defense of Puget Sound.

But it’s not that we walked in Richard Gere’s footsteps that brings a smile to our lips when we think of our weekend getaway.  At the time, we weren’t even aware of that little tidbit.  Rather, it’s that we camped in our car!

We pulled into a campsite, surrounded by camping trailers of varying sizes, and proceeded to set up camp.  We hung sheets inside the car for privacy; built a campfire; grilled hot dogs for dinner; and even made scrambled eggs for breakfast the next morning.  Smaller in stature, I slept on the front seat; Mui had the more spacious back seat as his sleeping quarters.

Welcome to our campsite!

Until our visit to the park, we’d never seen a beach littered with driftwood.

Taking a stroll to the lighthouse.

Wilson Point Lighthouse (built in 1870).

Enjoying a cold brew on the pier.

How do you like our tabletop grill?

Would we repeat the experience now that we are older and wiser?  Definitely; but we’d do it in a bit more comfort than we did back then.

Tumwater Falls Park

June 20, 1982

This was the site of the first American settlement north of the Columbia River and also the end of the Oregon Trail.  Located on the Deschutes River, the falls provided the water power required by the early day settlement.

Fort Lewis Military Museum

June 19, 1982

Located on one of America’s principal military bases (now Joint Base Lewis-McChord), the Fort Lewis Military Museum traces the military history of the region beginning with the 1803 Lewis & Clark expedition.  Originally established in 1971 in a two-story barracks building, it was relocated to the Old Fort Lewis Inn in 1973.

Hey, soldier!  How about buying a girl a drink?

Boys and their toys!
(M4A1 Half Track)