Bremerton…A Nice Finish to a Long Day

Soon we were off again.

Wait, did I start too soon? I’ve already flown from Teterboro near New York City this morning. We landed in Denver for a quick fuel stop before continuing on our journey home. With not enough time to run home to see Hubby, I just stayed at the airport for our next flight an hour later.

We were headed to Bremerton for a long weekend, and I couldn’t wait to spend a few days in Seattle!

Wow, New York and Seattle in the same week. Can it possibly get any better than that?! They are definitely my favorite two cities to explore!

So…now we’re off again.

We waited for this Citation to land on our runway before we were cleared for takeoff.

What a gorgeous view just after we were airborne!

Ah, Spring in the Valley of the Sun. Things are green and nice this time of year. I’m pretty sure that it was seventy-four degrees when we took off.

Perfection!

Do you want to know what isn’t perfection? Nightmares about work…

I just woke up from a terrible dream this morning. I was back in my old job and had just found out that we were headed to Belgium. The real kicker was that I had been attending a day conference out of town and had no luggage with me. And all of a sudden I had to go to Belgium for three weeks. Instead of being thrilled to finally go to Europe, I was worrying about how expensive it would be to buy a toothbrush while there!

No warning. No clothes. No communication. I think this pretty much sums up how I always worried about that old job!

I don’t miss it one bit, in case you’re wondering!

Anyway, back to the wonderful flight…

This was a late Thursday afternoon of the Easter weekend when we were trucking north towards the Seattle area. The skies were packed with airplanes, and we saw lots go over and under us on their flights.

My window was facing away from the setting sun, so a little frost started to develop on the inside to my right.

We were waaaaaaaay above the clouds down there, and thankfully, they were not convective.

I’ve been up since 3:00 AM local time, so I don’t really think that any more challenges during this flight would work out for me!

It’s going to be great to land in Bremerton in a few hours!

Another blessing? Almost no headwind at all. Usually, flying northwest like we were, we have a nice little headwind around eighty knots keeping us from zooming along even faster.

Tonight? It was from 005 degrees at three knots. Can you believe it?! What a blessing!

Another airplane flying over a pretty mountain as we got closer to Bremerton tonight.

Airplanes in a picture just make everything better. Don’t you agree?

Well, OK…this picture is pretty, too. But it would be way better with an airplane in the shot.

I’m just sayin’…

We descended just over Tacoma and came up to Bremerton almost from the south. Seattle Center does this to keep us away from their busy airspace. We are just across the Puget Sound from them!

It was a pretty gorgeous flight…especially admiring the sunset for almost our entire evening!

That’s Tacoma directly underneath us, and Seattle is in the distance by that pretty cloud.

Are you as excited as me to have two whole days off to explore Seattle?!

Man, I love my job.

There were clouds all over as we began our final descent into Bremerton tonight. They were painted purple, orange, and pink with the setting sun working its magic.

This is a terrible shot of the Bremerton airport as we flew on a forty-five degree angle to enter the traffic pattern.

There were a few other airplanes in the pattern tonight, so we had to play dodge ball to make sure that we could fit in for our landing.

As we turned for our base leg of the approach, I could see the town of Bremerton just north of us. Those beautiful lights were welcoming me home!

I love this place. I’ve probably already told you that a thousand times.

But it’s still true.

We landed and taxied to the ramp. We always get spoiled rotten at Avian Flight Center, and this evening was no different!

We got our passengers and their luggage loaded up into the car and on their way. Then I got to enjoy the gorgeous evening at the airport while prepping Gladys for three nights on the ramp in Bremerton.

Is she smiling?!

Yes, she is.

We all love coming here.

Goodbye, pretty girl! I’ll see you in a few days! On Easter Sunday, to be exact!

Once in the parking lot to borrow the crew car, I took a parting shot of the FBO hangar.

These trees always remind me of something straight out of a Dr. Seuss book. Don’t you think so?

They are all over in this part of the world.

A surreal shot of forest blur as we made our seven-mile journey from the airport to town.

I can’t wait to get to that hotel room. It’s been a very long and fun day, but I’m definitely ready for some rest!

We eventually made the final corner before coming into view of the Bremerton Harbor.

Ah, Bremerton. You have no idea how much I love you!

I stayed at the lovely Fairfield Inn by Marriott. I had a goal to get a certain amount of nights at Marriott so I could use some points to get free rooms while at Disneyland.

It worked! We got four out of five nights paid for by Marriott points. So stinkin’ awesome!

Thank goodness that I’ve stayed in a hotel room almost constantly for the past three months, huh?

I was grateful for the microwave, too. I still had some healthy food in my bag, in case it was needed.

And this was the beautiful view that greeted me from my hotel window. Through these two apartment buildings, you can see the Puget Sound.

I am so happy to be here for this entire weekend! But, more importantly at the moment, I am so happy to fall asleep!

Prepare for lots of Seattle. I couldn’t help myself!

The American Museum of Natural History

Oh, it’s been a grand tour of NYC so far. Can you believe that I get to have all this fun while at work?!

In case you missed them, here are the first two posts from this visit.

Times Square, I Heart You
Magnolia Bakery and Central Park

Can you see Moroni trumpeting into the clouds?

Across the street from him is the Lincoln Center. This part of town always seems to distinguished to me. Maybe it’s because lots of symphonies and ballets perform at the Lincoln Center?

I didn’t purchase anything, but I thought that this little ice cream waffle stand looked cute. Even with it less than fifty degrees, people were lining up for these chilly treats!

Another pretty picture of the LDS Manhattan Temple.

I saw this bag in the window of the Tumi store. Isn’t it cute? I love the colors and the design! It would be fun to have such cute luggage.

But I’m rather happy with my suitcase, which my Dad gave me for high school graduation (um….last year). It’s still holding up like a champ!

It was really fun to wander for a few minutes, with no firm plan in mind. Sometimes, this tactic leads me on the best adventures!

This is the subway station that I used last September to visit the temple. I love its old shape and iron work.

Did you know that the NYC subway system has been going strong since 1905? And that a blizzard in 1888 is what really made them think of underground transportation? And that it is the seventh-busiest metro system in the world? And has over 460 stations (the most in the world) with 209 miles of track?

Yeah, I didn’t know any of that, either. Thanks, Wikipedia.

I had read before visiting the city about some must-see stops for food throughout NYC. I thought that I was so lucky to have stumbled upon this Gray’s Papaya, which is famous for great hot dogs!

I found out later that there are several locations. But at the time, I considered it fate telling me to eat one.

The interior was a little…well, overwhelming. I didn’t know where to look or how to order!

Dang tourist.

Luckily, the workers were patient with me. And I walked out with a hot little dog in my hand.

And it was delicious, in case you’re wondering.

I loved how integrated these old spires were into this city block. They remind me of something at Disneyland, which I get to visit next week with my Mama and little brother. So maybe I was just getting a little too excited ahead of time?

This part of town, on the west side of upper Central Park, is one of my favorites to visit. I love the old charm and character of the buildings, built from the mid-1800s and up.

Isn’t that spired building in the distance pretty?

And doesn’t it look like the Tower of Terror?!

Oh man, there I go again.

During the late 1800s, this ornamental design was carried on lots of buildings. It wasn’t until the art deco age of the late 1920s and 1930s that this look started to be phased out in newer buildings.

I can’t really see them putting little angels on buildings today, can you?

This was another fine eating establishment that topped everyone’s list of must-eat places while visiting New York City.

The Shake Shack.

I passed a few of these burger joints while wandering NYC over two days, and they were always filled to the brim with people and had lines starting around the block!

Maybe there is something to this? I think that I’ll sacrifice the waiting time next visit to give this place a try.

I walked east a few blocks to arrive at The American Museum of Natural History. The sign says that it was made in 1869, so another old one! I love it!

I think that a building this size was just incredible back then. Heck, it’s incredible now!

From my south entrance to this (free!) museum, I first saw a giant, ancient canoe.

Doesn’t this make you think of the chants in the Enchanted Tiki Room at Disneyland?

No? That’s just me? Hmmmm.

These little farm toys were so cute, even though they were also supposed to be educational in showing the different progression of machinery use for farming over the centuries.

Growing up, we had a little farm set to play with. The pigs were about the size of a pinky fingernail, and the chickens were even smaller! We certainly got our money’s worth from that set, since we played with it all winter long for many years.

Even better? It is in my possession now! I sometimes ask Hubby if he wants to play Farm Set with me. He always just smiles.

I don’t think that he gets it.

This giant tree was several millennium old when they cut it down. I’m sure that they would be hanged until dead if they cut such an old tree down these days, but it was just incredible to see the cross sections up close!

I loved the colors in this display of what-grows-where in America.

Now that’s a jellyfish!

I wandered towards the ocean life pavilion, which I hadn’t visited for about five years.

I love the hanging displays of what swims deep below.

I’m still trying to figure out why there seems to be a dodo bird in this mix, though.

Anyone?

This is the big guy that I wanted to see the most today. I am always just in awe of something so giant being in existence! This blue whale is mind-boggling to me!

Can you imagine how much stuff this guy has to eat in a day to feel full?!

Man, I am really on a Disney kick.

Doesn’t this squid guy look like the one that attacked Captain Nemo in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea?

I thought so, too! It must be the eyes…

I guess that I should just tell you all now…I don’t like sharks. Not one single bit.

They are probably Number Three on my list of things that should have been left off the Ark.

Scorpions, of course, are on the top of that list, followed closely by their cousins, the spiders. Sharks are right behind, though I have to admit…where I live, it’s a little easier to avoid sharks than the other two.

They have a giant screen showing educational movies about underwater creatures, and it’s located right underneath this big ol’ blue guy here.

It almost looks like the whale is watching the show with them, huh?

There are some pretty big things under the sea, as shown by this display of a human scuba diver next to lots of fishes and such.

I’m OK with dolphins…and maybe the type of fish played by Dory in Finding Nemo, but that’s about it. Lots of these other little guys are a little creepy.

Also, let it be known that I would never swim with these types of critters.

I moved away from the scary undersea monsters to visit some displays of ancient America.

This museum is wonderful, by the way. You could spend an entire week in here and still not have enough time to see the whole building!  I love it!

There is an entire hall dedicated to the mammals of North America, which means lots of big, hairy things with antlers and horns.

I don’t know how to count them, but I think that these two guys would make a nice score with antlers like that!

Big Horn Sheep. Now you can call your day complete.

Look at the claws on these grizzly bears! They can actually run pretty fast, too. I would hate to ever be caught in that situation.

I’ve heard that it’s best to run downhill, if possible. Because their front legs are longer than their back ones, they have a hard time being fast when going downhill.

Disclaimer: this blog is in no way meant to help you survive a bear chase. User discretion is advised. Don’t blame me if it doesn’t go well for you.

After a little exploring inside, it was time to leave the crowds behind to head out to Manhattan once again. This was the museum exit towards the east. I only did a tiny portion of one floor today! Sheesh!

This is the entrance to the museum that faces Central Park. Don’t you love buildings like this?!

And, of course, naked-men-with-horses is a totally appropriate statue to represent a fine center for learning.

This horse was grossed out by the whole idea, actually.

There are a few subway stops to get here, too, if you don’t want to walk. But I was happy to explore on foot today. You see more that way, you know?

President Abe Lincoln was just a block away, standing on the steps to the Historical Society Museum.

I really love life-size statues. It gives such a real sense of their true height! He was pretty tall!

This would be a fun street on which to live. A few blocks from the museum and just across the street from Central Park?

Yes, please!

Of course, I would prefer a top floor, to enhance my view.

And, also of course, I would want sea dragons and Poseidon protecting my home at all times.

So there you have it! A quick stop into the Museum of Natural History, as well as some gorgeous NYC buildings and hot dogs.

More to come this week! I hope that you’re enjoying these visits as much as me! It’s fun to relive them through blogging.