What I'm getting up to...

A highly original and well thought out title to let the dear reader get a rough idea of what I'm getting up to over the next few days. Why? Because my trip is about to reach an important juncture: as of tomorrow I will no longer be a lone traveller. Weeks of pining and bitter thoughts as I have wandered lonely as a cloud, all gone. I am meeting good old Alex Stevens in the city of Seattle.

I jest about the loneliness of course. I mean, if I could have it my own way I would jump on a plane, run at lightening speed and hopefully make it back to Chesterfield in time to beat the rush hour. However, I feel obliged now that I've bought a car with Alex, so I guess I'll have to just drive to California and back. I hate my life.

Yesterday was nice and relaxed, and I went to the Hopworks Urban Brewery for a gigantic amount of food and some amazing beers with Travis. If I was to say that three beers, a bowl of Cajun chips, a minestrone soup, two pork sliders and a mixed meat grinder cost me under £20 with a big tip then you'll realise why I'm in a pretty good part of the world. We took the party back to the hostel and got a few people talking and drinking, though the strange mix of people here meant that an old man in just his boxers told us he needed to sleep...at ten o'clock.

In reality, that early night was just what I needed, and I'm now sat in the common room, full of bagels and feeling calm. I'm going to head downtown later, after checking out a few thrift stores and some bookshops. Tomorrow I'm catching the Greyhound back to Seattle, where I'll be meeting Alex. Darl the car is feeling a little worse for wear so he may get held up a little. I'm heading across the water to Tim's house for a bit of a gathering tomorrow night which should be great, and then after that we should be hitting the road. I've amassed plenty of contacts so hopefully as we journey down and back again we will utilise them and keep meeting more cool Americans. I'm off for a coffee, catch you later!