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 and Parson’s Garden.
-Went back to my apartment because my Atlantan guest wasn’t used to our cool mornings.
-Went to Pike Place Market for more picture taking. She had a yummy crumpet with jam and nutella at the Crumpet Shop, while I “ate lunch” at my all-time favortie smoothie place, Shy Giant.
-Took the ferry to Bainbridge Island. Walked around. She got fudge. I petted the yarn at Churchmouse Yarns and Teas.
-Then it was time to introduce my guest to some of my friends. So we all went to Rancho Bravo, had some drinks and played Rock Band until the wee hours of the morn.
Friday:
-I slept at Alki Beach, 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 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. 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, 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 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. 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. 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 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 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, 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 so we checked out some “art” and then bought some clothes at Twenty20.
-Then, it was drinks and skeeball at Kings.
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.
-Walked the shit out of Stanley Park. 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. 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 so she could take pictures of kites, seaplanes and defunct gas plant site.
-And as a proper goodbye, we tried to go to Paseo but of course they are closed on Mondays. So we did the second best thing and had great beer and eats at Brouwer’s. 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.
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?