Arrival

We are at the beach . Its still dark . on the Ocean I can see the lights of
several commercial fishing boats in the distance . Most of these are probably
Crabbers , Right now the ocean is pretty calm. The waves at high tide last night
came with in 30 feet of our rental house ..
It is a cool morning , so the home is tightly sealed up . But I can still
heard the constant and unmistakable sound of the ocean waves coming ashore
.
It is beautiful here ...The entire stretch of the Oregon Coastline is
publicaly owned , there are no Private beaches in Oregon . Houses can be bought
and sold that line Beach ...But Public acces to the beach is enforced , and
there are plenty of places for the public to gain access to the beach .
Something I used to take for granted when I was a child , and perhaps one of my
underpinnings for my " socialist " point of view on Property ownership.
Our drive from St Paul was very pleas

ant . Lori had gone to a lot of effort
to prepare a meal plan and grocery list We stopped off at the McMinville WINCO .
Winco is a wonderful place to shop ...its kind alike a Wal-Mart on steroids ,
yet it still has great service . Winco is owned by the Employees , it is a
profit sharing type place here is a link to their site and their story : http://www.wincofoods.com/
We are most impressed by their " Bulk " food area where you can save a lot
of money by not purchasing food in expensive and wasteful packaging .
In an attempt to save money I rented a very small compact car . When our
luggage was stowed , we did not have enough room for the entire list of
Foodstuffs and Household Items we need , so we will pick up the rest at one of
the several Local Grocery stores . Another of our Favorites is Fred Meyer a
Northwest brand that has been purchased by Kroger , You will also find good
values at the Safeway and Albertsons Brand Grocery stores as well .
While in McMinvillle we had lunch at a Chinese Restaurant named Yan's :

The food was wonderful and it was very inexpensive . Lori and I have discovered that
if you can adjust your eating schedule you will usually get a much better deal
on dining if you eat out for Lunch and prepare your dinners at home . That way
we are able to get a " taste " of many of the wonderful restaurants in the area
we are staying. We tend to prefer the non Franchised Restaurants , the smaller
family owned , Bistros and diners that Dot the area .
Several Tour books and brochures of the Oregon Area , will have favorites
printed and we have never been disappointed by the locals recommendations .
Yan's was not recommended to us , we saw it as we passed by to Winco , it
looked clean and tidy , a good helping of cars in the parking lot . And it was
good .
I am not sure what happens to Chinese cooking when it moves across the
Mississippi river , but for Lori and I we can sure tell the difference , we
prefer the Chinese of the West ..For me i find the flavors better , the
vegetables are crisper and there seems to be less fat in the food . IN the west
they also serve bar q qued pork in slices ..which is one of our favorites .
The drive from St Paul took would take about an Hour and a a half if we
hadn't stopped for Groceries and Barb Pork . The Drive takes you through the
western need of the Willamette v alley , as the valley floor gives way to the
Coastal range you will find Groves of Nut trees and acres of grapes . This is
wine and nut country , make of that what you will . Many of the local winery's
offer tours and tasting's . While not as established as the Napa valley area in
California , Oregon wines are gaining quite a loyal following . As you make
your way into the Coastal Mountains you may have a twinge of anxiety as you pass
many homes that look well beyond well lived in , in the place of the well cared
for Rhody plants and rose bushes you will find a healthy crop of car parts , and
abandoned pickups and fishing boats ...But don't despair I believe this is a
planned maneuver to Make the Oregon Beaches even more Spectacular. As if they
could be more spectacular .
We Turned left at Highway 101 and within a few moments were in Lincoln
City , a long narrow city , actually the result of three smaller communities
blending together to pool resources and cut expenses . Lincoln City itself is a
popular destintion with a lot of attractions for everyone :
http://oregoncoast1.reachlocal.net/

Our destination was just a few miles South of Lincoln City : an area
called Bella Beach. Over the years Lori and I have found the Property
management companies on the Oregon Coast to be friendly fair and knowledgeable ,
this was no expection we worked with: http://www.bellabeach.com/ : They were in a
word " wonderful " They responded immediately to my request , they actually
read what we were looking for and delivered !. The Check in procedure was
friendly and informative . Brian was terrific !!! . And the Property we had
rented from several thousand miles away was actually more than we had expected
...This is great service !


We had a very pleasant evening last night ...Lori fixed us a wonderful meal
of Frizzled Cabbage ( recipe available on request , or wait for it in the not
quite ready yet Appendix ) and Kielbasa . With a Healthy green salad .
Today is shaping up as a good day to Photograph. Lori and I just walked out
on our deck and watched the Lights from the passing fishing fleet . The stars
are out in the sky , the clouds are out to sea . There is a fairly low tide
today . And I Hope to visit some of the Local Tide pools .