Jaialdi began for us day before yesterday when we arrived in Boise.  We parked at Boise Riverside RV Park, a minimal park with gravel sites and no cable.  It does have Wi Fi and Dish reception, however.  Our good friends, Bob and Sue are parked nearby.  We came here to enjoy the Basque Festival which occurs every 5 years.

On Tuesday night we drove to The Basque Block where people were milling around in front of some Basque restaurants and the Cultural Center.  We decided not to buy from the tent vendors but to go into one of the restaurants, Leku Ona.  Instead of upping their game to accommodate the visitors we were served poor imitations of Basque food on paper plates.  It was very disappointing.  Gary ordered Paella and got a paper bowl of rice with 2 small chunks of chicken in it.  He complained and the manager gave each couple a $50 gift certificate for a future meal.  We are planning on giving ours away to a policeman or other public servant we see.

On Wednesday we went to the Basque Market for lunch, which was better.  Gary got real Paella with shrimp, clams, chicken and rice which he ate on the street.  Sue and I went through the Basque Cultural Center where there were displays depicting the Basque culture and its history in the United States.  We ate dinner at a Boise restaurant called Fork.  It was excellent.  After that we had movie night in the RV and saw The Theory of Everything.  It was good.

Tonight we will go to the Sports Night and watch rock throwing and hay bale throwing.  We are enjoying being with Bob and Sue.

Pendleton 2

Yesterday we explored Pendleton.  They have lots of cowboy themed street art because this is the home of the famous Pendleton Round-up.  There are areas with majestic older homes and there are brand new areas overlooking the valley.  We found one of the two Starbucks so that I could get a Frappuccino (my addiction) and visited a grocery store for some fruit.  Gary played golf, which means his back is feeling better, and he is playing again this morning.  I have a couple of quiet projects and am going to clean a bit, read a bit, watch decorating shows on TV and just chill out with the pups.  Basically, we are just having some quiet time and enjoying the last cool day we are likely to have for a while.

Pendleton, OR

Yesterday we left Lake Oswego in the morning heading for Pendelton, OR.  Pendleton is about halfway to our destination of Boise, ID.  We are meeting our friends, Bob and Sue there to experience the Jaialdi, which is a Basque Festival held every five years there.  There will be street fairs, a Basque sports night, a show called Fest a'ra and other events and foods all highlighting Basque culture. Many thousands of people come from all over the world to take part.  Usually I avoid crowded events but this sounds fun and different.

We drove the Bays Bus in the rain for the first time today.  Gary didn't like it and had to slow down quite a bit.  We took I-84 which runs along the Columbia River Gorge from Portland to Pendleton.  We passed by the famous gorge waterfalls and the parking lot at Multnomah Falls was completely full.  It was a beautiful day for tourists to visit there.  We passed the usual spots where we take our visitors, Crown Point, Bonneville Dam and Hood River and went beyond those to pass The Dalles Dam and fish hatcheries. There were several areas along the highway that were black from recent brush fires.  One was about 3 miles long. To be perfectly honest, we probably passed more things I could mention but I tend to fall asleep easily on these trips.

We are staying for three nights at Wildhorse Casino and RV Park.  This is a nice park with plenty of grassy room between parking spots, flat spaces and easy walking paths for the dogs.  The view from our site is of the prairie and the Blue Mountains. Because of the drought everything is the color of wheat.  We had dinner at the casino buffet which wasn't very good but we didn't leave hungry.  There must be a motorcycle gathering here because we have seen so many.  One three wheeled cycle had been modified to look like a 1957 Chevy.  I will post the picture of it when I get home.

We visited Pendleton Woolen Mills and the blankets and clothes are so expensive but very vibrant and inspired by the Native Americans.  They had a small museum containing Native artifacts, which was great to see.

We left home on July 16, 2015 for Grants Pass, OR.  We stayed at Joe Creek Waterfalls RV Park KOA which was basic but pleasant.  We wouldn't stay there again because of the slow connectivity and no cable at all.  Gary pulled his back slipping on some gravel, so it looks like golf is out for this trip.

Tonight we went into town for dinner at Black Bear which was only fair.  After dinner I was walking the dogs and saw about 15 wild turkeys walking behind the campground store.  Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera with me.

The reason for the visit was to have some heavy duty shocks installed on the Bays Bus along with a Steer Straight mechanism.  Our appointment was at 8 in the morning on Friday so we got up early, drove into Grants Pass and took the dogs to a patio behind Jack in the Box to have breakfast and wait for the installation to be completed.  When that was completed we drove the RV back to the campground and parked.  We had our first Dutch Bros. blended drink today.  If they know it is your first one you don't have to pay for it.  It was good but a bit sugary for me. We went back into town for dinner at the Laughing Clam, which we thoroughly enjoyed.  They had a four piece live country band, barefooted, playing and singing. 

On Saturday we went to Jacksonville, OR, an old gold mining town we had been wanting to explore.  We had lunch at the Jacksonville Inn and then I roamed through the boutiques while Gary waited for me.  There were only a few so he didn't have to wait long.  Jacksonville doesn't really have the flavor of a gold mining town anymore.  It is quite gentrified.

We went back to the Laughing Clam for dinner after rejecting some other choices.  The seafood is so good there.  The live entertainment was a lady who sang, played flute and guitar, but who wasn't very good.

This morning we left Grants Pass for Eugene.  We stayed at another wonderful Premier RV Park near Coburg.  We have been delighted with all of their properties.  They have a permanent food cart at this park and we had a hot dog and a frito chili pie for lunch. Gary had a vanilla shake.

For dinner, we had plans with Matt, Aimee and Haley Ann Ramsey, Brian's good friends.  We went to their home for appetizers and then to Tasty Thai for a wonderful dinner.  It was so great to be with them and catch up.  They are such a terrific family.

Last weekend, July 10 - 12, we took Macy with us to Seattle.  It was her first time on the Bays Bus so we set her up in the front seat as Grandpa Gaggy began to drive.  She was sooooo excited.  It lasted about a half hour, which was longer than I thought it would.  Then she wanted to come sit with me at the table in the back and play.

We played with her Beanie Boos and I ended up doing a puppet show for her with them, making it up as I went.  She put her face under the edge of the table so it looked like a stage.  The last puppet I played for her was Baby.  She laughed so hard when she saw Baby's little face come over the edge of the table!

We thumb wrestled.  One, two, three, four I declare a thumb war.  Five, six, seven, eight, try to keep your thumb straight. One, two, three, go.  Then we made up Seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty, I have caught Macy's thumb plenty.  After that, we made up pinky wrestling.

We arrived in the KOA RV camp in Kent, WA and played on the playground.  After that we went out to dinner.  Macy slept well on the table/bed and Grandpa and I read in the bedroom.  She didn't wake up when I went through to walk the dogs.

On Saturday we went to the campground breakfast room for a cooked breakfast.  Then we went into Seattle to see the Chihuly Gardens and the Space Needle.  She loved both and made a smashed quarter in the quarter machine for a souvenir.

We ate at two different Denny's for lunch and dinner.  After lunch we played at the campground playground and Macy went swimming in the pool even though it was a little cool for it.  She was thrilled.  After dinner the campground was having an ice cream social, so we got some and then we put her to bed in our bed and moved her to the table/bed when we went to sleep.  She didn't even wake up.

We drove home on Sunday after another breakfast at the campground kitchen.  Unfortunately, I had a virus or food poisoning and had a miserable ride home and miserable evening.  (Macy entertained herself with her DVD player.) It was over by bedtime but Gary got it the next afternoon.  All in all, though, it was a wonderful weekend and we look forward to more trips with her.