The day started with Dave and I running around town for bike parts, maps, and travel information for Olympia and the San Juan islands near Tacoma/Seattle.
In the late afternoon, Pat and I went to the Portland Art Museum to see an exhibit on bicycles (imagine that). There were 40+ bikes hanging by wires from the ceiling in a serpentine pattern around the room. By opening their website, or borrowing an iPod from the museum, you could read about each bike, its history, and design. Some very cool and very strange bikes, beautifully displayed.
The five pictures are: A tiny fold up bike, an ice bike with skate blade and studded rear tire, a tandem with the stoker pedals through the rear axle (the captain has to sit down first or the bike will flip over), a racing bike, and a poorly stitched panorama of the exhibit.
Afterward, we went to Smokehouse 21, a small seven table restaurant for the most delicious dinner. We both started with a cornbread bacon muffin with a honey glaze, then Pat had pulled pork, and I had beef brisket that was so tender it fell off the fork. After dinner we strolled through the Alphabet district and made our way to 23rd street, which is a shopping district. Pat scored a Terry Bicycle wicking shirt, some hair and body products made from organic fresh fruit and vegetables at Lush, and we finished with the most amazing organic ice cream waffle cones from "Salt and Straws", a local creamery. Lovely night in Portland.
After raining off and on all day today, the brilliant crescent moon is hanging above our motor home tonight.
Bike ride tomorrow with friends, farmer's market and a ride Saturday, then north to Sequim on the Olympia peninsula (west of Seatle) on Sunday.
Enjoy!
--
RK
