Three Things You Should Do in Port Townsend

Port Townsend is really not that far away from Seattle. Great place for a Force Your Mind Away From Work getaway (much needed for Porter, entering crazy-town in his races) and right up there on the Seattle Getaways lists I feel like I ought to go through if I want to keep justifying further more exotic trips as well. The town is in the northeast corner of the Olympic peninsula, with a quaint, Victorian-style downtown and steep cliffs around the edges of town. (My parents almost [almost?] bought a house in Port Townsend when I was a kid- I remember the basement with a center fireplace- but opted not to in large part because it sat on a high cliff that had already half eroded into the ocean.)

In PT, I would recommend any visitor to:

1. Stay at the Old Colonial Inn
We hit the jackpot with this Victorian-style Bed and Breakfast up on the hill. It was one of the last rooms available in the city (I booked two days before because I'm a grown up at plan ahead real well), was a completely reasonable price, and was perfect for us. Because we're old. And love books and solidly built furniture and hosts in period outfits (seriously). The three course fancy breakfast didn't hurt, nor did the chocolates hanging on our doorknob before bed. A cookie light signified fresh baked cookies (I had at least 4), there were sitting nooks and a porch swing for conversation.



2. Eat at Lanza
Pizza, pasta, italian sodas. The entire place smells like a gluteny, garlicy dream. Bonus: the store next door sells coffee, steam punk costumes, and videos.

3. Make fun of hippies at the Food Co-op. 
Port Townsend is a haven for hippies. What? I had no idea. We spent a loopy evening after dark walking off our garlic overload amazed that such a store exists. And in this stiff Victorian town, no less. A few highlights from the local store:

Totally normal magazines for a grocery to sell: Wooden Boat, Mindful, Buddadharma, Mother Jones (yes that is freaking Kate Upton on yet another fashion mag. Because she is everywhere. And even Victorian hippies love her boobs).










Also15 different flavors of Tom's toothpaste, along with bulk ingredients, bulk candy, bulk nuts bulk seasonings, bulk lotion, and organic everything you could ever think of

The corner bulletin board was particularly entertaining, stuffed with advertisements for alternative currency and a song circles, local escargot and conscience-friendly GMO-free eggs. My favorite: this couple looking for a place to live. Don't worry, they are both Masters of Fine Arts in Poetry. It makes for good tenants, don't you know.



Porter's suggestion for how to enjoy PT: "Boats, duh. Revel in maritime history and modern boat-making industry".
Duh.

In that vein, the Wooden Boat Foundation is well worth a visit. I'm almost sold on buying a Pygmy kayak-building kit. There are wooden boats everywhere- handsome ones.