A Tourist in my own Valley

Castillo de Feliciana Vineyard and Winery. Photo taken by my sister Laurie on her iPad.

My fantastic sisters, who live in Massachusetts (one on the Cape and the other in the Pioneer Valley) recently came for a visit. Since they'd never been here before we decided to spend part of their visit hanging around the Walla Walla Valley. I highly recommend being a tourist right here at home. First on our agenda was browsing downtown Walla Walla, and lunch at The Green Spoon was delish. A Friday night concert with Joy Mills on the lawn at Three Rivers Winery was briefly interrupted by a storm, but the reward was great music and a double rainbow framing the Blues. The Sweet Onion Festival and the Farmers Market were also a big hit (each of them took home a small bag of WW Sweets).

My sisters Laurie and Martha meet Waitsburg's most famous resident Izzy

We took a short side trip to Waitsburg through the golden fields of wheat and sweeping vistas. Stopped by to see Izzy, who obligingly came over to visit with us (and plant a kiss on my sister Martha). Caught a bite at Coppei Coffee and visited the kitties and friendly folks at the Waitsburg Hardware & Mercantile.

Lavender frames the vineyard at Northstar Winery

We finished out the day touring the vineyards south of WW. Alas, we couldn't taste at all of them but ended our tour at one of our favorites, Castillo de Feliciana. Dinner at South Fork Grill provided a perfect ending to a perfect day.

Happy Birthday, Walla Walla!

Officers' Quarters (1858) from Fort Walla Walla still grace the old parade ground at the Veterans' Hospital.

© Diane B. Reed

Walla Walla is celebrating its 150th birthday, a celebration that began in 2009 and wraps up this year. Today, a special edition of Walla Walla Lifestyles came with the Walla Walla Union Bulletin. In the magazine is a Sesquicentennial insert which I wrote several articles for; I also assembled vintage illustrations and took some of the photographs for the piece.

Sesquicentennial marker dedicated on November 17, 

2009, located at the corner of E. Main Street 

and S. Second Avenue. © Diane B. Reed

     In the course of the project, I found myself appreciating the history of our remarkable town even more. It's hard for us to imagine how remote this area was at the time of its founding, and how much our history is based on Walla Walla as a supply hub for the inland Northwest and frontier outpost. It's also surprising that Walla Walla was larger than Seattle until the 1880s.
     There are still lots of Sesquicentennial activities in the offing, including special presentations at Fourth of July in the Park at Pioneer Park. Living History performers from Fort Walla Walla Museum will be attending; you can also catch them leading historical tours from the Farmers' Market this summer and performing at Fort Walla Walla Museum throughout the year.

Bronze sculpture of Peo-Peo-Mox-Mox by Roger McGee 

at W. Rose Street and Third Avenue. © Diane B. Reed

     I hope that folks will read the special insert, and purchase extra copies of the Sesquicentennial insert at Fourth of July in the Park or at Fort Walla Walla's gift shop. Other available items include a commemorative coin and posters.

Happy Birthday, Walla Walla!