Seattle

It finally happened!! We went away on a trip together. It's been two years since we did this. I was determined to get some alone time with him before this baby came. But where to go?! I loved living on the east coast and getting to explore cities over there. Thanks to Rachel, I've gotten a taste of Florida and Texas, and we got to see San Francisco a few years back, but I've never been to the north west! So we were Washington bound! We left on a Wednesday (March 29) night to catch a 9:40pm flight. Marcie's friend, Alison, was able to come babysit our kids while we were gone. That was a huge relief. We didn't have to inconvenience any family and I knew they were in safe hands. 

Thankfully, it was a direct flight. I don't know if my marshmallow man feet could have taken any more traveling that day. We watched Mrs. Peligrin's Home for Peculiar Children and it seemed to go pretty quickly. After getting our bags and rental car, we had about a 20 minute drive into downtown Seattle. 

I was so excited seeing the skyline from the highway! Woohoo! We're here! 

I procrastinated way too long on booking our hotel so the one I wanted wasn't available our first night. Instead we stayed at a place called the Belltown Inn. It was on the cheaper side and wasn't SCARY per se, but let me tell you... at 2am- the weirdos are out! And a rather sketchy gentleman was behind the counter, possible half baked. The bed was horrible and the sounds from the street were really loud in our room. Yay for earplugs and just being too pooped to care. The funny part was walking into that same lobby the next morning. It was like the Jekyl and Hyde hotel! Bright and cheery with happy employees greeting you. 

Right next to our hotel was the Biscuit Bitch. It looked like a happenin' place, so we got breakfast there. 

Also, they were hirin' so win/win! Haha! 

I got the biscuits and gravy and Trav got a biscuit breakfast sandwich. A nice, heavy way to start our vaca of eating!

We had been told repeatedly to see Snoqualmie Falls, so that was our first destination. About a 20 minute drive into the mountains. The town of Snoqualmie was beautiful. So clean and green! I just had to remind myself that it is usually raining here, so don't get too envious. 

Our bishop and his wife got engaged here!

 It was pretty cold and the mist made it feel like it was raining. It would have been fun to take one of the hikes around, but we didn't really have the shoes for that, so we just admired then left. 

Next up was the Fremont Troll!! We drove back through Seattle then out to the opposite side where the town of Fremont is.A scene from the movie "10 Things I Hate About You" happens here and it was a teenager favorite. Of course we were quoting the movie the whole time and giggling. "Kissing isn't what keeps me up to my elbows in placenta!" 

Chastity: "Mr. Stratford, it's just a party"

Walter Stratford: "And hell is just a sauna." 

Ahhh, that's such a classic. 

Back to Seattle after that, where we parked the car at our next hotel and walked over to Pike's Market. Of course when you say you're going to Seattle, the first thing anyone says is to visit Pike's Market. Well, they are right! It was definitely my favorite part of the whole trip. And we went back multiple times. It's a bustling indoor/outdoor shopping center that mostly lines one street. It's directly north... just a street up... from the coastline and wharf. First, we just walked up and down, checking everything out. Every kind of food you can imagine! Lots of little shops selling handmade items...soaps, wooden crafts, jewelry, candles,  jams, paintings, clothing, etc. 

We tasted some jams and some cherries and bought a couple packages of these divine morsels.

But the best part???!! The FLOWERS!!! Oh my gosh!! The flowers!!! Big, long rows of them!! Huge bouquets of the prettiest varieties I've ever seen! And for so cheap!! Honestly! $10-$20 for something that would cost you $80-100 in Arizona. I was spell bound. Travis had to be so tired of me because I wouldn't shut up about them the whole time. I just couldn't believe my eyes. 

There were also lots of fresh fruit stands and of course... the fish market! We saw a couple of fish throws while we were there. 

It was so hard to decide where to eat, but we finally settled on a place overlooking the water. Yummy fish tacos followed by these little donuts we saw at a stand nearby. 

After lunch, we walked down to the wharf and rode on the Great Wheel! I was really nervous to get on, but was not about to let my irrational fears keep me from an experience. Luckily, I only freaked a couple of times. ;) And Travis didn't shake the pod like my mom would have, so I mellowed out, haha. 

I wasn't set on going to the aquarium... I kind of thought it would be boring... but it was right next to the wheel and was included in the City Pass we bought. Plus, I needed a bathroom. So in we went! I'm so glad we did! It was way more entertaining than I expected.  

They told us to put our fingers inside the spines of these sea urchins and they would "grab" on to you. Such a funny feeling! We also touched the star fish and sea cucumbers. I felt like a kid at Sea World.

How cool are these jelly fish?! 

Ah, the cockroaches of the sea. I'm a little grossed out at myself for liking shrimp so much after seeing them crawl around like this. 

Eh. Won't stop me.

I'm such a dork, but this guy was cracking me up!

Hiiiii Nemo!

Did it catch some lunch??

I'm not sure why this was so enjoyable, but it really turned into a nice experience. Maybe because it was kind of a kid place but we weren't pushing a stroller or keeping track of any kids?? 

Huffing it back up to Pike's Market from the wharf is no joke! 165 stairs total. You better believe we counted. I was earning my treats that day!

I had heard about the gum wall but didn't know exactly where it was.  Well, we didn't even have to look! We stumbled right onto it! I guess a couple years ago they scraped all the gum off to give it a fresh start. 

Left our germy mark!

It was time for a snack, right?! This Russian bakery was highly recommended and you could tell it was a hit because it always had a line. It's so hard to choose what pastry to eat though!

Back down to the wharf for our 90 min. harbor tour! (The Gilligan's Island theme song just entered my head... A three hour tour! Haha) We boarded a ferry that cruised up the coast, giving a tour of the history of Seattle and pointing out different buildings. We couldn't believe what beautiful weather we were lucking out with! 

The big cranes were interesting to me. You could see the massive freight ships and all the cargo boxes that they bring in. It's crazy to think of these things delivering goods from all over the world. That something I bought from Target could have come over in one of those boxes. 

These two ships are ice breakers! Their job is to clear paths for the cargo ships through ice covered waters. 

Back up those blasted stairs again! It was the end of the day so we needed to check into our hotel, but I juuuust couldn't help myself and needed one more treat from Pike's. This time we shared a cup of macaroni and cheese from Beechers. Pretty cool being able to see them making the cheese.

The original Starbucks is also here. ALWAYS had a line too.

It took about 15-20 minutes to walk back to the hotel. We were staying at a nice place called the Warwick. SUCH an upgrade from the other hotel! But they only had rooms with two queen beds left. Ohhh well! It wasn't a honeymoon anyway. ;)

We were on the 12th floor, which threw off multiple people in the elevator pushing the button for us. I NEVER knew that hotels were superstitious and left out the 13th floor!!! So strange!

The concierge recommended a place called BlueAcre for really good seafood, so we walked there for dinner. You know, because we hadn't eaten all day!  

It was all yummy! Even the bread and butter! Trav got an octopus and shrimp cerviche that I was too nervous to order. Seeing actual suction cups from tentacles ain't really my thang, but I have to admit after a taste that it was good!

I think we got the sword fish and maybe salmon?? And shared. Fancy schmancy stuff with creamy glazes and delicate herbs. Oh, and onion rings, lol. 

Trav's goat cheese cheesecake was heavy on the goat, but actually pretty tasty! Not our typical fare, but fun to go a little more high class. 

You could see the Space Needle from our hotel window! 

The next morning it was hidden under clouds. 

Friday morning we drove over to Pike's Market to sneak in some of these crepes for breakfast we'd been told so much about. I think we both got the nutella and strawberry filled ones. Mmmm mmm! Two thumbs up! 

Then we drove just a few minutes to get to the Underground Tour. Here's how they describe in on their website... 

{The Underground Tour is Seattle’s most unusual attraction, a humorous stroll through intriguing subterranean storefronts and sidewalks entombed when the city rebuilt on top of itself after the Great Fire of 1889.

The 75-minute guided walking tour begins beneath Doc Maynard’s Public House, then spills into historic Pioneer Square, Seattle’s birthplace, before plunging underground for an exclusive, time-capsule view of the buried city.}

The tour guide was lively and had all sorts of corny and inappropriate jokes. It was interesting, but I'm not sure how much I'll remember. Except that I feel really bad for early pioneers. Talk of sewage running in streets and toilets that exploded. Apparently, prostitution was huge and the lady in charge of it all died and left millions to the public education system. Except not a single school was named after her. Tragic. Our tour guide thought this was absurd. 

I guess this street was the dividing line between the "upperclass" society and the "lowerclass" based on the personalities of two of the founding men of Seattle. And sewage would run down the street?? I don't know. It was all a little strange. 

Afterward, we grabbed lunch at Ivars on the wharf. This is a simple, walk up and order place that surprised me with it's yumminess! Like, the BEST clam chowder I've ever had! We shared some fish and chips and it really hit the spot!

This wasn't on the agenda, but a friend had commented that the public library was pretty cool. Well if you say library and cool in one sentence, you're my kinda person! Travis is SUCH a good sport!! What husband wants to go walk around a library?! 

But guys, it really was AWESOME!! It was 10 or 12 stories... I can't remember which and had a "red" floor. Don't know why, but it was fun to check it out! Spoiler alert, the bathroom on the red floor was completely ordinary...

... except for the fact that it was missing half it's stall doors! What in the what?! I guess Seattle doesn't value privacy so much.

Isn't the architecture cool?! Huge, glass windows and crazy lofts and angular floors. The furniture was funky and there was a garden on the main level. The only downside was the B.O. was fairly prominent. Seattle has a strong homeless presence. 

Travis's only comment was, "Sooo, there's the books." 

I love him.

From there we parked the car back at the hotel and walked to the other side of downtown to get to the Space Needle. We had a two hour wait after we got our tickets, which was just fine because the Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum was right next door! This was on my to- do list and included in our City Pass too. So Chihuly is this guy who blows glass into incredible sculptures and chandeliers. It was breathtaking to see. Even if you think museums are boring, this is one anyone can appreciate!

I thought this picture was so cool with the Space Needle in the background!

It wasn't very big so we still had some time to kill and watched the glass blowing demo outside. He acted like it was the best job in the world, but it looked kind of tedious and boring to me.

Time to ride the elevator up the Space Needle! It reminded me of being at the top of the Empire State Building. Dallas also has one of these towers that Rachel and I went to the top of on one of my visits. So maybe I was a little underwhelmed by this?? I mean, it was cool to see the city from up high, but maybe I should have watched Sleepless in Seattle before our trip to get some more sentimental value attached. ;)

One thing I was stoked about was being able to see Mount Rainier!!! It's way off in the distance, to the right of the tallest buildings. You can only see it 90 days out of the year. Yesterday, you couldn't see it and Travis doubted we ever would, but booyaaaa!! He came out just for us! ;)

Our City Pass included a visit to the Museum of Pop Culture so we walked next door to that after the Needle. It was.... weird. But we also aren't into video games, Van Halen or Star Trek. We basically walked out 10 minutes after going in. Looks cool from the outside though!

My feet were aching so we were trying to figure out a way to get back to the middle of downtown without walking. Lo and behold... a monorail! Wish we had known about it sooner. For $4 each, we hopped on that baby and were deposited just a couple blocks from Pikes. Perrrrfect! 

I didn't want to go to a restaurant for dinner; I just wanted to nibble my way through the market. So nibble we did!

The creamiest, homemade, Greek yogurt! I got lemon curd. Delightful.

A grilled cheese sandwich from Beechers.

More pirosky's from the Russian bakery..

A smoked salmon pate and cream cheese vatrushka!

We ducked into a French bakery next door to eat and I spied macaroons! Travis spied baked goods from Spain! He got a Pain au chocolat and something else I don't know the name of. Ahhhh, so good!

Sweet little reminders of our munchkins at home!

We walked back to the hotel after that and wondered what we should do for the evening. Mama Mia was showing at the Paramount but I couldn't find reasonable priced tickets. There happened to be a movie theater right across the street from our hotel though showing Beauty and the Beast. Perfect! It was kind of a fun place... a Broadway type theater turned into a movie theater with multiple levels and velvet seats. We shared a popcorn, cuz, why not?! And I really enjoyed it. I'm smiling just writing all this out. Seeing a movie in Seattle isn't exactly noteworthy, but I loooooved just spending time with Travis. Everything was did was so much fun.... just being the two of us.