June 16, 2022
Rest Day
Albany
Yay, today we slept in, knowing that the Hotel had breakfast available until 9:30 am. And breakfast was decent, including sausage, bacon (which made Jim very happy,) scrambled eggs with and without ham and peppers, potatoes, tortillas and assorted breads, make-your-own waffles, yogurt and fresh fruit. We ate enough to get us through the day.
I wanted to watch the Jan. 6 Committee hearing so we headed back to our room. While we waited for the hearing to start, I changed out the tube in my rear tire. This was the tire that was flat coming out of the Amtrak box and has a slow leak. I have been pumping it up daily ever since. After pulling out the tube, I went through the tire and found nothing. So I filled the sink and there it was, a slow leak adjacent to a previous patch, in a place that would be difficult to patch over. So, into the trash it went and my load is a bit lighter.
While we watched the hearing suddenly the room was filled with a loud and shrill alarm-it sounded like a continuous smoke alarm on steroids. We looked into hall and both alarms were sounding and some strobe lighting was activated so we went downstairs to the entrance. Apparently this was an annual fire alarm drill, not a real fire. But we had to leave the building until it was over.
This hotel is next to the airport entrance so we walked over to look at a vintage plane out front. It is an A4 Skyhawk.
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After the hearing was over, we took a walk to the Talking Waters Garden. It is an engineered wetlands that is part of the water treatment system for the area. Waste water is treated to remove pollutants and then is pumped through a series of ponds and water features to cool it before it is released into the Willamette river. This creates a lush wetland environment and habitat for lots of birds and aquatic critters.
We also walked around a small lake and down a bike path alongside Cox Creek as we explored the area.
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Back to the hotel for a quick nap. Cheryl arrived at 5:30 so we will meet later for dinner and to discuss logistics for tomorrow.
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Sorry you couldn't make the beginning of the bridge tour, especially the part about staying in Portland. It would have been nice to say "hello".
Enjoy the rest of your trip.
-Bob
1 year ago