The Trip In Which I Rekindled My Love For Maple Bars

The first part of April I traveled to Pullman, WA for a visit to look at the chemistry program at Washington State University. Or as my roommate puts it, the visit in which I shamelessly used WSU for a trip to see my old roommate, Bethany. Or as I like to look at it, the trip where I got to eat maple bars and see Beth because WSU wouldn't take no for an answer. I had accepted the offer to go to College Park before this visit but as the WSU chemistry department recruiter pointed out I could potentially decide not to go to College Park and go to their school instead. I figured what the heck, I could go see Beth. What I didn't anticipate was the 15 hours of traveling it took to get to Spokane. I had to be at the airport at around 3 AM because my flight left at 5:15 AM with three different layovers. Whoever scheduled that flight should be shot and then drawn and quartered. After I had finally arrived, I did something I've never done before. I rented a car. Well, WSU paid for it. But let me tell you, when WSU chemistry is trying to entice you to join their program, they pull out all the stops. Look at the car they rented me!!!

Isn't it pretty?!?

And so shiny!!!

It was pretty and super fast! Good thing there was no cops on the freeway to Beth's house or I would have been pulled over before I could have said dang it! Driving this car made me want a new car, because let's face it my current car, Herb, is an old man with no get up and go. It's okay, Herb, I won't cheat on you again.
Beth lives in Coeur d'Alene, ID which is only about 40 minutes away from Spokane. I had never been to Northern Idaho before so it was a new experience for me. The thing that hit me most though was that after living in Maryland, Idaho does not have very many trees. Oh well, it is still very beautiful.

Look there is still snow on the mountains! So pretty!

Oh Mountains! How I miss you!

Northern Idaho has a bunch of lakes which are lovely even in the early spring.

I met Beth at her grandparents house and was promptly invited to dinner which was some awesomely delicious waffles. While we were waiting for the rest of her family to arrive, Beth and I went on a quick tour of her hometown. The tour included Beth's school, a donut shop she later took me to, and Lake Coeur d'Alene.

Lake Coeur d'Alene

It was very pretty and a lot bigger than I had always imagined it.

Look at the Mountains!!!

This is Beth not wanting her picture taken.

Although she was all too happy to be the one behind the camera.

Couer d'Alene is a resort town as you can see by the large hotel behind me

Beth and some of the other locals call the guy who owns that resort Voldemort because he owns a lot of the town and apparently he is taking over. I kind of thought it was a funny reference. So after her family fed me, Beth and I headed for Pullman. It's only 45 minutes from Coeur d'Alene. Beth stayed with me in my hotel room since there were two beds. By the time we had gotten settled in we both were hungry again, so we indulged in one of the traditions that we had perfected in the year that we were roommates.

I'll give you two guesses to whose pizza was the one on the bed.

We each ordered a large pizza and ate the whole thing ourselves!!! I think that it is one of our more awesome rituals when we're together. Although I'm sure the start of this ritual was heavily influenced by the boys of Apartment 15 and our inability to share a Little Caesar's pizza without fighting. We stayed up late catching up and harassing our favorite person in the world via text message and phone. Thanks Ryan for being a good sport about said harassment! I'm pretty sure the evening ended on the high note of me speaking sweet nothings to my bed. It's a little fuzzy and by that point I had been up for a full 24 hours.
The next day was the visit. I was wined and dined and WSU made a great impression. I almost regretted accepting University of Maryland's offer since everyone I met was so nice and the research was pretty cool. Not to mention that it was closer to home than College Park. But alas, it didn't feel right.
Beth and I also made the pilgrimage to the creamery on WSU's campus. They sell their creamery products at a place called Ferdinand's and it had some really delicious ice cream! The butter pecan was divine! Sorry! No pictures because I left my camera at the hotel. Later, we ended up making a trip to Wal-Mart because my computer was acting up when I tried to do some homework. I needed a small screwdriver to get to the hard drive. Unfortunately, this is when the hard drive committed Hari Kari. I'm still upset about that.
The next day we headed back to Coeur d'Alene since Beth had to go to work and I had to catch my flight home. But we did make an important stop. We stopped at the Donut House by Beth's house for breakfast. I was able to get a maple bar! For those of you that know me, know that maple bars are one of my weaknesses. They are right up there with Otter Pops. But alas, the East Coast doesn't know about the delicious mapley goodness that is a maple bar. So I got one for the road to tide me over until my next trip to the West Coast. It made it to the Spokane airport. I regret nothing except maybe not buying a few more. Oh, they were amazing! And that is not the withdrawals talking!

Oh man! I want one just looking at the picture!!!

It was a nice little trip! It was so great to see Beth! Who knows when we'll be able to see each other again. Thanks WSU for being a good sport and making it possible!