Like a Friggin' Kid...

Yes, I went to the aquarium. It's in Stanley Park (like Central only smaller) which is also pictured and it borders Coal Harbor (pix with the boats):

Here.

First Canadian Snowfall and Other Updates

I know, I take forever to update. The albums tell the stories better:

"Burnaby and West Van" -First couple days, we just explored the area (me and ma), so these are picks of burbs known as Burnaby and West Van. I'll see later if I can get photos of downtown which is gorgeous.
"Whistler" and "Capilano" -Didn't have much time to explore North America's greatest ski resort, but the drive up and back was spectacular. Then I went to Capiano Suspension Bridge which is hard to explain. I flipped through the pics and remembered I'm in one of the prettiest places on Earth.
"Leo's" -looking through craigslist for an apartment, I found an ad for a live-in nanny for a 34 bachelor. In exchange for cleaning and cooking, I get a room and bathroom for free. The previously-posted uncle has done something similar for a while, so I wasn't totally against it. It also helps that the guy, Leo, rents two other apartment style suites in his house, so I'm not 100% alone with him. It's fun.
http://www.aliway.shutterfly.com/

Portland to Seattle

So I took the Greyhound from Portland to Seattle. It was gorgeous. To top it off, I look out the window halfway through and spot a big white mountain and then saw a sign to exit and go see Mt. St. Helens. As a child I was such a dork, I had this crazy obsession with volcanoes and lava (and lion prides in Africa) so this was way cool. I squealed like Alec Baldwin's daughter.

On to non-me things: I was looking for my uncle's email and googled him. This is what came up:

http://thinkexist.com/quotes/nate_poss/

If anyone goes to El Paso, mentio this chap's name. They know him. It's insane.

Portland Part Deux

I've added more pictorias from my stay in Portland. Also, I've finished putting all the captions on the first batch. Use the slideshow to better see them.

I know many of them are buildings you dont give jack about, but there's a nugget o gold in between: http://aliway.shutterfly.com/

Or if you're lazy: http://aliway.shutterfly.com/view/flashslideshow.jsp?caid=67b0de21b35ec91ca4bd&a=67b0de21b35ec91ca4bd

The Portland Story

As I write this, I'm sitting in the hostel freezing to death. I was going to go out before double checking my Greyhound schedule for Seattle tommorow and realizing I have to be up a 6... AM... so I might still go out but with great reluctance, because its a nonrefundable ticket should I miss the bus. Anyway, the past few days...
My flight left Thursday at 5:25pm and I got in Portland at 12am. My friend David, whom I met over the summer in New York at a hostel during one of my random, impulsive road trips, picked me up and took me to a motel. That sounded bad, so let me rephrase: He dropped me off at a motel. The hostel's front desk closed at 12 and since we didn't leave the airport until 1230 and the bastards refused to stay thirty minutes more to check me in, I had to pay $65 for a room I felt gross breathing in. Moving on- the following morning, I checked in to the hostel and tooled around the city all day.
Let me take this time to harp on the amazingness of this city. I haven't been to Seattle, but it will be a tough act to follow. Portland is a rare gem. It has the history and architecture of DC, the variety and culture of New York (without the attitude), the friendliness and quaintness of Small Town Pennsylvania, and the heart of Houston. Public transportation (free in the most popular areas) is fantastic and easily accessible, which is great cause I'm lazy. There is art everywhere as well as a gazillion trees. It was hard to take photos of some of the building cuz of all the trees. My roommate from raddy told me I would come here and never want to leave, and she was kinda right. Don't let it go to your head Kay. Anywho, this place has one drawback: not the rain, because I love rain, but the lack of trashcans. I carried a wadded up piece of pastry bag for blocks looking for somewhere to dump it, to no avail.
So Friday I walked all over, and instead of telling you all about what I saw, go look at the photos. They say a thousand words. Appaarently. http://aliway.shutterfly.com/
In the evening, the girls from my dorm in the hostel and I went to dinner at a brewery called Bridgewater (see photos) and was joined at 12 by David who sat with me until 2 talking about nothing and everything. Like a gentleman only funnier, David walked me back to the hostel and I went to bed. Until 5am.Then some drunk chick starts banging on the front door, waking half the hostel because she lost her key and couldn't get in. She also threw rocks at our window. We were pissed. Then Saturday, today, I walked around and took more pics, and just chilled. It was fun. I'll put those photos up later. Ciao!

Portland

Portland! I'm here, finally, and loving it. Here are some pics from Friday:

http://aliway.shutterfly.com/

I suggest viewing as a slideshow so you can see the captions. Part deux will come

The First of Many

I used to send out a newsletter, but it was becoming a hassle, so a friend suggested I try to live in the here and now and start a blog. As of now, I'm at Radford University getting ready for finals (obviously not that ready), and in less than a week plan on being back home in Northern Va for Winter Break. There was more to this paragraph. But it babbled like a brook so I'm just going to finish here.