Neither of us had been to Washington before, so we were ready to see Seattle and it's surrounding suburbs. We also had an appointment for oil and belt change to keep with the Caterpillar Dealership in Tukwila on Friday. The dealership graciously offered the parking lot for us to stay the night Thursday so we would be conveniently located close and wouldn't have to battle rush-hour morning traffic.
Once we figured out which location we were supposed to park at (seeing as Seattle is the Corporate Headquarters for NC Power Systems Caterpillar and there were multiple buildings on the same street that stated "NC Power Systems Cat") we found a spot near a billboard that we would call home for the weekend. We tried to find a park that was close for after the mechanics were finished, but we were unable to find anyone with vacancies(except for the KOA for $61/night!!!). Lesson learned: make reservations when you are able. Although, the location at the Cat dealership is a great location due to its closeness to Seattle!
We woke up super early (6:30am) and were ready to see where they wanted us by 7am. They found a work bay for us to park in, so we hung around for a bit thinking they would be done in a couple of hours.
However, we quickly learned this was not the case and decided we would go tour the Future of Flight Aviation Center & Boeing Tour. If you know Sean, then you know that he was practically bouncing out of his seat to get there, which wasn't fast due to lots of traffic.
Unfortunately, Boeing does not allow any cameras of any kind, nor anything capable of taking a picture, including phones. So, I have NO pictures of anything in the factory :( This made me a sad panda because I felt so lost without my cameras in my hands... You could see why they wouldn't want anyone to take pictures of the manufacturing process, lots of trade secrets I guess.
The building that the 747, 777, and new 787 are built and assembled in, is apparently the largest building in the world by volume. I can tell you it was HUGE! The tour guide said you could play 75 football games simultaneously and be done with the scheduled games in 2 days, haha!
On all of the planes being built, there are banners with a company's name and the number of the same plane being built for the company. For instance, "Boeing: Proudly building the Eleventh 787 for Qantas Airline Company." Toward the back of the plane, there is a number displayed which indicates the number plane crafted. So, in reference to the 787 the 137 meaning the 137th plane ever made. The 747 and 777 were completely built and assembled at Paine Field, whereas, the 787 is built in multiple areas of the world and were assembled at Paine Field. The 787 is nicknamed the Dreamliner and had a special airplane made only to ship its completed hull section called the Dreamlifter. The entire airplane's parts and sections (minus the engines) fit inside the Dreamlifter!
After the tour they drop you off in the "tourist trap" gift store, but there was also a museum around the corner that we explored (and I was able to take pictures!).
Molly was a great sport during this time. We had to take her with us in the Jeep everywhere we went because we couldn't leave her in the motorhome while the mechanics were working on it (they had to go inside to the back bathroom to have access to the belt). So, she patiently waited in the Jeep with the windows cracked while Sean and I went on the Boeing Tour.
The next day we explored more of Seattle. Did you know that trolls that live under bridges are real?
After getting back into our Jeep, we could not find a trash can to throw out our old Gum in our mouths. We finally found a place where we could throw away our gum as you can see from the picture below. This is the Gum Wall in Seattle's Pike Place Market. Our gum is white, and pictured below in the rough shape of a "V".
Now that that chore was taken care of, I needed some caffeine to keep me going. Luckily for me, Starbucks was right around the corner. Not just any Starbucks, but the original Starbucks that started it all in 1971. Unfortunately, Sean doesn't like coffee or tea so he didn't get anything.
We saw a small Mexican Bakery that sold meals of nachos, tamales, chips and salsa for cheap while we were in line for Starbucks, so we back-tracked a little and purchased a cheap lunch, which we ate at a small park near the water.
When our bellies were full, we hiked our way over to the Space Needle, about a 15 minute walk from where we parked. It was hard for Sean to swallow the admission charge of $19/person, but I was able to convinced him we should do it. I'm glad we went up because it has a spectacular view of the Seattle skyline and surrounding areas.
We got to the Jeep before our time had expired on the parking receipt, only to find a gift tucked under the Jeep's windshield wiper...does the city really want to torture their tourists? Do they really want to scare their revenue away? We did everything exactly to the instructions provided, but we still got a ticket!
Sean already had a scheming idea up his sleeve, so he is appealing the ticket and if they don't forgive it you may see what they will have mailed to them... ;)
No comments:
Post a Comment