I’m not particularly a good hostess. I like my space. I don’t like to be around people all the time. And I like to sleep or go at my own pace without someone saying, “Now what?”. That said, here’s what I did when a friend I’ve had for 15 years came to Seattle for the first time for a visit.

Wednesday:

-Plane Delayed till 2am. The “weather” was to blame.

Thursday:

-Took lots of pictures at Kerry Park ^[1] and Parson’s Garden ^[2].

-Went back to my apartment because my Atlantan guest wasn’t used to our cool mornings.

-Went to Pike Place Market ^[3] for more picture taking. She had a yummy crumpet with jam and nutella at the Crumpet Shop ^[4], while I “ate lunch” at my all-time favortie smoothie place, Shy Giant ^[5].

-Took the ferry to Bainbridge Island ^[6]. Walked around. She got fudge. I petted the yarn at Churchmouse Yarns and Teas ^[7].

-Then it was time to introduce my guest to some of my friends. So we all went to Rancho Bravo ^[8], had some drinks and played Rock Band until the wee hours of the morn.

Friday:

-I slept at Alki Beach ^[9], while she took pictures of kids being buried in sand.

-Then it was time to show her my old place and the bums that come along with it. Thus, to Capitol Hill we went. We split a small CrazyCherry ^[10] concoction, where I now always ask them to put the toppings on the bottom as it is way more eatable this way, and then we threw the frisbee around at Volunteer Park ^[11]. Actually, I take that back. The boyfriend, a friend and I threw the frisbee around. I guess in Atlanta they don’t play frisbee. Luckily my friend – a boy – was more than happy to teach my guest how to be a true Seattleite. Cue in a romantic comedy montage and suddenly a vacation couple is born.

-She’s never had Ethopian food before, so the boyfriend and I prayed for fast service at Queen Sheba ^[12], and miraculously our wishes were granted. I opted not to get too drunk on Tej because I knew I still had the night to entertain.

-With that said, I needed caffeine. Fast! We took her to Vivace ^[13] so she can see the pretty picture in the cup. She took a picture and I drank it fast. Then said good-bye because they closed their doors on Sunday and will become yet another store that sits under a condo (am I the only one who really fucking hates this new trend). Rumor has it, the new Vivace will reopen near the new Dilletante.

-We went to Hot House ^[14]. Ahhhhhh, I can sleep. I can read. I can be in a whisper zone. We both needed some relaxing and this was the place. We spent a good 3 hours sweating our tits off in the jacuzzi, in the steam room and in the sauna.

-THEN, we had drinks at Bleu ^[15]. I used to actually like this place, but the more I come here the more I realize it just sucks. The service that is. The guy was more like friends with everyone than an actual server. He berated the boyfriend for ordering something non-alcoholic (note to all servers, DO NOT DO THIS, you will get a shit tip from me if you do) and when we asked for the bill and saw that he was having a cigarette and then went inside and delivered some food and then went back outside for another cigarette and then bumped into a friend and talked to him for 5 minutes we just left without ever getting the bill. If I was in Spain, this would be considered normal. But we’re no where near Spain, and this douche got what he deserved.

Okay, where was I? Oh right, SATURDAY:

-We started the morning a little late and went directly to the ID ^[16] for the Chinese Festival (brought to you by the one brand I always think of when I see anything Chinese, McDonalds).

-We meandered toward Occidental Park ^[17] and bumped the Fire Festival which was actually pretty cool. It was a little kid’s wet dream, what with old fire trucks and police cars and fire drills.

-And off to Ballard we go. We had dinner at Lunchbox Laboratory ^[18], where I finally got to try the Dork. I was actually a little underwhelmed, but the chocolate cherry milkshake saved the experience so all is forgotten and I’ll happily go back to eating the meat I’m used to over here.

-It happened to be Art Walk in Ballard ^[19] so we checked out some “art” and then bought some clothes at Twenty20 ^[20].

-Then, it was drinks and skeeball at Kings ^[21].

Sunday:

-Made blueberry/chocolate/walnut waffles and an egg scramble for 5 to prepare for our day trip to Vancouver!

-Immediately got one speeding ticket. We made the officer laugh so he gave us a little bit of a break. Note to self. Make them laugh.  

-Stopped in Richmond for Dim Sum ^[22].

-Walked the shit out of Stanley Park ^[23]. Learned a little about Totem Poles. Walked around some more.

-Slept in the car on the way back.

Monday:

-Yay! Hiking! We went to Denny Creek Trail and Franklin Falls ^[24]. What a great short, easy hike. At the Denny Creek Trail, after an hour or so of a steady incline (500 ft?), at the end you are greeted by large flat rocks and kids sliding along them into the river. I passed out on the rocks while the friends and guest played. After I properly drooled everywhere, we did the even shorter hike to Franklin Falls, where once again the treat was at the end. A beautiful fall that splashes in your face and is just so refreshing, we were all happy to have gotten out of the city for the day.

-Then we took the guest to Gas Works ^[25] so she could take pictures of kites, seaplanes and defunct gas plant site.

-And as a proper goodbye, we tried to go to Paseo ^[26] but of course they are closed on Mondays. So we did the second best thing and had great beer and eats at Brouwer’s ^[27]. My seitan BBQ sandwich wasn’t quite as meaty as other seitan I’ve had, but still good nonetheless. And I highly recommend the Apple Wit (I forget the name of the actual beer, but it’s the only Apple Wit on the menu). If you like Hoegardden (which I just learned is pronouced Who Garden and not Hoe garden, like I’ve been saying for years) then you’ll like this citrusy beer with an apple infused twist.

Tuesday:

-She left. And I went to a place I really wanted to take her, but just didn’t have the time: the Arboretum ^[28].

Anyone else have guests this summer? Where are you going? How are you coping? Do you feel totally run down when they leave, or am I just getting old at the ripe age of 29?