Adventures in Memorial Day

So Wednesday I had scheduled 2 root canals. I decided to take Wed-Friday off from work for a little break. I have been burnt out lately and knew I needed some time. What with all the house cleaning and trying to get everything done I have not had much time to relax. So Bill and I planned to take off Friday morning and head to the coast. We had contemplated stopping in Forks to see the area and so as I sat at home battling a little head cold and healing from my root canals I realized that I needed out of the house. Thursday Bill called on his way home and I asked him if he would want to leave that evening and make our way toward the coast.
It’s usually about a 4-5 hour drive when we go to Iron Springs Resort on Copalis Beach and I figured we could drive for a few hours and then find some cheap no-tell motel to crash in for the night. I have spent many a night in no-tell motels and as long as the sheets and bathroom are clean I have no issues. So we throw everything in the jeep hoping we are not forgetting anything (I did… sunscreen) and headed out. We stopped in Tacoma at one of our favorite BBQ joints (we are throwing caution to the wind with our diets for a couple days LOL) and discussed our options. We could drive an hour and stay in Olympia, we could drive an hour and a half and stay at one of the dozens of Casinos in Shelton or we could push a little further and stay in Port Townsend and have a very leisurely drive to Forks where we could maybe stop for lunch. Unfortunately if we pushed to Port Townsend we would be driving past much of the Hood Canal in the dark. Luckily this time of year pure dark doesn’t hit until 9:30pm or so, so we decided to push it and head to Port Townsend. Bill pulled out his phone and started looking for hotels and motels in the area and discovered an interesting one. It is called the Manresa Castle www.manresacastle.com .

Initially the castle was built by Charles Eisenbeis, he was Port Townsend’s first Mayor. It was built in the Prussian design (the man’s origins) and of course is the largest residence ever built in the area (by far). It originally had 30 rooms including a beautiful parlor area with large vaulted ceilings that is now a restaurant. In 1928 the building was bought by a group of Jesuit priests that built a large wing and used the building as a training facility. This fascinates me because if you think about 1928 how on earth would anyone find a Jesuit school in Port Townsend? I mean in today’s world it took us 4 hours to get here on our fancy dancy highway system. Port Townsend has water on several sides between the Hood Canal and several lakes not to mention we aren’t far from the ocean. Just goes to show you the power of word of mouth advertising. Heh

The building is beautiful. This morning we snagged a paper that the hotel provides for a self guided walking tour. We walked through the building. I have pictures I will post later. The differences in style between that the Eisebeis family had done versus the more simple tastes of the Jesuits is profound. The wood work on the original potion of the castle is devastatingly beautiful hand crafted and carved with intricate design. The Jesuit section is very simple and only necessary work done except for the elaborate arches in their choir loft. The rooms in the hotel are all decorated in Victorian Style. Our room has a beautiful antique bureau with a mirror attached. The rest of the furniture was not as impressive but nice. The bathroom has a nice antique style sink and my only complaint was the shower head was so low I had to limbo to wash my hair. LOL They have a small continental breakfast in the old choir room which has beautiful wood walls and was split in half with a floor to make an upstairs banquet hall that looks like it is used for weddings and events. They say the third floor is haunted but we did not have any supernatural experiences. Of course I was mixing drugs between my Nyquil and my Vicodin for my teeth so I don’t know if I would have believed anything if I had seen it anyway. LOL
Today we are off to find breakfast. As we got lost (of course) on our way last night we DID discover a very nice looking bakery. So we will be stopping in to see what goodies we can find there and then we will be driving Highway 101 out to Forks and then down to Copalis Beach and our cabin on the ocean.

Hope you are all having a fine Friday! I am so glad to take a break from real life and go off exploring.