Day 21: 6/7/15 (Mt. Rainier to Seattle)
141 miles
We woke
up to more beautiful weather this morning which meant our tent was actually dry
when we had to pack it up. We took our time leaving the campground and
tried repacking the car a bit for our journey to Seattle(a 2 ½ hour
drive). We said goodbye to the park, but the sheer size of Mt.
Rainier prevented it from leaving the skyline even once we were in Seattle.
We were
lucky enough to have a friend of Jillian’s set us up with one of her best
friends in Seattle (Thanks Alli T and Alli C!). We're not sure if Alli C
has every heard of stranger danger, but we were so thankful she welcomed us
into her home. She was actually out of town for the weekend and wouldn't
be home until later in the evening so we made a quick visit to her twin sister
Jennie's house to pick up some keys and get some inside information on Seattle
and San Diego (a plus!). Jennie told us of a waterfront area close
by we should check out called Magnuson Park. It’s an old abandoned
military base which is now a nice park with plenty of recreational things to
do. We checked it out for a little while until we decided to go to
Alli’s place to drop stuff off and shower before heading back into town.
We drove
into Seattle looking to find parking near Pike’s Place to visit the Market and
ended up getting a spot right on the boardwalk, and since it was Sunday,
parking was free, woo! There were plenty of signs leading us up the
steps and into the market, so we found it without a problem but we got there
after 4pm and it closes at 5pm so we were only able to do a quick
walk-through. First impressions are: flowers, produce, flowers,
fish, flowers, pastry, bigger fish, flowers, fish. There was a variety of
stalls from food to jewelry to leatherwork and artwork. Jillian
spotted some morel mushrooms for sale at on of the stalls, only $29.99/lb (or
free if you can find them in Minnesota!). We plan to come back and take a
longer, closer look tomorrow.
Just
outside the market the surrounding blocks are lined with more food and gift
shops. We stopped at a French bakery, La Panier, where we got a vanilla
éclair and a palmier (flakey buttery goodness) to go – so good, and not
just because we hadn't eaten anything all day. Up the street and down an
ally we found “The Chocolate Market” and couldn't resist buying a couple of
chocolate truffles. Jillian got a blackberry truffle and Rico got a ‘Kickin’
raspberry truffle which had a touch of habanero in the raspberry ganache. We
continued down the alley and stopped in at Kell’s Irish Pub for a happy hour pint
and apps. Jillian couldn't help but order Kell’s amber ale and the bangers.
Walking
back down to towards the market we watched through the window while cheese
curds were being made and tried a few samples. Further down the street we
were intrigued by an oil and vinegar shop. There was an older couple
tending to customers who were very nice and we chatted with them about our
trip. Come to find out, the husband grew up in Maine and they make
periodic visits to New England – small world. After that, we
took a few more pictures in front of the Public Market sign and walked down 1st Ave
for a while before realizing we were at the edge of the city. We
understood that it was a Sunday, but it was a little eerie how once the market
closed down, almost everything around it closed down too – so much for
sleepless in Seattle. Finally it was dinner time so we stopped
at the famous Pike Pub and Brewery for dinner and brews. When we walked
in, the first thing we noticed were the walls decorated head to toe with Pike
paraphernalia. Naturally we tried a couple of their beers.
Rico ordered the Pike Local Skagit Valley Alba malt beer and Jillian
ordered the Pike Kilt Lifter Scotch Ale. For an appetizer, we split
a smoked salmon dish with cucumber salsa, herbed cream cheese, and toasted rye
bread. For our main course we shared a pizza topped with asparagus,
prosciutto, the local Salumi salami, mozzarella, arugula, and finished with a
honey lemon vinaigrette. After stuffing ourselves with good food we
walked back down to the waterfront and watched from the pier as the sun went
down. We got back to the car and went to the Seattle Space Needle
where we walked around the park for a while before heading home. We
thought about going up to get a good night cityscape photo but decided it
wasn’t worth the $40 and the wait.
Soon
after we got home, Alli came home to finally meet the strangers that had settle
into her apartment, us. Come to find out she went to San Francisco
with her boyfriend to watch him compete in a triathlon race called “Escape from
Alcatraz”. From what she explained they take you out on a boat
towards ‘the rock’ where you jump off the boat, swim 1.5 miles, bike 18 miles,
and run an additional 8 miles across the finish line – yeah, we will not be
doing that this trip or probably ever, but it sounds fun to
watch. She then made a few recommendations of things to do the next
day before we all headed to bed for the night.
Fact:
The Pike Place Market is one of the oldest continuously operated public farmers' markets in the U.S., opening its doors in 1907
Lesson:
Find a city map before you start walking around aimlessly - your feet will be less sore
Eat Well; Travel Often
Rico & Jillian
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