Sultan, WA July 13-16, 2006

Surprise for me, my son moved there about 6 months ago. Within a span of about two weeks, Drew announced that Nicole was expecting, she missed her family, there was lots of good work in the Seattle area, and then they were gone. The baby was born about 6 weeks ago- Kai Zavier, or Kay Xavier (haven't seen it in writing yet, but I've seen his picture, and he's beautiful, and so is my son). So when Kai was born I didn't rush out, I let the first frantic weeks pass, and I have just returned from my first visit to Sultan (Yes, there's a statue of the Sultan of Sultan WA on a road I didn't get to see).

So here's the first piece of the story - this is my first real, faraway trip without Bill. All my old fears and insecurities are back in full forse in his absence - I couldn't walk into my motel room without Drew accompanying me upstairs, couldn't sleep without pills, could barely take care of myself - ordinary washing and toothbrushin was an ordeal. I had nobody to cry to and I felt terribly alone - here I was seeing my son after so long, filled with emotion that he finds embarrassing, and no Bill to take the edge off. I don't like waking up alone in a strange place, it's as simple as that, and I don't intend to do it again if I can help it.
Look, I love Seattle, which is about an hour south of Sultan, so I went prepared to love the area, and yes, as a vacation spot, it's pretty nice. The town itself, however, is more than a pass-through for me, since Drew lives there, and it has some problems. It looks distinctly not prosperous. Drew tells me there's crime (not violent - robberies, burglaries, etc.) at the same time that Nicole tells me that no, it's not odd that some guy in a truck cruised up to me and told me he just dropped a guy off somewhere and did I need a lift - everyone's friendly here. The grocery store sells outdated food. At least one of the businesses pays its employees in credits for the goods it sells - we're talking furniture and gift items, not food - and the credits are redeemed at the retail price of the goods taken by employees in payment. You can't always get tea with your breakfast here in coffeeville.
From a visitor's point of view, it's a different story. I stayed for about $55 a night, tax included, at the Dutch Cup motel - very run down looking on the outside, no milk with the coffee offered in the morning, but with clean, large, quiet rooms, good TV and comfortable, king-sized beds and very big, fluffy pillows. They don't clean the rooms unless you ask. There are four bars in town, and although I just go home and go to sleep at night, the whole town is busy drinking and karaoke-ing, except for the thieves and burglars. People are friendly - everyone says hello. As a New Yorker, I'm creeped out when the guy I have to pass on the balcony on my way to the motel room tips his hat, smiles, and says "evnen, maam", but I guess I can believe that his intentions were honorable.
The weather was beautiful - we were on the western side of the Cascades, so we had all the advantages of Seattle. It also gets a lot of rain, as Seattle does, and Nicole's father says there's a high suicide rate that he attributes to the chronic dampness and wetness. Sultan is surrounded by national forests, national parks, camping, hunting, fishing, gorgeous lakes and streams, all of which I'll get to see if Drew remains there long enough. I remember this topography and climate well and fondly - a couple of years ago Bill and I spent a late spring touring Seattle, Mt. Rainier, and the Olympic Peninsula.
We drove upstream for about two hours on the 14th, to a town named Leavenworth - a pseudo-Bavarian vacation village where there are actually, people who seem to speak with a German accent. It's a little overdone, pretty expensive, but fun. It looks like a place I could stay for a couple of nights if I were on vacation, rather than visiting. There's actually music playing in the streets all day long - Nicole says they often have oompah bands, but on the day we were there, it was recorded.
If I had the means, I'd love to spend a couple of weeks with a really good camera, driving the roads of the state photographing espresso shacks, and self-publish a book of photos. There are windmills, Bavarian cottages, and a variety of clever shapes to these places, as well as actual shacky-looking things wence cometh, nevertheless, very exotic coffees and shakes. On the way to Leavenworth, we passed one next to a metal hut that was a location for "Harry and the Hendersons".
Back to Sultan - the good things: Well, for one thing, my son and grandchild are there. Gas prices are almost thirty cents a gallon lower than prices here in Queens. There's a terrific bakery (only one - it has a big "bakery" sign outside, high up on a pole). It's the home of the 2002 girls soccer champions. A train goes through, but doesn't stop. The air smells clean.
My evaluation: It's actually a really, really good place to visit, as a stopoff on your way elsewhere, but I definitely wouldn't want to live there.
Next trip is definitely to a place no normal person would choose this time of year - Delray Beach, FL at the end of July, with my frail and elderly mom - I must be insane.