# So, I'm going to Washington for the first time

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-im-going-to-washington-for-the-first-time/314731>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [July 29, 2005, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-im-going-to-washington-for-the-first-time/314731 "2005-07-29T13:43:40Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Seren](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e19adc/32.png) [@Seren](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seren)\
**Post date:** [July 29, 2005, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-im-going-to-washington-for-the-first-time/314731/1 "2005-07-29T13:43:40Z")

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Olympia, specifically. I’m there from July 31st to August 11th. So, does anyone have any suggestions for things I should see or do?

So far I’ve got these things planned:  
watching The Elsinore Diaries at Harlequin Productions  
getting lost in the corn maze at Rutledge Farms  
visiting the Thurston County Fair  
maybe going to Wolf Haven…

As for likes and dislikes…well, I dislike the club scene, bars, etc and I’ll try just about anything else.

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**Author:** ![NotWithoutRage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/22d042/32.png) [@NotWithoutRage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NotWithoutRage)\
**Post date:** [July 29, 2005, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-im-going-to-washington-for-the-first-time/314731/2 "2005-07-29T14:05:27Z")

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I love Olympia!

IIRC, Mt. St. Helens is not that far, maybe an hour’s drive or so? Definitely cool. There’s a cute dowtown area as wel, with a small theatre, etc.

Are you going to go into Seattle or Tacoma?

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**Author:** ![Seren](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e19adc/32.png) [@Seren](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seren)\
**Post date:** [July 29, 2005, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-im-going-to-washington-for-the-first-time/314731/3 "2005-07-29T14:19:03Z")

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I’ll be in Seattle for a little bit, 'cause that’s where I’m flying. I might stay for a while longer, if I find something to do there.

I’m certainly up for driving around some (I was even thinking of driving up to Canada to spend some time in Vancouver) so I’ll definitely head to Mount St Helens. Silly me, I’d forgotten it was over there. :smack:

I heard Mt Rainier is also nice.

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**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\
**Post date:** [July 29, 2005, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-im-going-to-washington-for-the-first-time/314731/4 "2005-07-29T20:51:12Z")

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I grew up in Olympia, and I couldn’t move out of town after high school fast enough. So my opinion of the city’s a little, let’s say, biased. I’m now in Seattle.

> [@Seren](#):
>
> I heard Mt Rainier is also nice.

It’s very nice, but this time of year it’s also very, very, very crowded. St. Helens is definitely preferable in terms of lower tourist volume, and I think it’s just as cool, for what it is.

Wolf Haven is neat (it’ll take a full day to get the overpowering scent of wolf musk out of your nostrils), but it’s like 45 minutes away, so account for the drive in your schedule. You might also consider Northwest Trek, if you’re into that sort of thing.

The Thurston County Fair was kinda lame when I lived there. Puyallup was much, much better.

The Capitol Campus is quite lovely, with nice architecture and good gardens. It provides grounds for a nice afternoon walk if the weather is decent and you’re not doing anything else. The Capitol Building itself has been used by Hollywood as a stand-in for Washington D.C.