It’s actually quite fitting that I recount my time in Seattle through the meals I ate, because any time I travel to a big city my favorite thing to do is eat. I’m serious! So many options, so little time. On Friday morning I snuck down to the hotel fitness center to do a total body weights workout and finish up with some running. The Hyatt at Olive 8 has a stunning fitness facility.
I found this photo online because I would have felt like a MAJOR creeper walking around the gym taking pictures while people worked out. Anyway, I finished my workout around 8am and then went back to my room to get the kids ready for the day. Three hours later we were finally heading out to breakfast.
We went to a tiny sandwich place, and I had the egg, cheese, and avocado sandwich on a grilled baguette. It was especially good dipped in ketchup. Lately I’ve been loving ketchup again, so weird! Once the kiddos had some food in their bellies they were in much better spirits. At this point they were only mildly sick, so we wanted to get them out and about a little. We hopped on the monorail and took off to city center toward the Seattle Science center.
I can’t wait to return to this place when I have more time to explore. There were so many exhibits I couldn’t believe it, but I was a little to preoccupied to read or really explore much. We watched a movie called “Journey to the South Pacific” and it made me want to visit West Papua and go snorkeling. Someday!
Now, lunch!
I wanted ethnic food, so I found a Vietnamese restaurant within walking distance of the hotel and brought back a bowl for everyone to eat in the hotel room. I only ate my chicken and veggies but I dipped each bite in the fish sauce and I though it tasted fantastic. After some reading and naps, everybody was recharged and we ventured out yet again to do some shopping.
I bought this outfit and a new purse at Old Navy, all for under sixty dollars. It seems that whenever I travel the only place I actually buy something is either at Gap or Old Navy. They have them where I live but I never go out shopping in my normal daily life and it’s fun to buy a few things while out of town! The kids got a bunch of new polos and khakis for their school uniforms and they were happy as clams.
For dinner we opted for room service and and in-room movie. Nice and relaxing.
Barbecue chicken with carrots and potato salad. The carrots stole the show and I wished there were about 300 more of them, but it was a decent meal regardless. So that’s how we spent day 1 in Seattle!
The next morning Francine (fake name) wanted some alone time with me so she woke me up early and I took her to breakfast at a crepe shop a couple blocks away.
Nutella, banana, and strawberries = heaven. Enough said. We only had time for one more activity before hitting the road so all 7 of us headed to Pike’s Place Market to ride the ferris wheel.
Nancy kept yelling, “look a whale!” I think she was still excited about seeing all the Orcas on San Juan island. Lunch was a bland affair.
Unseasoned everything. It kind of tasted like it had all been frozen 5 minutes before I ate it and then microwaved, pretty disappointing since it was 25 dollars! All the adults got the same meal and we all felt the same way..totally underwhelmed. Next time I’ll order the fish and chips.
My snack on the ride home ended up being a bunch of handfuls of saltines. Hannah threw up on the car ride home and a bunch of it got on my hands while I was holding the bag for her. I got all cleaned up and it was fine but for some reason I spent the rest of the car ride feeling super nauseous.
We stopped at a McDonald’s drive through on the way home and I had the Maple and Fruit oatmeal. Not too bad! Falling into my own bed felt like heaven. The trip is over! There were some hiccups but all in all I am so glad I was able to go and help out and enjoy myself too!
Santo and Hedgehog 