Seattle... Day Three...

Day three once again started bright & early.... I once again awoke incredibly early and we had the same discussion we had the previous day about breakfast... I in my pre-coffee haze wanted to just go downstairs and eat at the hotel but Paul had other plans...

He really wanted to go back down to the market for breakfast and to explore a bit more then we did yesterday... I am not able to form a decent argument pre-coffee so I got dressed and stumbled down the hill with him.

Today the weather was MUCH more what you'd expect Seattle to be like in the spring... Gray and rainy but on the cold side too... Yay... Early morning five block walk in the rain before coffee... But I put on a smile and went for it.

I didn't think to take any pictures of the restaurant where we ate but it was inside the market, overlooking the harbor and the food was fresh and excellent.

We were once again there before the vendors had set up... 

I actually think this was Paul's plan to keep me from spending money but as we explored I did find a few little thing to bring back...

I had also passed this amazing umbrella shop twice yesterday and since it was raining I had an excuse to stop in... It was SUPER hard to choose when you have this many to choose from but I found one I really liked and left the store sporting a new sassy umbrella... (I am too tired to take a picture of it right now so I will add it in a later post as I would have MANY more chances to use it!) 

Since we were meeting some friends at 1 PM we decided to pre-buy some lunch to take back to the hotel...

Paul had spotted this bagel cafe (Market Bagel) the day before and wanted to try it..

Based on the somewhat disturbing (or maybe it's just me) sign on the counter I was skeptical but we gave it a try...

It turned out the food was really, really good! 

The friends we were going to meet at 1 PM were none other then the amazing Julie from Herding Grasshoppers one of my bestest bloggy friends and now real life friend and her husband Kerry who drove down from their home north of Seattle to spend the afternoon and evening with us!

Julie is just as nice in person as she is on her blog and there wasn't even one second of awkwardness! This is amazing to me... It just proved to me that bloggy friends are real friends! 

They picked us up at our hotel and first stop was an Asian market in the Chinatown district...

The word "market" doesn't really cover it... Even "super" market seems weak... It was huge and had a full food court, housewares section, gifts, toys & books... And TONS of food!! 

We hit the snack and food aisle pretty hard...

Julie was looking for some crackers she had had before and I decided to find some fun candy to bring back to my "kids." I would love to take a picture of it to show you but I made the mistake of giving it to them right away and they were gone just as fast!

I would have loved to explore it more but there was a whole city out there waiting to be explored so we headed out! 

I had told Julie that I wanted to buy some of the AMAZING hand-blown glass I had seen all over the city so they took us to Pioneer Square and to the most amazing glass studio... The Glasshouse Studio 

(Photo Credit: Julie)

I could have spent all day there this place was so amazing!

But since the guys were waiting on us I had to make some choices...

I chose that red vase up there and one of those "color burst" pieces like the yellow one pictured only in orange. 

(Photo Credit: Julie)

I also got the girls each one of those small vases/candle holders pictured on the lower right of the picture above and a perfume bottle for my mom...

But let's just take a minute to admire the shots of their work that Julie took... 

(Photo Credit: Julie)

(Photo Credit: Julie)

(Photo Credit: Julie)

 I almost bought the above vase... I don't know what made me pick the red over the green but I loved them both! 

The "glassworks" is in the back of the studio and you can watch them making the pieces right there...

So cool...

(Photo Credit: Julie)

(Photo Credit: Julie)

(Photo Credit: Julie)

After the glassworks we explored a few more art studios and actually met a couple who used to live one town over from where we currently live and he actually worked at the place my mother retired from... 

It really is a small world! 

We decided to take a break and grab a coffee at one of the gazillion Starbucks in this city...

(Photo Credit: Julie)

There's Paul and I...

Kerry & Julie...

After our coffee break we explored some more shops but I was deeply committed to not buying anything that I could get back here so I didn't make another purchase...

But we did explore some...

Interesting marketing... 

Here is the famous "square" in Pioneer Square...

And Kerry in front of a parking garage that he calls the "sinking ship"... He is an architect so he pointed out lots of cool buildings and land marks. He (like Paul) is full of facts and very interesting to talk to. Paul enjoyed his time with Kerry very much.

After Pioneer Square we headed back to the hotel... The guys hung out in the lobby while Julie and I went in search of a "Made in Washington" store I had heard was in the adjoining shopping center. I was able to pick out gift to bring back to some friends and family... 

At this point I should tell you we were all having a good time, laughing and enjoying ourselves so when we dropped into the hotel concierge to make a dinner reservation he did not seem to appreciate our good moods... He did help us make reservations at an area restaurant called the Icon Grill...

He described it as "funky and uniquely Seattle" so we didn't know what to expect...

We were pleasantly surprised...

The food was AMAZING... Actually better then amazing but I don't know what word that would be...

I had the Grilled Asparagus Salad 

Description: "Fresh asparagus‍ lightly grilled and served on a bed of spring mix.  Topped with a Dijon hazelnut vinaigrette, herbed goat cheese and sweet roasted peppers."

 Yum!!

The Spring Quinoa Risotto

Description: Fresh asparagus, spring peas, spring onions and baby spinach tossed with a lightly toasted riostto style quinoa and finished with sweet cream butter and parmesan cheese.

This dish was so good but incredibly filling! 

My dessert was the Chocolate Custard Cake 

Description: Rich chocolate cake with a soft pudding bottom finished with a drizzle of salted caramel sauce and fresh whipped cream.

It does not usually come with M&Ms but Edward our incredible waiter let me have some... 

I had consumed not one but TWO "Mercer Island Ice Teas" and since I don't usually drink very often I was feeling a bit "festive"! 

Here's Edward...

Doesn't he look like Zachary Quinto?

(Wikipedia photo)

Here's Zachary...

It's kind of uncanny...

Anyhow, I don't know about Zachary but Edward was adorable and a ton of fun! 

(Photo Credit: Julie)

He even joined us for a few minutes and when I mentioned we were bloggers he gave me his email to send him a link when we blog about our night... I think he must have assumed I had more then my daily sixty to a hundred or so visitors... 

(Sorry Edward, I am afraid I am very small time but you were the best and truly made our night!!! 

If you ever get to Maine let me know and the lobster is my treat!!)

(Photo Credit: Julie)

Anyhow, I had a great time getting to be actual real life friends with Julie for a bit and wish we lived closer together! 

PS. It turns out the concierge at the Mayflower was not as annoyed with us as I thought since he sent us an surprise appetizer!

Thanks for listening,