Craig July 13, Puyallup Fair and Ichi

With the bus rolling and everyone settled in for a drive we pierced some morning fog. Not very heavy, just enough to run the wipers once in awhile. I don't think anyone really minded the grey. It has been so sunny and clear this whole trip that it was a welcome change.

We had to cross a few bridges on the way into Puyallup located south east of Seattle. Nothing bad though. You always kind of wonder what you will have to deal with on some of the older ones, they can be pretty narrow.

Finding a decent RV park in the southern Seattle area is a difficult proposition at best. With a little help from a local gentleman I conversed with online, he pointed me here. Not a bad place at all, very reasonable and not to far of a drive from what we wanted to be able to access.

We had wanted to take in a ball game and after some confusion as to what we should do to finish out the day, we opted for a ball game. We left 2 hours ahead of time with some concern as to whether or not we would be able to cover the 35 miles to Safeco Field in time. All we could do was try.

We started off badly. I had printed off a couple of maps from the internet. But they were all of the downtown area. Not the area we were travelling through to get there. My trusty navigator, who had done a pretty good job of telling me where to go, (pun intended) didn't bring the atlas, so now we were running blind. We should be able to navigate this town just by signs...right? Hehe, sure. We take off out of the RV park and head a different direction than we arrived. I don't need a stinkin map! We hit the freeway and headed west. The wrong direction, but I know it will take us to the "5" eventually and it should be quicker than turning around going the other direction and maybe getting us lost. Did I mention this is 4:45 pm on a Friday? We come to a screaming halt about 3 miles from the "5". It takes us a good 45 minutes to get to the turn off and we guess wrong on lane assignments. There is no way we are getting on the "5". Time for plan B, get map!

We found a gas station and bought one. After having a look and seeing what he have to drive through, we still hold out hope we can make the game. We eventually find a way to the five and slowly pass through Tacoma. We make better time once we are clear of the Tacoma Mall. It is still slow, but hey, its not as bad it could be. We eventually clear a ridge and downtown Seattle comes into view with Safeco Stadium right at the base of it all. Whoo hoo!

We park 2 minutes before game time. We have a quick walk up to the box office, loud whistles from the trains blast us as we clear the bridge next to the stadium. We ask for the good seats, too pricey and not available, so we get the next best thing, decent seats on the 3rd base side.

Walking to our seats, we notice that the only name on the team jerseys worn by the fans are "Ichi". No ex Diamond back Richie Sexson or anyone else. All Ichiro Suzuki. We will learn the city lives and dies by this guy. He is the franchise.

The game is exciting. We see the Tigers hit a Grand Slam to take the lead and then Seattle make a valiant effort to mount a comeback. The game ends with the dejected Ichi fans despondant thier man only went 1 for 3.

We travel back to Puyallup and promptly get lost. Yea, we can read the map, but the detail stinks for this town. After a good 45 minutes of Leah's "I have to pee" I stop and ask for directions. We are sent back in the general direction of town and I spot a landmark that gets me reoriented. Leah is happy!

Matt July 13: Take Me Out to the Ballgame

Again, today was a travel day. Our campsite was southeast of Seattle. After we got set up, we drove to Seattle. In Seattle we went to the Mariners game. The Mariners are a baseball team. They played the Detroit Tigers. We missed the first inning tring to get tickets, but it was worth it. We got section 144 on the third base side in row 33! In the second inning Leah and dad went to get drinks. When they left the most amazing thing happened! The Mariners were up to bat. The batter hit a foul ball coming right twords us! It bounced in the isle next to us, then bounced two rows behind us, and stopped dead two rows in front of us. After the game was over the Tigers had won 6 to 3.

Leah July 13: Seattle Mariners

Today was another travel day. We traveled straight to the campsite. We went to a Seattle Mariner’s game.

The drive to the campsite was boring. I watched Shrek 2 until it finished. We finally got to the campsite after a 2 ½ hour drive. We set up when we got here. I watched Disney channel until Mom and Dad decided that we would go to a Mariner’s Baseball Game.

We took off only to get stuck in traffic. It was too crowded so we missed our turn. So we turned into a gas station and got a map. We managed to get there after the first 1 ½ innings. We were in the right place to catch a ball, along the third base line near left field. The game went by really fast. One reason was Mom and I were getting dinner for 2 innings. The other one was because I wasn’t paying attention to the game. All I know is that the Mariners lost 6 to 3.

We got lost on the way home, even with the map! So we didn’t end up getting to the RV until 11 pm. When we got there we made up the beds quickly and went to bed.