Trip Through Oregon & Washington

by AJ

This journey started on some day and month on my summer vacation before 7th grade. This was kind of a long time ago, so I don't really remember the time and date. So I packed up my bag with five days of clothes. When my cousin, two aunties, and grandparents all met up, we left early in the morning and got into my grandfather's Dodge Hemi that is lifted six inches. We left and I was excited to go to another state because I had never left California before. My cousin and I had to sit in the back part of the truck where they put the bags, but luckily my auntie Liz had made a space for us to be comfortable in the corner. Finally we got on the road and we both had walkie-talkies, Andrew (my cousin) and I, and my two aunts to communicate because there weren't any window openings to talk like most trucks. We made bathroom breaks and gas stops on the way. Also we stopped at a beach in California. I got out first and went for the camcorder but my grandfather got mad that I was “wasting film,” so I put it back. Next I ran to the sand and buried my feet standing up. Out of nowhere I saw my cousin striking toward me and he tackled me repeatedly until I threw him on the sand. We were there for 20 minutes, then left. It was getting late so we got a hotel.

Next morning we left toward Oregon, and it was a long trip. We pulled over at the “Welcome to Oregon” sign. We took a picture in front of that sign then left. The next stop was a cheese factory in Oregon. There were different types of cheeses, and my auntie bought a nasty type of cheese (she liked it; I didn't). Our next stop was at a Mills building and aquarium. First thing my cousin and I did was run inside to the fishes. It was nice and big. Once we had looked enough, we got back on the road once again. Our next destination was in some city in Oregon so we went there and got a hotel. We stayed there until about 6:00, then left for a jet boat ride. We got there and had to wait so we took out our camcorder and my cousin and I walked around and took some videos.

Finally we were able to get on the jet boat and they went over rules first, then we left. While we were riding, the driver was talking about stuff around us. Then he told us to hold on and he did a 360 degree spin in the water. We came to an island and ate some nice food, then went back in the boat. We got back at the hotel late so I went straight to sleep. We drove the next morning till we got to a campsite in northern Oregon. The sun was setting, so we removed all the supplies from the truck that we needed to camp out. First, all of us put up our tents, then the women prepared dinner, which was hamburgers and homemade French fries. After we were all done eating we relaxed until we had to go to sleep. After about twenty minutes I went in the tent and fell asleep. In the morning I woke up and my grandparents and aunts were already awake. While I was eating cereal, my grandpa was video taping my cousin sleeping which was hecka funny. After everyone woke up we packed up and left. Our next destination was Washington, and we got there in about two in a half hours.

Where my auntie wanted to go was to the Seattle Space Needle, which is in Washington. This took another hour on the road. When we got there, we all got out and looked around. My cousin and I had never been there before so I was scoping the place out. We finally went inside and it was huge inside. We walked all the way around the needle then went up top. I didn't imagine how tall we were from up here. Eventually all of us came back down then looked around more. My grandmother bought something but I forgot what it was. I was having fun until my grandfather said it was time to go. We left to a hotel but didn't do much. The next morning we packed up and made our way home.

This memory of mine made me realize that I was lucky to go on this journey because most kids don't get the chance to go to two different states in a week. This taught me to become more mature so I can go on more and farther adventures. Also when I'm older I can have the chance to either go back to those states or different states. This trip made me realize that I love traveling!