August Wrap Up

the view from my office's rooftop terrace
in Trafalgar Square

August was a great month for us!  We're really adapting quite well to London and we're having a great time! Our flat is working out quite well, even with the super crap futon we're sleeping on.  If these last two years have done anything they have made us very flexible when it comes to our sleeping arrangements.

August brought us lovely weather, steady income, and increased fortunes.  Thanks to our Yelp events, we're finding our social calendar quite full, which is a huge change from our recent solitary existence in Dundee.  I'm probably the most friendly and social I've ever been.  It's weird.  I'm not sure if this is a permanent change or just a blip but I'm having fun and meeting some great people so we'll see how it plays out.  Maybe London Desi is Friendly Desi?  I hope London Desi is also Less Embarrassing Desi because I could really do with a little less of that.  I'd also like London Desi to be More Articulate Desi because all that solitary living up north has left me with an inability to convey any coherent ideas verbally.  I'm really just a big ball of beeps and ticks at this point.  I usually give up trying to convey any ideas mid-attempt, which actually goes against my hope for Less Embarrassing Desi because beeping and ticking whilst conversing is actually just as embarrassing as it sounds.

We started investigating alternative commuting methods.  We've been commuting via bus, mostly because it's cheaper than via tube but it's also more convenient.  But, with the nice weather we gave the Boris Bikes a try.  Riding a bike in London is almost as heavenly as it was in The Netherlands and definitely not as bad as the war zone that is Seattle.  I have no idea how I used to commute via bike in Seattle.  Those drivers are actively out to get you (I had one actually stop and get out of his car, like he was going to fight me...for riding my bike).  Walking back home along the north bank of the Thames was also fun for a few evenings.  We'll probably wind up sticking with the bus, especially when the weather turns, but it's nice to know we have so many options.

Surrey Docks City Farm

We didn't travel anywhere in August but we did ramble along the Thames.  We didn't get farther east than Greenwich but we did discover a lovely city farm with goats and chickens and pigs (oh my).  We also experienced one of our most magical evenings, watching 'The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel' in a courtyard in Covent Garden with Bollywood dancers pre-show and free drinks and popcorn.  We also got to go to the industry screening of 'Great Expectations' in Leicester Square (where all the London premiers take place) where the director, Mike Newell, actually spoke to the crowd.

Bollywood dancers

Although August was a great month, September is already shaping up to be an improvement upon it, which is hard to believe but totally appreciated.  It's also hard to believe we've already been in London for two full months but, at the same time, it's hard to believe it hasn't been longer.  As expected, our time in Dundee is already fading from memory and being replaced almost entirely by pleasant London ones.  September will hopefully continue that trend.

I Remember This Being Easier

Saturday morning we decided to ride our bicycles around Lake Washington. Desi did this last year and found the ride to be really nice, though she got stung by a bee along West Lake Sammamish and was caught in a freak downpour during the last quarter of the 55 mile ride. Still, she recommended the ride highly and said it would be relatively easy, especially after all our experience on organized rides thus far this year.

The ride turned out to be the most difficult of all rides so far this year, including both the challenging Portland ride in February and the Camano Climb from earlier this month. The difficulty was mostly due to the fact that we weren't prepared for the distance combined with the heat (it reached around 80 degrees) so we didn't have enough water. Additionally, perhaps we've begun to rely too heavily upon supported rides and their conveniences because we didn't have rest stops planned and we hadn't eaten before departing the house at 11AM, perhaps expecting to find free food randomly provided along the route.

The elevation gain was probably equivalent to the Camano Climb ride. The first half of the ride, from Columbia City along the Burke-Gilman Trail to Woodinville, was flat and fantastic. It winds along Lake Washington and connects to the Sammamish River Trail, bringing us to the Chateau Ste. Michelle Winery (below, our first rest stop) without traffic or difficulty. But, the second half, from Woodinville along Lake Sammamish and across Lake Washington via I-90, was disastrous! Almost all uphill along West Lake Sammamish, a very busy road and with no designated rest stops. We ran out of water along this part and the only park we found was private property with an entrance fee.

In the pictures below you see us resting on a small patch of grass on the side of West Lake Sammamish (where Desi has depleted both water supplies and is very near tears), at a rest stop on Mercer Island, and overlooking I-90 (the bike trail is on the left). Once we got back onto the trail, along I-90, we were still out of water and Desi had almost given up totally. We finally found a place to fill up our water bottles in Bellevue, with approximately 10 miles left before home.

We got home around 4:30PM. We're both amazed that we did the ride but Desi is perplexed regarding the increased difficulty this time around. She's in better shape this year, with more miles under her belt, so she doesn't understand the difference between how easy she remembers the ride from last year and the ride she barely survived yesterday. She's absolutely stunned by the difficulty and yet we'll most likely do the ride a few more times this year because it is such a lovely ride. But, next time, we'll plan for a hard, unsupported ride to help alleviate any of the self-induced difficulties we encountered this time around.

Burlington Spring Classic

Yesterday we rode our first metric century (62 miles), the Burlington Spring Classic. This was the longest either of us had ever ridden and it really showed when we both hit the wall, Desi at mile marker 40 and Mike at mile marker 50. The elevation gain on this ride was 2400 ft., which made it easier than the Camano Climb last weekend. The two big climbs on this ride were Chuckanut Drive and Bow Hill Road. The picture below shows us at the top of Chuckanut Drive, at the first pit stop. Bow Hill Road was rough! It came around mile marker 45 and was the toughest hill of the ride. They positioned somebody dressed as a devil on the side of the road to scream encouragement at us. It was that rough. We eventually made it to the finish line spaghetti feed. At 6 hours and 15 minutes, we had our best pace yet. Although it's a day later and we're both still pretty broken, we both agree that this was a fantastic ride and our favorite ride yet.

Camano Climb

Yesterday we participated in the Camano Climb, a ride that followed the perimeter of Camano Island. Ten years in Seattle and we've only made it to Camano Island once previously and that event didn't include a tour of the island.

The scenery was gorgeous though very hilly and, unfortunately, Desi didn't realize that "climb" in the title translated to hills on the ride so she was mentally unprepared for the difficulty we encountered. Additionally, though the ride was great, it was a bit too challenging for a couple still recuperating from last weekend's Rhody Tour.

We wound up having to cut a corner towards the end, skipping about 5 miles of hills, in order to reach the finish line alive.  We're not proud of our finish but we are proud of our attempt and glad we tried a ride so clearly beyond our skill level.  This experience definitely gives us something to work towards.

Port Townsend, Where Have You Been?

We spent this past weekend in Port Townsend, WA with our friends Jason & Duana. One of our first thoughts, upon seeing this picturesque town, was "Why, after living in Seattle for 10 years, have we never been to Port Townsend before?" We LOVED Port Townsend! We rode the ferry from Seattle to Bainbridge Island on Saturday morning (about 35 minutes) and then drove the 1.5 hours north to Port Townsend where we met up with our friends. We stayed at The Tides Inn, which is where "An Officer and A Gentleman" was filmed and is just outside the downtown area. Our room was fantastic and super cheap, at only about $90 for the night. It was right on the beach and our view (below) was amazing! Our reason for being in Port Townsend was to participate in the Rhody Tour, an absolutely fabulous 44-mile bicycle ride with a challenging 2030 ft. elevation gain. It was the first time we have done an organized ride with friends and the first time on our new bikes. We had a blast!

Bend Today, Gone Tomorrow

For Mike's 33rd Birthday Celebration, we spent this past weekend in Bend, OR. We originally chose Bend because we wanted to stay at the McMenamins Old St. Francis School, since Mike enjoyed their Kennedy School (Portland, OR) so much, but a 6-hour drive can be pretty long for a Friday night. However, once we arrived, around 9PM, and after some shock at the size of the hotel (super small) and the size of the crowds at the hotel (super crowded) we were glad we came.

Bend has the beautiful Deschutes River running right through it. There's a trail system that runs along side it for portions at a time that we utilized quite heavily while visiting. It's a shame the river trail isn't more developed or continuous, however, but it was nice and fun to ride our bikes around the town and walk along the river.

We left around 11AM this morning and took a lovely scenic route back home, through The Dalles and along the Columbia River. We stopped at Multnomah Falls for a quick walk and some pretty scenery, but quickly got back on the road and arrived home around 6PM.

Good Times Together

After much pressure, Mike finally agreed to participate in a supported bike ride with Desi as long as 1) the route was flat, and 2) there were no hills.  The McClinchy Mile offered a 34-mile, flat option that seemed to meet both of Mike's requirements.  Thus, Mike completed his first supported bike ride with Desi yesterday morning.

Mike was able to complete the ride in approximately 3-hours, which is super fast, especially for a newbie.  The route wasn't exactly flat either, though Desi thought it was pretty close.  The ladies staffing the finish line fawned all over Mike when they heard this was his first ride.  He's pretty proud of himself, and rightly so.

Bike Riding

Last year I became a bike riding enthusiast. I started by participating in the Group Health Yakima Ridges bike ride in April 2007 with my friend, Duana. It was a scenic 25 miles along the Yakima River. I did it with a mountain bike and no prior long distance bike riding experience.

Afterwards, Mike bought me a new hybrid bike and I began riding my bike to work whenever possible. Columbia City to South Lake Union isn't terrible, though getting over Capitol Hill took a few weeks to get used to. Still, the ride only took 30-45 minutes and was rather pleasant.

The season ended in September with the Group Health Wine Country Trek, which was a 60 mile bike ride through the Yakima wine country, from Yakima to Prosser, incorporating a few vineyards along the way for shopping, eating, and resting. It was fantastic! I rode with Duana again as well as her husband, Jason. It took 8-9 hours, but it was a beautiful day and the wine was good and the country was amazing.

Unfortunately, I haven't really touched my bike since September last year. But, I woke up this morning determined that today was going to be a bike riding day. Seattle does this fantastic thing every summer where they close Lake Washington Blvd to car traffic two weekend days per month, allowing bikes to own the road (http://www.seattle.gov/PARKS/Athletics/bikesatsun.htm). Coincidentally, today happened to be the Saturday in July that the road was closed to car traffic.

It's fun to see everybody spread across the entire street enjoying the day on their bikes. I think it's one of the things that makes Seattle feel so small town. Needless to say, I had a very enjoyable ride this afternoon.

This year I've signed up for only one bike riding event. The Vela Bella Bike Ride is a ladies only ride through the beautiful Wenatchee National Forest near Lake Wenatchee (http://www.athleteslounge.com/events/event.php?eventid=2264). It takes place in August and Duana will be my riding partner again. I've never really spent any time in the Wenatchee National Forest. I'm looking forward to seeing it.