I like to be in America!

To see more photos, check out our new photo section or the slide show on the right.

So, finally here is the full story of our trip to Seattle...

We arrived in Seattle to find a chaffeur-driven car waiting for us. I fulfilled a happy dream to arrive at an airport to be met buy a man with our name on a board. Surely this means you've made it. It was a lovely gesture from our hosts, Anne and Tim. In fact the whole trip was filled with lovely gestures from these two generous folks. Leaving our friends, Will and Joanne to rest after their journey, we spent our first full day exploring Seattle. In his usual organised way D had a plan and had booked a food tour round Pike Place Market. Now, the food in Seattle started well and got better. Man, we ate some wonderful food! From amazing chowder and spiced tea to crab cakes and smoked salmon, this tour had it all.

How huge are those crabs?

Seattle is a very cool, West coast city with a laid back vibe. It is very welcoming and we were greeted everywhere we went. It does help to have a Scotsman along for the ride. Although Americans are largely pretty proud of their nation they often seem to have a particular affinity with another nation, viewing their great-great-great-great grandfather's birthplace as a homeland. For some reason those with a Scottish pedigree seem particularly proud...which means we get wonderful service and freebies wherever we go - even in Macy's!  We did quite a bit of shopping that day. Prices are generally a lot cheaper than in the UK! We also went up the Space Needle that afternoon (jet lag? what jet lag!). It was unbelievably windy! You travel up to the top in a glass elevator (yes, just like Charlie) which was a little surprising/terrifying. We enjoyed a fab pumpkin eclair from Dalia's bakery at the top.

The end of a busy day on top of the Space Needle

Our conference started on the Thursday. In fact it was a day of firsts as we both ate sushi for the first time (NB actually this isn't quite true. As an undergraduate we had a sushi party in celebration of the Japan World Cup. We made so much that we left some on our neighbour's doorstep. I must admit that this overdose has caused me to steer away from raw fish until this restaurant in Seattle) and D went to his first American football match. He had a great time watching the Washington Huskies beat UCLA and returned with many Huskies related gifts as the all have a big 'W' on the front - Warden merchandise! This was college football and the crowd was just huge. Remembering back to cold Aberystwyth hockey matches where the spectators consisted of the sub trying to keep warm, I was again in awe of American university sport.

Go Huskies!

While D cheered on the boys in gold and purple I was participating in my working group. It was an enjoyable affair, if slightly left-field at times. In fact this summed up the whole conference really. There were some strange political tensions that I remained almost oblivious to and some established hierarchies that I haven't really experienced before. That said, I met some very cool folks and had some wonderful quiet time to explore my own research. In fact academic plenaries are extremely good places for thinking. Generally there is one good paper and two not so great - so some inspiration and some time for 'academic chilling'. One of the highlights of the conference was on the final day where we had the privilege of hearing the good folks of Mabou Mines. I had seen their incredible (yes, I do mean that) version of Peter Pan at the Edinburgh Festival last year. Hearing about their vision for a free and fair ensemble company was truly inspirational.

The conference lasted until the Sunday but D left me to enjoy the intellectual rigours alone while he journeyed up to Vancouver on the train. He loved Canada and came back buzzing with stories and with a bag of cool Lululemon sports gear for me.

Vancouver skyline

When he returned on the Sunday we visited Mars Hill Church. This will mean very little to some of you and a great deal to others. Mars Hill is an amazing church (actually churches, plural) in Seattle and the surrounding area. It's headed up by a guy called Mark Driscoll and D and I have admired his straight-talking style for a while now. The church is theologically sound (Bible-believing) while also having a very open, modern attitude. This is a very rare combo in the UK. As we entered the building the band were rehearsing. If the first thing you hear when you enter a church is 'I think we need a bit more bass' you know you are in for a great service ;-). We really enjoyed our evening there. Check out their blog if you're interested. If you don't think church is your thing then definitely check it out - it is a little different from Songs of Praise!

Mars Hill Downtown

I had taken Monday as annual leave so we could go and explore the surrounding countryside. So off we went into the cascades in Washington State. Snow shoeing through the mountains was one of the top ten experiences of my life!

Me and our great guide Dan traversing the snowy mountain.

On we went to Leavenworth, a little Baverian-style town. Sounds naff? Actually it was really quite sweet. So, how to describe our journey home? Well, as we started on the drive back the snow began to get worse until we found ourselves in the middle of a blizzard. When your guide's voice is inflected with panic you know things are bad. Actually he said it was the worst storm he'd ever seen in Washington State! So, we ended up with him driving, me staring at the sat nav in a vain attempt to interpret the roads and D with his head out of the window giving directions to stop us driving right off the mountain road. It was all a little scary really and kinda focuses the mind on prayer and only prayer. Well, we arrived back safely in the end to be greeted by our hosts, massive steaks and the joys of Dancing with the Stars. Hoorah!

So, all in all a great trip. We so enjoyed meeting new friends and getting reacquainted with old. The conference provided me with some real space to explore my own research and a chance to find out a little more about American academia. All in all it was well worth the ten hour flight.

Well, that's all folks - the end of my first trans-Atlantic academic experience. Hope you enjoyed the chronicle.

CSW

In the red corridor at Seattle Library

p.s. and the highlight? Well, call me a geek but Seattle public library is one of the most inspiring and amazing buildings I have ever been in. It completely sums up the city's attitude to learning - books are for everyone!