October 15th

Well, we got persuaded to stay an extra half day in Victoria after a long night involving cards, and local brew (thanks Schissel and Chelsey). We took Schissel to the local gym for a climb, and had lots of fun. After saying our goodbyes to the Schiz we packed our stuff (which we have become incredibly efficient at…by the way), and headed to Port Angeles to catch the ferry down into Washington. We just barely made the ferry since a lot of people had already made reservations on it. The ferry ride was beautiful again, and the boat was a lot older, so it had quite a bit of character to it.

Surprisingly we were NOT strip searched at the customs office Victoria. I know that we certainly don’t look like suspicious characters, but the fact that we have that car jam packed made us a little nervous that they would want to rip it all apart. They did turn an eyebrow up at us however when Matt and I informed them that we are two young people coming into their country for 2 months…and have no jobs waiting for us when we get home. We had to sign into our online banking to prove that we had enough money to support ourselves. Then the Customs officer in Washington wanted to know the same thing, but he didn’t make too big of a fuss. (I may have let a few comments slip out of my mouth to reassure this guy that we aren’t trying to smuggle ourselves into the country, and we have NO intentions on becoming Americans…I think he was scared of my massive biceps).

We drove south through Washington (and partway into Oregon) late into the night before stopping at Lincoln City, Oregon, at a cheap motel to escape the downpour. We thought we could just drive through the rain, but it didn’t work. The sleep on a real bed was amazing…I don’t think I moved all night.

Schissel…thank you SO much for all your hospitality and tolerance of us! We all loved Victoria, and you were an excellent tour guide. Hopefully we can return the favour someday.

Erin, I’m so glad to hear that the shower went well! I wish I could have been there to see you in all your bow hat glory! Hope everything is going well in Edmonton. Say hi to Steve!