Vancouver ⇔ Seattle

Day 22 (25 Sep) — Returning the rental car

Vancouver ⇔ Seattle

For about three weeks, the Elantra had carried us really well. Over 8,000 km. Having kept going without a single problem, the Elantra's body was covered in mud. As a thank-you, at the end we gave it the top car wash at a petrol station. In Canada, with its harsh winters, brush-type washes like in Japan would freeze and scratch the body, so this one sprayed colourful cleaning agents as in the photo and then washed with powerful water pressure alone. Sparkling clean, the Elantra looked somehow proud. Hyundai of Korea has grown astonishingly in the last few years. This Elantra, combining performance and low price, is said to be selling explosively, on course to overtake the Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic.

Heading for the US border.

Just before the border inspection there's a duty-free shop, much like at an airport. We bought the familiar maple cookies and T-shirts. To stop people driving the wrong way, in front of the duty-free car park there were spikes that would puncture your tyres if you reversed.

A long queue in front of the inspection booths.

We arrived at our old friend, the Seattle branch of Budget rent-a-car. The return procedure was very simple. Goodbye, Elantra.

Seattle was blessed with clear skies, and it seemed warmer than on our last visit. Parted from our partner, we headed to the bus depot feeling an indescribable emptiness.

While waiting for the bus at the depot, we bought gum with leftover money. It tasted so intense we never finished it.

After getting back to Vancouver, we went to a Chinese restaurant near the motel for dinner. Perhaps because it was originally a Chinatown, almost all the other customers were Chinese, and lively Chinese echoed through the restaurant. The portions were enormous for the price!