It's Always Sunny in...Seattle???

Tomboy Bride update - May 27, 2010 (or whatever day Thursday was): Bryan and I are in Portland, Oregon tonight. Bryan is upset with me as we are getting up in a few hours but I just had to post this blog!!! (It would've been up if the rates to get on the internet in Vancouver weren't about $5 per 15 minutes!)

We are ready for Bryan's cousin BJ's incredible wedding weekend, but I did write this blog Wednesday morning and needed to post it complete with pictures! I will post another update possibly tomorrow evening (depending on how late into the night the rehearsal dinner party goes). So far, here's Seattle...enjoy!

Good morning from Vancouver, British Columbia! Today marks our first day in Canada and we are ready to go out and explore! I wanted to write a blog to catch everyone up and to keep a running diary for my Mom so she knows I’m still alive and kickin since my phone is off (I’m not paying international rates, sorry, Mom!) This is a long one – complete with pictures and everything! - so I hope the writing is good enough to keep you riveted!!!

If you are wondering, we are not on our honeymoon! Ironically, the Pacific Northwest was one of the places we had discussed when we first got engaged – not that we have a destination picked out yet for the actual honeymoon. I have always wanted to travel throughout this part of the country (Hello, the land of Pearl Jam!) so when Bryan and I were invited to attend his cousin Ben’s wedding in The Dalles, Oregon (which is this upcoming Saturday), we jumped at the chance to extend our stay and do some exploring!

I was not ready to leave Seattle at all yesterday as it seems a person can spend a month there and still not run out of places to go and things to see. It has been quite an adventure so far, so we’ll consider this the Seattle blog, then hopefully Thursday evening I’ll have some time and energy to blog Vancouver. So here goes:

We arrived on Saturday afternoon with my Pearl Jam tote bag in tow. We got up at 4:30am Eastern time for our 8:20am flight out of Atlanta. Why so early, you ask? Well, we had to drop our puppy Maggie off at Jon and Sonia’s, we made egg sandwiches to-go; there was, of course last minute packing, and we were relying on MARTA (Atlanta’s equivalent of SEPTA) to get us to the airport on time. Shockingly, we were incredibly time-efficient and had no problem keeping to our intended schedule.

The flight was fantastic although, if you know me, you know I can not sleep on airplanes regardless of how long the flight is. Usually it’s because I’m terrified, but this time it was just plain lack-of-comfort that kept me from getting any zzzzz’s. We arrived in Seattle and immediately Bryan was chomping at the bit to start touring state parks. I, on the other hand, was not aware of this intention and protested due to the fact that I was wearing a long dress (and sandals! – I thought we’d at least go to the hotel or to eat first!). Needless to say, I threw on a long-sleeved t-shirt, switched out my sandals for sneakers, put on some make-up in the car (I didn’t know where else we were gonna go!) and yes, in my dress, did a 2.4 mile loop through Seward Park which was absolutely beautiful!!! The weather was sunny and slightly windy, but perfect (These first two pictures are from this location including those incredible lily pads!).

Next, we went to eat at an Irish Pub for no other reason than I was hungry and it was there. Bryan has actually been to this particular chain before (it’s called The Elephant and the Castle…or something) in San Francisco, so unfortunately, this was not a Seattle-specific experience. But it was food and I was happy. I also chose one of the 600 Starbucks locations along the way back to the hotel to get my first Caramel Macchiato fix of the trip.

Once we got back to the hotel, I needed a one-hour nap before I was going to be physically able to do anything else – and my intention was to power my way through the rest of the night! We decided to take in a Seattle Mariners game after we got ready. What a fun time! Safeco Park is quite nice and literally, right next to Qwest Field (the Seattle Seahawks stadium). One thing that cracked me up about the crowd – the M’s were playing the Padres – was that, down 2-0, people started booing. And loudly! Where was I? Philadelphia? But honestly, 2-0??? Did I miss something? Granted, there were some errors which led to one run (the other was a Matt Stairs solo homer…I didn’t even know he was on the Padres now, oops!), but 2 runs can be made up in the blink of an eye!

Bryan and I looked up (yes, on his blackberry) the Mariners record and realized the problem: the Mariners are terrible. So yes, maybe that 2^nd run was a nail in the coffin. Oh, I remember those days with the Phils! But boy, do these people love their Ichiro!!! Honestly, for a stinky team, they had a pretty big, and vocal, crowd. It was so much fun! If you’re wondering, we did try the “legendary Garlic fries” from Grounders. They were, in my opinion, just allright…A little greasy for my taste and I smelled like garlic for the remainder of the trip, no joke.

Afterwards, Bryan and I were undecided on where to continue our evening. I had visions of dancing the night away listening to some Pearl Jam-like rock band in a cool venue. While I knew the names and locations of said venues, when we drove by places, nothing appeared to be going on. It’s Saturday night, people! All kidding aside, Bryan and I drove around the city for about a half-hour in search of people and found limited selection. After this hour of sitting in the car (we spent another half-hour searching for parking that didn’t cost a month’s rent), I declared that I am, in fact, old and needed to go to bed (nevermind I had been up for almost 24 hours minus my one-hour nap!).

The lilypads in Seward Park and below, me at the fabulous Showbox!!!

Bryan and I at Pike Place Market, Bryan posing with the Fremont Troll; me at the huge Wall of Gum!, and finally, me rocking out with Jimi Hendrix!

Below, to the left is me paying my respects at Kurt Cobain's house; Bryan and I at the Space Needle; then a few pics of Discovery Park.

Sunday morning, Bryan and I walked down to Pike Place Market. We watched the guys throw fish; we stopped to eat at a little place called the Sound View Café where I had an incredible Seafood omelette; we bought some goodies including a cookie that claims to be the World’s Best (it was pretty darn good! However, it was $3.75, so it only makes sense that there was about an entire bag of chocolate chips in this thing – that’s my kind of cookie!). Afterwards, we were in search of the First Starbucks location when we passed the legendary concert venue, The Showbox (Pearl Jam has played here, so of course it’s legendary to me). The marquis said: May 23 – The Ten Club Rock n Art…what?? For those of you who don’t know, The Ten Club is Pearl Jam’s fan club – which, of course, I am a member of! Did someone alert The Ten Club to my visit? I look and see a line of people, so immediately, I ask: “What is going on?” I was told that the artists who draw the Pearl Jam concert posters were having a convention of sorts. Then the line started moving! I’m going in! It was a free event where they were GIVING OUT Pearl Jam goodies!! In fact, they were giving out the Pearl Jam bag I had been carrying around (thinking I looked like a TOTAL Tourist Nerd) filled with posters of the band, vinyl singles of The Fixer/Supersonic (cuts off of Backspacer, their latest album). Incredible.

If I couldn’t stay up late enough to go to a rock show, at least I got to go in The Showbox!

After this thrill, we came upon a Starbucks where scores of people were taking pictures. “Oh, is this the first one?” I asked a photo-snapper. “I…think so,” he said. Hmmm….I think so is not good enough for me. I went inside and asked another couple, “Is this the First Starbucks?” “We think so,” they told me. WHAT THE HECK, PEOPLE?! So I asked a barista and was told the First Starbucks was several blocks away. Bryan and I went back on our search. When we found the First Starbucks, there was a cool band playing outside of it…surrounded by approximately 6,000 people, most of whom were in some semblance of a line. I came, I saw, I decided to caffeinate elsewhere….but not before sticking the chewy confection in my mouth on this GIANT WALL OF GUM!!! This was slightly disgusting, yet fascinating!

After more shopping in Pike Place, we headed back to the car and ventured over to the Jimi Hendrix Statue where we posed for pictures with the legend. Next, we went to Magnuson Park in search of the Sound Garden. Two things: a.) if you’re keeping up with my music-themed journey, I wanted a picture of this sign – this is where the band, Soundgarden, got their name, and b.) the Sound Garden is actually an art installation of various-sized pipes through which the wind blows creating some cool sounds. Bryan and I drove around Magnuson Park, asked multiple people, parked the car and walked around…we could not find this Sound Garden. We were told by one guy flying a kite that due to security measures, you might not even be able to get to it anymore but on especially windy days you can hear it from pretty far away. WHAT, I can not go to the Sound Garden? Grrrrr. Defeated, we left without a picture of the Sound Garden sign.

Next, we went to Fremont Troll (which is a landmark that has been featured in movies including the CLASSIC “10 Things I Hate About You”. After pictures with the Troll, we went to Gas Works Park where we were easily able to get the best view of the city skyline we had seen so far. Then, we made the pilgrimage I had been waiting for – to Kurt Cobain’s house. Finally, we ate on the Seattle Waterfront at a place called Ivar’s which my Dad had actually suggested to me on the phone upon my arrival. The seafood at this place was AMAZING. In fact, I don’t know if I can ever eat seafood again in Atlanta. It was so fresh. Bryan, who doesn’t eat shrimp, was eating shrimp!!!

We spent our last day, again, eating at Pike Place Market. This time it was Lowell’s which boasts 3 floors of waterfront views (we decided to sit on the 3^rd floor!). The breakfast at this place was also phenomenal. It’s a food paradise at the Pike Place Market. Then we headed to the Space Needle which, I was a little apprehensive about (planes fly right by it!), but it was totally worth it. We spent 2 hours there! Finally, we went to Discovery Park where we did an “easy to moderate” 2.8 mile hike. Easy to moderate, my butt!!! I would consider Bryan and I two individuals that are in decent shape. We were both huffing and puffing through certain parts of this hike. Needless to say, we concluded that “easy to moderate” hiking is different in the Pacific Northwest compared to the East Coast. Easy to moderate here means difficult to strenuous to us. Despite the challenge of the hike (which I actually really enjoyed!...Plus it made me feel a little less guilty for all those goodies I ate from PPM then proceeded to wash down with sugared-up coffee drinks from Starbucks), the views and scenery of this hike were also totally worth it. There are beaches and cliffs and meadows that are just phenomenal.

That brings us to today, a day on which I woke up next to a mountain and a waterfront – and yes, I am in a hotel room. The Pacific Northwest is so cool! I have NO idea what is in store for us in Vancouver. I already have an interesting story about us coming into the city last night, but I’ll save it for the opening of the next blog. So Mom, this is the run-down since I’ve only gotten to talk to you briefly here and there through the whole trip. We have not stopped moving! It is time for breakfast and, hopefully, some more hiking. Until next time!