M*A*G*I*C*A*L

Our week-end in Garibaldi (OR) was filled with well-deserved rest, hiking and sightseeing’s. Given I have felt like a shoe stuck in dryer for the past couple days, it’s nice to be walking on solid ground, to have space to move your arms around, to turn, twist, and stretch just like you want to, when you want to.

It’s only the U.S, I know, but the culture is truly different here. Garibaldi is a little fisherman’s town (920 habitants), which consist of mostly middle age man with there wife’s, both of whom significantly look older than there actual age. I wonder if it’s because every second person here smoke’s, or because there life compromise of hard labor/poor diet. In the end, it’s probably a mixture of both. Nonetheless, we’ve met interesting people here, Norma the librarian (who offered me to join the Oprah book Club…aww!), Daisy the baker (who made dirt cheap americano’s) and Vic (who had one hand on the wheel and the other one fixing is oxygen mask). I was excited; we took a real old locomotive train ride to Rockaway Beach. The scene of it was windy, sandy and picturesque. At night, we went to experience the ‘real’ American Bar. As we entered, I felt we were Martians coming back from the future; all eyes were on us the out-of-towner’s. There I am walking in and thinking “my-OH-my who ever though jeans and a hoody would ever feel overdress”?! Clouds of smoke were upon us, pool was free, drinks were strong, but best of all, it was good ol’ KARAOKE night! I was threatening Scott to go up and sing, but he thought they would think I was unintentionally mocking them, and causing a riot this early in our trip was out of questions! : ) On the Sunday, we’ve hitchhiked (yes, you’ve read correctly, your dentist can and will do it) to Brimson Fall (one of the highest falls they say along the Coast), with my thumb of fire and Scott’s irresistible smirk people took us in jiffy! We’ve finished our day at the Tillamook Cheese Factory, with a delicious and oversized ice cream, that was bigger than shall I say, both of our brain’s.

On Monday, we departed once again. It’s 3 am; this will be an overnight trip of over 151 Nautical Mile. It’s a South wind, not in our favor, so we motor the whole time. Overall, (and secretly glad to report) it was an uneventful trip, with no sea sickness, no rockiness. At approximately 7 am that morning I have the sun rising on my left and the moon setting on my right- beyond doubt à m*a*g*i*c*a*l.

As we get out of the boat in Coos Bay, at around 10ish, Tuesday morning, our heads are ringing and we’re both dizzy from 30 hours of hearing a motor blazing though our ears. The dock is filled with filth from algae, moss, and pieces of bait. The smell of all this, is… shall I say, fishy. The “no crabbing” signs doesn’t stop locals from doing just that: crabbin’. It’s quite a violation of privacy if you ask me. Mostly retired people will plant there own chair right to the boat, and be there for hours on end, just chatting with other of there kind. As a result, it feels as though a stranger is eating toast on your lawn. In the end, apart from treating ourselves to the gym, some surfing and seeing a movie, we don’t like it much here. I mean, part of it is beautiful, but too put it way too nicely, most of it is extremely “blah”. : (

On top of it, as I am typing this on a cloudy day, we are kind of stuck here. The winds are still South (and said to be so until Sunday). But yeah, we’re just too antsy and we just can’t stomach another gloomy day. We’re leaving at the crack of dawn tomorrow, motor to our next destination, hoping the marina there doesn’t come with the group of smocks stretching there legs on my lawn!