Birthday boy

We start the day with a a cafe brunch nearby. Huge portions once again leave us slow and sluggish for a while. Delicious though.

America has this food concept of biscuits, which are like our scones, only softer. They pair these with everything a bun/bagel could be used (even at Maccas) for breakfast. Covering them in gravy tends to be the way to go. 

We head over to Kayne's again for some more Magic playing/gaming before going to dinner.

His mate Rob joins us and we have a good time at the restaurant, but call it a night short of playing the arcade there this time. 

All in all a very chill 40th birthday, which is fine by me since I had two parties in Christchurch. We've booked our flights to Fresno the next day and depart in the evening. There's so much choice for airlines here that even leaving it to the last minute has plenty of options to choose from.

Cya, Seattle. 

Wedding Time (no, not mine)

The wedding is at a small venue in Tacoma city. I have to re-google how to tie a double winsor because it's been too long since I've worn a tie, and the tie never seems long enough to do it!

Isa and I look frigging cute.

The ceremony is short and sweet. Their vows brought many in the room to tears (especially the bride, by her own doing). 

As festivities come to a close, it's getting close to their baby's bed time,  so most of us head back to the bride and groom's apartment to put baby to sleep... and play magic the gathering!

I'm so far behind the times with this game. I don't survive long. 

After baby wakes up, we head out to Los Cabos Mexican restaurant for way, way too much food. 

Fooooooood.

Ita been a big day done on very little sleep. Definitely an early night for me, praying the pain stays gone. I've found local dentists nearby just in case, but might also just go to Mexico proper for cheaper dental work. 

We shall see.

Pain in the kisser

I had developed a toothache two days before leaving New Zealand, which had fortunately subsided the day of departure. 

Well, it came back, and the only thing I really manage (on 31st May) was to share this sweet Cambodian stuffed chicken meal.

After this and quick walk around Federal Way mall and market, Isa sent me home to nurse myself while she toured the city. (Isn't that her job?!)

A snooze gifted me a brief reprieve from pain until the evening, where we ate with my old mate Kayne from high-school (Linwood!). Taco stuff delivered for dinner was delicious.

Unfortunately, tooth ache returned, and I was worried as much about not getting sleep before the wedding as I was the potential cost of emergency dental work in the USA. 

Sometime after 330-4am, I manage to fall asleep. It took several rounds of painkiller,  ibuprofen, and salt water mouth washes, and suddenly it's 8am! 

I'm pain free, but also a little sleep deprived. Off to the wedding we go!

Defiancssssse Point

We take the bus through downtown Tacoma on our way to Defiance Point. With time to kill between bus connections, we wander the streets a little, observing a plethora of alternative students filling coffee shops and staircases everywhere we go. 

There's cool street murals around, the above one being the most ironic. 

We make it to Defiance Point, and go running up that hill.

This area is known for it's waterside promenade, zoo, aquarium, and botanical gardens interwoven between easy loop trails up to 8km long. 

As we walk the waterline, Isa spots deer in the brush. She's a hunter, that one. 

The green spaces are excellent, and we come across a tranquil Japanese garden.

More wandering the forest. There are so many ferns here, it reminds me of home. 

We head to the rose garden to stop and smell the flowers,  and then (not)wild snakes appear!

This cool guy has his albino boas at the gardens to take pictures and prep them for sale. We're lucky enough to get sssssome hang time them. 

From there, we have a mean sandwich up the road and chat to a guy about his 30 years of breakdowns since buying his bike, but it looks sweet now.

Sightseeing part 4 - Space Noodle

Last but not least for this whirlwind day is the space noodle. 

The line to get in is about 45minutes, which you don't see until you actually get your ticket scanned and walk in. 

As expected though, the views are spectacular. Mt Rainer looked glorious all day long, and while we'd like to visit it too,  it's just not the right time of year. 

Lots of glass floors on the spinning deck. Don't get distracted by my socks, or legs.

We round out the day with some pho and basil pork from this cool cantina place. 

Such a long day!

Sightseeing part 3 - PacSci Butterflies

Off we went to PacSci, the Pacific Science Centre, which is a lot like the old Science Alive from Christchurch. It was basically free to do with the pass we brought, so in we went. 

The butterflies were the most interesting thing on display for us. I was blessed by one lading on me, too!

Lots of cool species here. 

We played with some of the interactive displays and took our time looking around the whole place. 

You can probably guess our next destination from this picture!