Geo: 49.2605, -123.114An early start as our Amtrak train left Seattle at 07:45 from King Street Station. The station must only be used for long distant traffic because the station showed no sign of wear and tear. In fact it was clean and spacious. The décor was lovely. It has the glamour of train journeys of a by-gone age.We got business class seats. Sounds a bit OTT, but it was a long journey and it was a bargain compared to a similar distance train ride in the UK. It certainly was spacious and the seats were very comfy. Priority boarding and disembarkation were a bonus. The slight fly in the ointment was that they were really strict with the weight of checked in luggage; 50lbs, 23kg and not discussion. Both of our cases were a little ... read more

Geo: 47.6353, -122.302The Columbia in the title is the Columbia Center and the Japan is the Seattle Japanese Garden.The Columbia Center, built in 1985 and at 937ft (286m) is the tallest building in Seattle. It has an observatory on the 75th floor with unparallelled panoramic views of the city. There is a Starbucks on the 40th floor, the highest Starbucks in the world. On a clear day, you can see for miles and miles. The airport is not that far away, so it offers plane spotters wonderful views of aircraft flying by still at fairly low altitude.The Seattle Japanese Garden is part of the Washington Park Arboretum. Its history goes back slightly further than then one in Portland. Plans were laid in 1959 and construction began in 1960. It was managed by the University of Washington ... read more

Geo: 47.6353, -122.302The Space Needle is the most recognised structure in Seattle and a stay in the city must include a visit to this icon. But first we went to Pike Place Market. It is a public market for farmers to sell direct to the public, thereby cutting out the middleman, known as the jobber, and securing a more reasonable return for their hard work. We saw the fishmongers tossing fish from one person to another, often with customers sitting under the "flight path" to cheering, and less courageous, crowds. One hopes that they only throw the same fish, or perhaps it will be sold at a knock down price at the end of the day; slightly handled.The Space Needle, although looking a bit retro nowadays, is still an impressive structure. Built in 1962 for the ... read more

Geo: 45.5118, -122.676West of Downtown Portland is the Washington Park within which lies Portland Japanese Garden. It is reputed to be the most authentic Japanese garden outside of Japan. It occupied 5.5 acres and took four years to build. It was superb. Every turn presented a different view, each one equally breath-taking. When we got there, it was pouring but it was in fact a blessing in disguise, as all the trees with rain drops on the branches were glistening when the sun eventually emerged from behind the black clouds. There were lots of places to sit down in a tranquil setting, fellow visitors' noises notwithstanding, and contemplate nature, life, the meaning of the universe etc. Alas, all the benches were wet from the rain so we didn't find out what it was like to meditate ... read more

Geo: 45.5118, -122.676Portlanders value their outdoor space. So it came as no surprise that a forward-thinking governor, Tom McCall, reclaimed land formerly used as a highway and created a park by the Willamette River. It is a nice green space to stroll along when the weather is good (it was raining this morning...). Alas, the view across the river isn't the most picturesque; the highways bypassing Portland are all on the other side of the river. The park also contains a poignant memorial to the 100,000+ Japanese Americans interned during WW2.Portland is twinned with the Chinese city of Suzhou. As part of a cultural exchange programme, each one created a garden in the twinned city. Portland gave Suzhou a rose garden. In return, the Chinese created a classical Chinese garden for Portland. It is very pretty ... read more