We were super stoked to have gotten in touch with the kiwi family we had met only briefly at the Grand Canyon a few months prior. They offered to have us come and stay and right from the get go they gave us an incredibly warm reception.
The end of the phone call went something like this...
Us: "We will be arriving in Seattle around six if that's ok?"
Dee: "Yea sure just come whenever. Here's our address... If we aren't home the kids and the nanny will be, they'll show you around, give you the wifi password, the backyard for the dog and a towel for a shower"
Already they had our needs fully covered and we didn't even really know them at all. When we arrived late Dad Jay was home with kids Max (11), Emma (9) and Lucy (7). The kids entertained Scout while we grabbed a shower then tucked into some dinner leftovers Jay had saved for us. Later Dee arrived home and said how her work colleges couldn't fathom that she had invited strangers over to stay. She told them that we were from New Zealand too, so that made it ok but I don't think that helped them understand. We set up camp on the exceptionally comfortable fold-out memory foam couch down stairs and went to bed wondering how we'd managed to strike it so lucky yet again.
The next morning Will was on a mission to find some new waterproof shell pants for the coming winter. We had stopped in at the huge REI flagship store on our way into Seattle but Will hadn't found any that fit the bill for a price we could afford. The place was massive though with a climbing gym, river and even a mountain bike track. We enjoyed looking around and after two hours we did well not to have bought anything. The prices were so cheap compared to what we pay in New Zealand but our space is limited. That morning we hit a few other outdoors stores like Patagonia and Marmot but had no luck. Will was feeling pretty frustrated but we tried one last store a guy had told us about called Feathered Friends. They specialise in making custom down jackets and sleeping bags but also have a range of outdoor gear. The store ended up having a prefect pair of shell pants for Will which he brought while I tried on some hiking boots that I really liked but might have to order online from back home. With the pants buying saga over we headed over to the worlds first Starbucks cafe for a frappuccino then strolled around the Pikes Place Market looking at all the random things people had for sale.
The end of the phone call went something like this...
Us: "We will be arriving in Seattle around six if that's ok?"
Dee: "Yea sure just come whenever. Here's our address... If we aren't home the kids and the nanny will be, they'll show you around, give you the wifi password, the backyard for the dog and a towel for a shower"
Already they had our needs fully covered and we didn't even really know them at all. When we arrived late Dad Jay was home with kids Max (11), Emma (9) and Lucy (7). The kids entertained Scout while we grabbed a shower then tucked into some dinner leftovers Jay had saved for us. Later Dee arrived home and said how her work colleges couldn't fathom that she had invited strangers over to stay. She told them that we were from New Zealand too, so that made it ok but I don't think that helped them understand. We set up camp on the exceptionally comfortable fold-out memory foam couch down stairs and went to bed wondering how we'd managed to strike it so lucky yet again.
The next morning Will was on a mission to find some new waterproof shell pants for the coming winter. We had stopped in at the huge REI flagship store on our way into Seattle but Will hadn't found any that fit the bill for a price we could afford. The place was massive though with a climbing gym, river and even a mountain bike track. We enjoyed looking around and after two hours we did well not to have bought anything. The prices were so cheap compared to what we pay in New Zealand but our space is limited. That morning we hit a few other outdoors stores like Patagonia and Marmot but had no luck. Will was feeling pretty frustrated but we tried one last store a guy had told us about called Feathered Friends. They specialise in making custom down jackets and sleeping bags but also have a range of outdoor gear. The store ended up having a prefect pair of shell pants for Will which he brought while I tried on some hiking boots that I really liked but might have to order online from back home. With the pants buying saga over we headed over to the worlds first Starbucks cafe for a frappuccino then strolled around the Pikes Place Market looking at all the random things people had for sale.
The next day we had decided that we would cook dinner for the family so we popped out in the morning to grab the food we would need to make pizzas from Trader Joe's supermarket. The pizzas went down well with the family that evening but on our way back from Trader Joe's Will suggested we stop in at the local Dodge, Jeep and Chrysler dealership. Will had been in contact with them via email about our broken 4x4. Many people said that we should get in touch with Dodge, tell them about our journey and maybe they would help us out for free or something. We were skeptical but thought we might as well try given our current problem. When we arrived they took a while to figure out who we even were but said to bring it in the following morning and they would see what they could do. Turns out our skepticism was right though as Will returned back to me at the house the next morning grumbling about the time he had just wasted. After more than two hours there they basically said that they couldn't care less about our journey and that it was going to cost $125 for them just to diagnose the 4x4 problem. No thanks! And this was after one of the service guys locked our keys in the car. So that afternoon Will took to the Dodge himself and posted the following message to Facebook "Once again I find myself in a friendly family's driveway surrounded by tools pulling parts off the Dodge to find out what's gone wrong this time...". Eventually he found that the linkage from the 4x4 shifter to the transmission had completely fallen off and was nowhere to be found. Will did a ring around the local parts stores but nobody had one. He found one on eBay but had to get it sent to my Uncles brothers workshop in Merritt, Canada as we didn't have time to wait for it to arrive in Seattle. We had to cross our fingers that we wouldn't need the 4x4 before then. Poor Will wasn't happy though as this meant putting everything back together now and having to pull it all apart again later to install the new linkage.
While we were in Seattle we also went to the Boeing factory. We both found the factory really fascinating despite having possibly the worlds worst tour guide. An old lady who appeared to know little about planes and rushed us though everything like she was going be late for a hot date. Just as I was starting to get my head around the difference between a 747 and a 737. Though it was pretty special for us to see the brand new carbon fibre 787-9s with the Air New Zealand koru pattern. It's the first one through the production line as Air New Zealand is the launch customer. We were told not to take photos but shhhh we sneaked a few on the iPhone while the guide wasn't looking. Just as we were leaving the factory a brand new cargo 747 landed with the Sea Hawks logo freshly painted on the side.
The following day we designated as a lazy day and Will spent the morning sewing his two ripped pairs of jeans into one functioning pair on Dee's sewing machine. It was cute to watch but he took ages especially after he decided to iron on patches over the inside as well. Despite the effort the pants ripped again three months later and ended up in the bin soon after. Still he got a bit more use out of them.
Dee had recommended we check out the EMP museum in town so that afternoon we made our way there and saved a bunch on the entry price with Dee's discount card. At the museum we read all about the lives of famous musicians and bands and really enjoyed the horror movie exhibit. That evening Dee asked if we could baby sit the kids and as they were such cool well behaved kids we said no problem. So with Jay in New Zealand for work and Dee out we hung with Max, Emma and Lucy and watched a movie accompanied by junk food that came all the way from NZ! Mmmmmmmm.
We had spent the first few nights getting to know Jay and learning about his work in the App business and his thoughts on up and coming technology. Meanwhile Dee was busy working late each night until Jay left for NZ. Then we got to know more about Dee who was a super mum! She was there for the kids doing homework and cooking homemade delights as well as running part of the Microsoft empire and keeping fit on her road bike! All this while looking fabulous and with house guests. We weren't the only ones to stay too apparently they have a constant flow of kiwis staying on their way to or from Seattle for work in either Dee or Jay's businesses.
This is how we got introduced to Hamish, a kiwi who works for Jay about our age. It was crazy for us to hear all of these New Zealand accents all of a sudden. Anyway so Dee set up for Will and I to go out with Hamish to watch the Super Bowl at a pub in town with him and his friends. It was going to be a big one as the Seattle Seahawks were playing the Denver Broncos for the final. We didn't really have any team colours to wear but I painted my nails green and blue and we wore the blue beads that came with our beers. Will also wanted to wear his jandles to the pub "absolutely not" I said. Then we turn up and Hamish is there in his jeans and jandles, it's a New Zealand style that the rest of the world just doesn't seem to appreciate.
This is how we got introduced to Hamish, a kiwi who works for Jay about our age. It was crazy for us to hear all of these New Zealand accents all of a sudden. Anyway so Dee set up for Will and I to go out with Hamish to watch the Super Bowl at a pub in town with him and his friends. It was going to be a big one as the Seattle Seahawks were playing the Denver Broncos for the final. We didn't really have any team colours to wear but I painted my nails green and blue and we wore the blue beads that came with our beers. Will also wanted to wear his jandles to the pub "absolutely not" I said. Then we turn up and Hamish is there in his jeans and jandles, it's a New Zealand style that the rest of the world just doesn't seem to appreciate.
The Broncos never regained their composure after their star quarterback Peyton Manning missed a pass and the ball went into the dead zone. The final score was 43-8. We didn't really get all the rules to the game but the atmosphere was wild and the half time show and million dollar add breaks lived up to the hype. Bruno Mars rocked it with the Chilli Peppers and Bud (beer) showed us what best buds are using a cute puppy and a horse. After the game Hamish suggested a celebratory plunge in the frigid waters of the Seattle harbour across the road. It was freezing but all the boys and one girl (not me) stripped off and crashed into the water. They were out again shivering moments later and posed for a photo but their steaming bodies fogged up the lens. Every one was commando back in the pub where the party continued late into the night. Later on Will and I caught a taxi back to the kiwi house.
The next day was Monday the 3rd of February we had a bit of a sleep in then packed up the Dodge ready to hit the road once more. This time everything was nice and clean, the Dodge was vacuumed, all the stuff in the roof had been dried out inside the house and even our big Coleman sleeping bag on the bed had been washed. I'm going to miss those huge American washers and dryers when we go home. We wouldn't set out for Canada until the following morning though as at three o'clock when the kids got home from school we had promised to take them rock climbing.
Much to Wills delight Dee let us take Jay's Toyota Tundra to the climbing wall it was sooo nice! At the climbing wall we had to sign three different liability forms even though Dee had already done the ones for the kids online. Then we both had to do a belaying and tying in test before finally having to do an automatic belay test. The kids were getting bored and we were feeling frustrated but finally we had our laminated certificate and we got into some climbing. We had our hands full with the three of them but they were all troopers and climbed hard. The youngest Lucy would have kept going forever if we'd let her. We were going to pick up Dee afterwards and get burgers but we didn't get back until almost seven so Dee had a Mac and cheese just coming out of the oven as we got home. The troops weren't too happy about this but they came around and we savoured our final night in the kiwi haven before leaving the next morning.
Rochelle & Will
Much to Wills delight Dee let us take Jay's Toyota Tundra to the climbing wall it was sooo nice! At the climbing wall we had to sign three different liability forms even though Dee had already done the ones for the kids online. Then we both had to do a belaying and tying in test before finally having to do an automatic belay test. The kids were getting bored and we were feeling frustrated but finally we had our laminated certificate and we got into some climbing. We had our hands full with the three of them but they were all troopers and climbed hard. The youngest Lucy would have kept going forever if we'd let her. We were going to pick up Dee afterwards and get burgers but we didn't get back until almost seven so Dee had a Mac and cheese just coming out of the oven as we got home. The troops weren't too happy about this but they came around and we savoured our final night in the kiwi haven before leaving the next morning.
Rochelle & Will