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Betty MacDonald, the author of The Egg and I and the Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle Series is beloved all over the world. Don't miss Wolfgang Hampel's Betty MacDonald biography and his very witty interviews on CD and DVD!
Saturday, March 18, 2017
Finding Island Time: Vashon from Seattle
Finding Island Time: Vashon from Seattle
Take an illustrated day trip through Washington state’s largest city with artist Candace Rose Rardon.
by Candace Rose Rardon
I will always remember the first time I heard about Vashon Island — one of several islands located just off the coast of Seattle — because of how vastly different Vashon sounded from where I was then in the world: India. My good friend Erin, who grew up making regular pilgrimages to Vashon
to see her grandmother and other family members who lived there, was
visiting me in the bustling Indian capital of New Delhi. As we sat in a
café, the outside world of crowded streets and chaotic traffic whirled
as madly as a spinning top; inside the café, the island Erin described
seemed like another world entirely. She spoke of ferry rides and quiet harbours, digging for clams at low
tide and filling bowls with fresh blackberries from the wild and
rambling bushes that cover Vashon — it sounded like a place where the
top stops spinning and you can hear yourself think. I knew then — even from 11,265km (7,000 mi) away in India — that Vashon would be a place that I loved.
I knew that I would love Vashon even before I got here.
Taking the ferry to Vashon Island.
Picking blackberries right from the vine.
Since
that fateful conversation in Delhi, I’ve had the chance to make several
pilgrimages of my own to Vashon — with and without Erin; in the gray,
rainy heart of winter and in the sun-soaked glory of summer. Sometimes
just for a couple of nights, other times for as long as a month — but no
matter the different circumstances and lengths of each visit, I’m
reminded every time of the gifts that Vashon has to give. The island’s first gift is that of its proximity to downtown Seattle,
making it an ideal day trip for anyone passing through Washington
state’s largest city. One moment can find you wandering the lively stalls of Pike Place
Market, while another moment, you can catch a local C-Line bus to the
Fauntleroy ferry terminal in West Seattle, where a 15-minute ferry ride
brings you across the Puget Sound to the northern tip of Vashon. From
door to door (or shore to shore, you might say) the journey is but an
hour. There are more than a dozen islands in the Puget Sound — not
including the well-known San Juan Islands located a few hours north of
Seattle — and some of these islands have bridges connecting them to the
mainland. But the only road to Vashon is the ferry’s path across the
sound. Being technically comprised of two islands (Vashon and Maury
Islands), the only bridge you’ll find on Vashon is a man-made isthmus
connecting it to Maury Island. This is something the island’s residents feel strongly about. When a
bridge to the mainland was proposed in 1992, more than a fifth of
Vashon’s population at the time (around 2,000 people) appeared in
protest at a public hearing. A bridge, they felt, would surely bring
development, and take away from their island’s natural beauty and rural
calm.
The road to Tramp Harbor.
Be sure to get your coffee fix here.
Because
that is Vashon’s second gift — its extraordinary nature, and the chance
to explore such sylvan landscapes so close to a bigger city like
Seattle. Even still, Vashon has much to offer those who travel for culture and
food. Its quaint downtown is lined with art galleries and restaurants —
from the Hardware Store (home to the best burger in the Pacific
Northwest, I might argue), to a Thai restaurant and cozy tea shop. And
just down the road, another stretch of shops holds the Vashon Island
Coffee Roasterie, an organic health food store and the Seattle
Distilling Company. But for me, the delicious meals and moments of art or culture I have
on the island are always framed by the greater number of hours I spend
outdoors. It’s there where I immerse myself in Vashon’s unique blend of
expansive skies and acres of fir trees, harbours and beaches, and the
frequent vistas that open up of nearby, snow-capped Mount Rainier. If you’re able to rent a car, head south to Point Robinson to visit a
10-acre park, historic lighthouse and hiking trails; or head west to a
small peninsula called Jensen Point, where it’s possible to rent kayaks
or stand-up paddleboards, and glide along the placid surface of
Quartermaster Harbor. There, besides a few sailboats or passing crew
teams, your main companions will be eagles, herons and harbour seals,
who seem to delight in popping their heads above the surface when you’re
least expecting it. Glimpsing the island from the seat of a kayak is always my favourite
way to see Vashon, most especially when I get the timing right and start
heading for shore just as the sinking sun sets the sky ablaze with
colour.
Out on a kayak in Quatermaster Harbor.
Taking in the shoreline on a sunny day.
Those
moments of being wholly surrounded by a glowing pink sky — a sky more
vivid in colour than my humble paintbrush could ever hope to capture —
will forever stay with me, because they speak to Vashon’s third gift:
the very feeling of peace that first resonated with me on the other side
of the world.
Pink skies and peaceful nights.
There
are places we travel to in order to do things — visit museums, retrace
the steps of history, linger in the shadow of famous landmarks. I’ve
come to learn through my visits to Vashon, there are places that simply
invite you to be. To slow down, set your watch to “island time”
and join the quiet rhythms that govern its days. To let your mind relax
and reflect as your world becomes just sea, sky and tree-lined shores. If your journeys lead you through Seattle soon, I hope you’ll cross
the Puget Sound and experience Vashon, even for a day. But let me warn
you… it’s the kind of place that once you step foot on it, the island
soon draws you back for more.
Betty MacDonald Fan Club, founded by Wolfgang Hampel, has members in 40 countries.
Wolfgang Hampel, author of Betty MacDonald biography interviewed Betty MacDonald's family and friends. His Interviews have been published on CD and DVD by Betty MacDonald Fan Club. If you are interested in the Betty MacDonald Biography or the Betty MacDonald Interviews send us a mail, please.
Several original Interviews with Betty MacDonald are available.
We are also organizing international Betty MacDonald Fan Club Events for example, Betty MacDonald Fan Club Eurovision Song Contest Meetings in Oslo and Düsseldorf, Royal Wedding Betty MacDonald Fan Club Event in Stockholm and Betty MacDonald Fan Club Fifa Worldcup Conferences in South Africa and Germany.
Betty MacDonald Fan Club Honour Members are Monica Sone, author of Nisei Daughter and described as Kimi in Betty MacDonald's The Plague and I, Betty MacDonald's nephew, artist and writer Darsie Beck, Betty MacDonald fans and beloved authors and artists Gwen Grant, Letizia Mancino, Perry Woodfin, Traci Tyne Hilton, Tatjana Geßler, music producer Bernd Kunze, musician Thomas Bödigheimer, translater Mary Holmes and Mr. Tigerli.
