Saturday, August 13: North!

You Lookin' at Me?!
En route to Spokane, we stopped at a rest area just this side of Boardman, Oregon, to stretch our legs. Came across these sweeties (barn swallows) in a corner on the outside of the bathroom walls. Momma bird was busy flying back and forth, bringing bugs.
Thought we would never get to Spokane. Driving alongside the Columbia River was beautiful as always, but soon the terrain changed to desert. That alternated with corn fields and wheat. It seemed to go as far as the eye could see. Close to Pasco we did see orchards and grapes. But mostly, after the corn fields, it was mile after mile of tilled dirt and wheat stubble so bright, it was almost white. Not a good place for someone who's agoraphobic [afraid of open spaces]. Not that I am literally. But I do love my mountains ... I was so relieved to learn that we didn't have to go into Spokane proper to get to our hotel. I was anxious about being in downtown traffic. But as it was, we took the Medical Lake exit this side of Spokane and drove backroads to the Airway Heights area.
I fell in love with our hotel room! It was an Art Deco delight all about shapes and geometry (least, that's how I think of Art Deco). There was such attention to detail in the design and decorating all throughout the hotel. Most impressive.
I love hotel linens. I love the crispness of the sheets, all that white on white, the layering. Pillows stacked like dominoes. I should dress our bed hotel-style:) Even our wall art was special. Not a Made-in-China print of some still life theme that's been printed a zillion times, but a real piece of art, numbered and signed. The fact that it was a mixed media collage is no doubt one reason I was especially impressed with it. The bathroom was extra special, too. A display holding the soap and shampoo samples doubled as a night light. It was motion sensitive and came on when you walked by. The purple light has distorted the color somewhat. The walls weren't yellow, but white. This was my first time to use a shower with extra shower heads. The bottom one tickled my butt. Is that too much information? Spacious, clear glass walls. Loved it. And the towels had a popcorn design. Luxurious. His and her bathrobes in the closet. A nice touch but not used. I'm not a lounging around sort of person if I'm at a casino:) The games were calling me...