finally at the pacific!

Hello!  Tonight I write to you from the coziest place I think we could have chosen to stay.  As I lay here on the couch reflecting upon our day, I can’t help but feel that Seattle might be a Top 5 Favorite Place contender.  Although so far, there has not been a single hub that I haven’t liked, Seattle is definitely taking the lead (don’t worry, Minneapolis, you’re up there too!)

We woke up this morning in Spokane, Washington.  When we arrived there last night, I was not very impressed, and fairly certain that it would not be a town I would want to visit again.  Once we let the sunshine hit Spokane, however, I started to see a slightly different side.  After sleeping in too long/rushing to leave our hotel, we decided upon a cozy little breakfast spot that took us through some nice areas of town.  Frank’s Diner was exactly what you would want and expect from an old school diner.  Situated not far from Riverside Park, this train-car-turned-diner boasted not only breakfast foods of epic proportions in a very cool environment, but also the world’s greatest server, Gage.  Gage is perhaps one of my favorite strangers from this trip (there have been many favorites, but she takes the cake).  She has been with the diner for over 20 years and is exactly what you would expect in a career-server working in this kind of place.  Attentive, knowledgeable and friendly, she made our experience all the more authentic.

On to the food.  Oh my, the food.  Let me just start by saying that on the menu next to almost every item, there is the “lighter option.”  Now, if we had been thinking properly, we would have asked what this meant, and how big the normal portions were.  We lacked foresight, however, and hastily ordered our meals.  I could not believe how much food arrived at our table (nor could I believe how fast the service was, or the fact that Gage remembered I wanted lemons and wasn’t stingy with them).  I ordered the meatloaf benedict with hash browns and Joellen ordered the veggie and cheese omelet with hash browns.  I believe that Joellen liked hers, and I liked mine as well, but by the end I sort of left wishing that I had gotten something else.  The meatloaf was pretty good, but all of it was so covered with gravy that it was hard to taste anything else.  I think it is a great concept, but perhaps needs some fine-tuning.  Or not, since the place has been open for longer than I’ve been alive.  The shining star of my meal was the buttermilk biscuit, which was buttery and delicious and fluffy and just yum.  I could have easily gotten eggs and a biscuit and been happy, but I wanted a new experience, and I’m glad I got it.

We then hit the road for the easy drive across Washington to Seattle.  The scenery was absolutely breathtaking and varied from farm land to barren hills to rocky mountains to rivers and lakes to lush forests.  Washington really has a lot to offer and I am so glad that we were able to see so much of it.  We arrived in Seattle just in time for rush hour, but made it to our hotel in a fairly decent amount of time.  Seahurst Garden Studio is an incredible bed and breakfast that Joellen came across during her hours of research for this trip, and by far my favorite overnight venue.  When we got here, we were beyond thrilled with the amenities.  Situated on a hill, this one-room b&b is attached to a main house where owners Alice and Jane live.  The entrance is through the back yard, which is absolutely gorgeous.  Jane and Alice have taken such care of their property and it really shows.  There is a vegetable garden, flowers, a gorgeous willow tree and fruit-bearing plants all over.  The room is cozy, clean and well stocked.  We could not be happier.

After sitting under the grape vines for a while (I KNOW, RIGHT?), I got cleaned up and we drove in to town for an absolutely wonderful meal.  Annapurna Cafe was just what we needed.  Although we both asserted that we would never eat again after brunch, we started to get hungry right around sunset and agreed that enough time had passed and we were allowed another meal.  Now, I am a fan of all foods, and Joellen is too, for the most part.  But we just could not do one more gastro pub.  So traditional Nepalese, Tibetan and Indian food sounded perfect.  This restaurant was such an incredible find.  Most of the food is what you would expect to find in a traditional Indian place-curries, rice and naan.  But there were a few dishes that were not common and we were very excited to try them.  We started with the Spinach Momo, a traditional Tibetan-style steamed dumpling filled with spinach.  It came with a sesame chutney, peanut chutney and spicy tomato chutney, all of which were awesome, and were perfect compliments to the Momo.  We shared some samosas, which were great, the palak paneer, which is my personal favorite, and the Himalayan Curry.  This dish was all at once comforting, fresh and flavorful.  Unlike many traditional curries, the vegetables were perfectly cooked and the flavors of tomato and garlic really shone through.  I am a huge fan of all Indian food, and love everything about the creamy sauces, but this dish having none of that was such a pleasant surprise.  If you are ever in the area and want to try something different, you need to go to this restaurant.

Tomorrow we are off to explore and see all of the sights that Seattle has to offer.  Can’t wait to report back on the Emerald City.

❤ Amy

i’m amazed (montana/idaho/washington)

The morning started out quite nice today. After falling asleep to train whistles and a highly efficient air conditioner, we were well rested and ready to tackle the day. We checked out at 11:06 (always a few minutes late) and headed to Sacajawea Park to fulfill Amy’s desire to visit. I’m so glad we did. It was situated on the river with beautiful mountain views. We had our leftovers from dinner as we took in the amazing scenery. Amy did a little light rock climbing…as much as one should do wearing mere flip-flops. She made it to the water’s edge and I saw a foot go in. I guarded the belongings and snapped pictures of the event.

Next stop was a very badly needed car wash. The Wild West has an incredible amount of bugs – not as many as Florida, but more than I expected.

We hopped on the road and there we stayed…for about 30 minutes. I think it’s fair to say that we’re both suckers for artisan foods. I read somewhere that the Neely’s had visited this award-winning caramel shop nearby. We drove out there and sadly the factory was closed. However, I had read that their caramels were distributed to over 600 retail outlets. There was still hope. On the way to the caramel destination, we had seen the Bozeman Co-Op. Once seen, I think we both knew that it was not an optional stop – it was a must. This was easily one of the best decisions of the trip (there have been many, though). It was a great little place where we enjoyed salads with tasty options (quinoa, edamame) and a really wonderful bowl of veggie soup. The healthy meal really hit the spot. Bonus: they were a distributor for both the caramels and a local goat cheese I had read about. Bringing a cooler on this trip was an excellent plan.

Fueled up , we were ready to drive our little hearts out. And that we did – for 6 hours.  In order to keep this a little interesting I’ve decided to make a few points. If you know me, you know I love bulleted lists. So:

• Montana is amazing. I mean, just spectacular. I would love to spend more time visiting. Summer home?
• Everyone on I-90 drives a Subaru. Not, everyone, but a ton. I definitely think it’s the most common make of vehicle we’ve seen on the road. Also, whenever we see another Subaru, Amy (in her best Buster Bluth) acknowledges them with, “Hey brother.” It’s the cutest thing. Ever.
• Also, another road observation: Montana may have the most concentrated amount of personalized license plates in the country. It made for an awesome past time.
• Oh, Butte, MT is not that amazing. We found a travel stop with a McDonald’s, a casino, an Arby’s, a Subway, and 3 toothless people buying corn dogs. Judging from the crystal meth signs on the highway, I think we might have stumbled upon a place that won’t be on either of our repeat visit lists.
• The speed limit is MT is 75. Which means good things can happen over 80 – that’s only 5 over! Also, neither of us has seen an authoritative figure on the highway since Minnesota.
• We got beef jerky before leaving Big Sky Country. Just the smell takes me back to childhood. I supported the purchase for that reason alone.
• The sea salt caramels were delightful.

We saw thousands and thousands of trees today and it never got old. I am just taken aback by the beauty that surrounds us. Sometimes the mountains appear to go on forever. The vastness is mysterious and wondrous.

We pulled into Spokane’s fabulous Holiday Inn Express and were warmly greeted. We haven’t experienced much more than genuinely friendly people on our journey. We checked in, unpacked, and ventured out to see “Our Idiot Brother.” Cute movie. Nice to see more than the road for a few. Also, Zooey.

Tomorrow it’s off Burien, WA. We are staying there while visiting Seattle. Super excited!

Joellen

big skies

Tonight we write to you from the lovely Livingston, Montana after a long day on the road.

We started out the day in Rapid City, South Dakota, where we tried to wake up early to see Mount Rushmore before getting on the road. Tried would be the operative word here. After struggling to move for almost an hour, we got up, repacked the car and headed to the Mount (that’s what all of the hip South Dakotans call it…?). Now, I thought that it was situated right in Rapid City, but I guess I was wrong, because it took us a good half hour before we were able to even see the mountain range where the Mount is carved. Oh, I don’t want to forget about the delicious breakfast that we had in RC (another hip South Dakotan abbreviation…?): bagels. Bagels have a particular significance for us, as they are delicious and we love them. That’s kind of the extent of it, but every time we are wondering what to have for breakfast, it’s usually in the top two. So we were thrilled to find Black Hills Bagels located conveniently on one of the two streets that run through RC, SD. We ordered the veggie bagel with sprouts, tomato and cucumber and added our own hummus, and we also got the sourdough bagel with an egg (we added our own old english cream cheese and it was to die for). After an easy and scenic drive, we arrived at the Mount, ready to see some former leaders.

So, the Mount. Let’s just break it down. It’s rocks. And it’s cool, and most certainly worth a trip, but I am not about to make it a destination…ever. So, if you find yourself on a road trip or passing through SD for whatever reason, you really should go. I would say that it’s worth going out of your way, but that’s pretty much a given since it’s not really in the way of anything. So that’s my spiel. Go see the Mount.

We spent many hours driving through the vast openness of South Dakota, then Wyoming, and finally, Montana before arriving here, in Livingston. We had a very notable stop in Garryowen, which is one of those little oddities on the side of the road that you wonder if you should stop for or just keep going. We stopped. And I think we really enjoyed scenic downtown.

Now Livingston is a really cool place to visit. I’m fairly certain that there is absolutely nothing here, but I did see signs for Sacajawea Park, so there’s that… We mostly decided to stay here because of a restaurant that we saw–shocker–on TV. The restaurant, The 2nd Street Bistro, is located in The Murray Hotel, a historical boutique hotel the a friendly staff and clean, quaint rooms. We definitely give four enthusiastic thumbs up. Now, I know what you’re thinking: what about the dinner? After all, I know that’s why all of you tune in day after day. To start, the bread was absolutely delicious. It had a nice soft texture and slightly salty flavor and the butter was creamy and delicious. We shared the seared sea scallops with a crawfish risotto and a red pepper sauce. I know what I said before about red peppers, but this dish was stellar. Really delicate seafood flavors and the risotto was cooked perfectly. We also had the fried okra, which was tasty but not worth ordering again, in my opinion. For the main course, Joellen had a margherita pizza which was very tasty and I had the lamb ragout, with lamb and goat cheese from a farm a few miles away. We finished with the yellow cake with lemon curd and a raspberry coulis. Delicious. Overall, a very successful and delicious dinner. I couldn’t be happier that we chose to stay in this little town, and I thank Travel Channel and Anthony Bourdain for showing us the way to The 2nd Street Bistro.

❤ Amy