one short day (in the emerald city)

Since my last post, I realized that I forgot to mention the delicious Spokane hotel meal that was prepared by Amy. She makes a fantastic PB&J. I was reminded again of my omission when she repeated the gesture this morning – a lovely way to start the day. We also had another fine sleep-in this morning. It was definitely strategic as we set off to conquer (dabble in) Seattle’s offerings.

We made the short drive into the city and headed to stop number one: Salumi. Cured meats weren’t high on my list, but Amy was ecstatic about this venture. Salumi is owned by Mario Batali’s family…a fact that made me excited as well. We waited in a fairly short line in a very narrow space. Satisfied customers were exiting with words of praise and “it’s worth the wait” smiles. Amy ordered the Salumi Salami Sandwich and I the Veggie Sandwich (shocker). I can vouch for the salami since I think I had the best seat in the house for watching Amy roll her eyes in delight. I learned that people in Seattle don’t mind sharing their food with complete strangers…while also learning that Amy wouldn’t have minded being that stranger. She spoke a lot of the gnocchi (Tuesday is gnocchi day at Salumi) and eyed our fellow diner’s dish more times than I could keep up with. But, in the end, the girl finished her dish and Amy did not get a sample. I think gnocchi just made the to-do list in any given future destination.

After lunch we traveled by foot a few blocks to the waterfront where we quickly realized that we were just a little off track from where we needed/wanted to be. A few questionable resident sightings confirmed this. I can’t lie, I was feeling slightly uneasy about Seattle at this point. I never felt unsafe; I just didn’t expect the homelessness (although, Amy commented that it’s quite difficult to distinguish the homeless from grunge in this town). We headed to the car in search of new hope.

And hope we found. I know everyone says you should definitely hit Pike Place Market. It’s a must-see kind of thing. From the fish slinging to the folk art to the fruits/vegetables/flowers…it’s got a lot going on. Initially, I found the market to be a little disappointing. We shared a custard éclair that was super, but I found the rest of the vendors less than spectacular. Then we crossed 1^st Avenue.  This led us right where we wanted to be: a foodie’s paradise. We did the obligatory Original Starbuck’s visit (I had my first coffee in many months). From there we headed to cheese (that won’t surprise any of you). Beecher’s Handmade Cheese lovingly supplied us with cheese curds we thoroughly enjoyed…and eventually lost…most likely in Aveda. (If seen please email offtolookforamerica@gmail.com.) We then drifted into La Buona Tavola – Truffle Café where we were greeted and assisted by the owner, Rei Hanscomb. We (Amy) had an extensive and informative information session with Ms. Hanscomb – she was both kind and knowledgeable. She let Amy sample many truffle products, but she finally settled on the Black Truffle Salt (10% concentration) and, of course, some salami.

Bellies (more) full, we ventured to the Original Nordstrom store and Aveda (fromage black hole land). We browsed, shopped, and regrouped then made way to the nearby Monorail station for a trip to the Space Needle. However, this was not before a small child demanded I hurry up in the mall restroom and followed this with a subtle punch in my leg on the way out.

The Space Needle is neat. It is. I resisted. I’ll admit it. It’s hard to deny landmarks of such magnitude. Where you look to the peak and find yourself lost on your feet. We took the 500+ foot ride in the elevator and found the most comprehensive and amazing views of the city. We perused the gift shop for a while and settled on something everyone needs, Space Needle salt and pepper shakers (jealous?). We enjoyed a stroll around the Seattle Center and I got an opportunity to vaunt about my 1988(ish) Tony Hawk skateboard and aged myself by singing along to “Silent All These Years” in the courtyard. I know. We also got to see Key Arena, an exciting thing for me, a WNBA (it still exists) fan and Seattle Storm follower. Amy, not so much.

Our tired feet eventually transported us back to our vehicle. We had decided on Thai for dinner and made the drive to a vegetarian Thai restaurant in Ballard, Jhanjay Thai. The super hip atmosphere (and that fact that it took us 10 minutes to locate a parking spot within 3 blocks) indicated good things were coming our way. We were right. So good. Perfect way to end a perfect day – Pad Thai, Modern Family, and the couch. I would also like to point out that my decision to spend $10.77 to have our laundry done today was probably one of the wisest yet. Patting self on back (in clean pajamas).

Oh, and we got sun in Seattle! Two days in a row. AND, I got to listen to KEXP in real life.

Joellen