The Twilight of Spring Break

An entire week off of school deserves a little celebration. I can't tell you how long I had been looking forward to this Spring Break! Don't get me wrong, I really have been enjoying school, but I needed this break. I had been contemplating going home for the break, but in the end my yearning for adventure won out. I really have wanted to take in the sights around the Northwestern US while I'm still here, sooo....I set my destination for Forks, WA. Haha! I know what you're thinking, "Wow she must be a total Twilight freak!" Well I cannot lie, I think Stephanie Meyer can write a pretty good story, but her books are not my favorites (I'm still a good person I swear!) Still, why not Forks?
If you know me at all, you know I'm a creature of the woodlands. When I read those Twilight books I really wanted to see what the rainiest spot in the US looked like, especially because, at the moment, I'm living so close. So it seemed like a great time to go out and do it. I decided to explore a little so instead of taking the fast route up I-5, I decided to take the scenic route up the Washington coast. First off, I have to say the Olympic Peninsula has got to be the most beautiful place in the entire world!!!! And that is saying something because I've been to a lot of beautiful places! Even crazier, I was there in the cold off season, I can't imagine what it would be like in the summertime!
Forks itself is a very small town, in every sense of the word. There really is not much to see or do there unless, of course, you're a Twilight super fan. The town has really embraced anything and everything Twilight. A lady at the Forks Chamber of Commerce told me that the town had been struggling to keep afloat, and then Twilight hit and now business is booming. She told me that almost every single shop in Forks sales some sort of Twilight product, because they know that the majority of their customers are Twilight fans. Crazy to think that a book can change the fate of an entire town! So I learned some pretty awesome things, but Forks is still just a relatively normal small town. The big difference is that it's a small town in the middle of some pretty amazing places! You have national parks within walking distance, beaches about 20 minutes down the road, and rain forests 30 minutes away. I loved it!
And just so you know, the first few days of spring break, Mark came to visit me here in Portland (I don't want to leave him out because we had a fabulous time!) I woke up early on Monday to pick him up at the airport and we pretty much partied from that point on. He had just come off working the entire night, but I didn't even let him rest. We went straight to the Oregon Zoo, which was amazing, then we went to the movies. The next day I took him to the Cape Meares lighthouse where we saw some whales (I think). Then we went to Oceanside so we could check out the tide pools and play on the beach. After that we went to the Tillamook Cheese Factory and tried out some different cheeses and ice cream :) The next day we went to the Evergreen Aviation Museum and then to the Portland Temple. And then I dropped him off at the airport early Thursday morning, from which I left for Forks. WHEW! Yep it was pretty much the most awesome spring break ever!