What I Ate, Saw, And Did In Seattle

Hellllo friends, fam, and fine readers!

It’s been a minute since I’ve posted on the blog, but I’m BACK today with a feature on Seattle and doing what I love enjoy most… recapping my travels with all the things I saw, ate (most important!), and did in a new city.

So what took us out of California and to Washington for a long weekend?

One word – Phish.

If you didn’t already know, this jam band is one of Sam’s favorites and together, we’ve seen them about 10 times. (More than any other artist/band I follow, haha) Though they’ve grown on me over the years, I wouldn’t say I’m a super fan by any means… just a super wife. 😉 Lol

When Sam bought the concert/camping tickets for The Gorge Amphitheater earlier in the year, we knew we wanted to see more than just a music venue for our first trip to a new city/state (although, The Gorge was pretty damn incredible and worth the 2.5 hour drive itself from Seattle).

FRIDAY

We left from Bob Hope Airport in Burbank (so convenient) on Friday morning and made the 2.5 hour flight to Seattle. After picking up our rental car, we hit the ground running to see as much as we could in one day (knowing we’d be heading further east the following morning for the Phish show).

The 30 minute drive from the airport to the city center brought with it sights of lush greenery, beep blue bodies of water, and the city skyline up ahead. We caught ourselves ooo-ing and ahhhh-ing over the fresh city sights and even saying how it reminded us of sections of New England, but with rolling hillsides, of course, that looked more Pacific coast.

The city center was poppin’. It took us a little bit to find parking, but once we did, we made our way to Pike Place Market to see all the cool market areas, local artist shops, and street entertainment.

The line for the original Starbucks was so long that we decided to skip it. Maybe next time! I love coffee but… 😉

There was an amazing organist that lit up the streets with his super speedy playing. The whole crowd stopped in their tracks to watch him play his original music.

Another thing that caught my eye were these crazy beautiful floral arrangements, selling for just $10-$20. I couldn’t believe it!

We weren’t too hungry yet, so we munched on a cookie from a bakery and then got some yummy ginger beers from a speciality beverage store called Rachel’s Ginger Beer. I got guava and Sam tried their grilled pineapple flavor.

Other sights that pulled me closer included a tea/spice shop, a cheese curd storefront, and a beautiful garden patio overlooking the harbor and Ferris wheel near the aquarium.

After sight-seeing a bunch, we checked into our airbnb in the Fremont section of Seattle, just 15 minutes north. The area was quiet and pretty, and our studio-style apartment was perfect for our one-night stay. I especially liked our host’s special touch of Pike Place Starbucks breakfast coffee for the morning.

After we unpacked, I stepped out onto the side patio to take in the refreshing 75-degree air and local view.

We may or may not have taken a power nap for the next hour…

Around 4:30, we decided to check out some friends’ recommendations in the Fremont area since we were right there, starting out at Thackeray’s Happy Hour.

What a treat!

Our waitress was the most adorable and kind woman, which was an added bonus.

We ordered beer and wine, chicken wings, cast iron cornbread, and fries. When you vacation, sometimes you gotta just GO for it with the food. Am I right?!

The setting was so quaint and it was really nice to be out on a weekday, enjoying a Happy Hour with my guy.

After sitting back on their sunny patio, we walked over to Fremont Brewing to check out the local beer scene.

We both got ourselves their Raspberry Sour and took a seat outside in their bustling beer garden. I had to remind myself that it was Friday night in Seattle and the crowds were gathering fast!

Sam and I loved looking around at all the cute pups and sipping on our refreshing beverages.

Loved Fremont Brewing!

Afterwards, we wanted to get a great sunset view of the city, so we checked out Kerry Park for what we heard would be one of the best sights around.

Guess what? It was!

We couldn’t get over the clear view of Mt. Rainier. So many people were telling us we were lucky to be in Seattle in this kind of weather, so we reminded ourselves to soak it up.

After sitting on the stonewall and getting lost in the city skyline, we had one more touristy thing on our list to do for that night – to see Ballard Locks.

It looks like this:

Basically, the Locks is a waterway system that connects the saltwater to the fresh water, and you can sit and watch boats pass through.

We were there at the best time because right around 8:30, the Locks closed and we overlooked the peacefulness of the water at that time of night.

After that, we decided to head out for a drink at a local bar in the Ballard area – Marine Hardware. I sat at the bar, sipping on a peach whiskey drink that was oh so yummy!

The open-air bar let the outside breeze in and it was nice just relaxing and having nowhere else to be or go.

On the way back to our airbnb, we stopped at the grocery store for some late-night snacks for the rest of the night and the next day while camping.

The rest of the night was enjoyed in and I fell asleep with a full belly and a smile on my face.

SATURDAY

Sleeping in feels good, and we both tried to on Saturday morning but we were up around 8am. Adulting…

After getting ready and tidying up, we headed out for breakfast in the city.

By the time we found a spot to eat, we were starving. So many breakfast spots were packed (duh, Saturday morning), so once we found one without a long wait, we were in!

Somehow, we may have found the yummiest breakfast spot in Seattle – the farm-to-table restaurant Brunswick and Hunt.

Tucked away at the back bar, we watched the chefs in action, whipping up fresh biscuits, homemade jams, and fluffy omelettes. Everything smelled heavenly and the food was well worth the wait.

I indulged in their sourdough avocado toast with pickled eggs and breakfast potatoes.

Who knew I loved pickled eggs?!

We also HAD to split a biscuit because after staring at them for a half hour, you just gotta!

SO good paired with their blend of butter and jam.

At around 12pm, we headed east for The Gorge and prepped for the 2.5 hour ride for our next adventure.

The sights on the way there were so interesting… rolling green hills, lush forests… and then open plains and more desert-like terrain.

Crazy to watch the land change like that from mile to mile.

We were a little nervous as we got closer because the day prior, we read that wildfires had caused a huge detour for Phish fans heading to Night 1 of the show. However, as we got closer to the venue, we hit no traffic at all and could see all the land ruined by the fires. So sad to see all the burnt land like that…

What’s better than finally arriving at The Gorge? Being upgraded to premier camping! 🙂 We drove over to our campsite, met our neighbors (Dave and Derek from Chicago), and set up our little tent!

Guys… I gotta admit. For a country girl, I’ve never been camping (other than my backyard) and I was SO ready to have my first camping experience.

After enjoying some cocktails with our new friends, we made the mile walk over to The Gorge, weaving through a crowd of fans and waiting in an hour-long line through security. The sun was beating down on us as we inched closer…

Luckily, Phish fans are some of the friendliest, so within the line we were all cheering and chatting the whole way.

Once through, I grabbed Sam’s arm and we ran to the top to soak in The Gorge view for the first time. After hearing so many people relive their first Gorge experiences to us, the anticipation was KILLING me to see it myself.

At the top, I looked out and….

Wow. This place is like a dream.

The rest of the night was spent dancing, singing, hanging out with our LA neighbors—Jimi and Tiff (so funny how our first time hanging out was in another state)—and making our way down to the floor area of the show where the energy was even more electric.

Glow sticks were thrown and bodies moved freely to the music as the wind blew around the enormous dip in the land.

Felt so fun to enjoy the night like that – free from other plans, work, and obligations. Just thousands of music-loving strangers bonding over a good time. What’s more fun?

The rest of the night was spent exploring infamous “Shakedown Street” and watching a live New Orleans-style marching band light up the campsite covering songs like “You Can’t Tell Nobody” in the most lively dance circle EVER.

Around 2am, I zipped my way into our tent and slept on a yoga mat with a fleece blanket for about 4 hours, haha! Sam stayed awake longer looking up at the stars, which dazzled so clearly for us.

SUNDAY

Oh Sunday… another travel day was ahead so we knew we had to get moving sooner than later.

Around 7:30, we were packed and loaded up, and we were off to find… coffee, obviously!

We found a cute coffee shop about 10 miles away called Jennika’s. I ordered a latte and a veggie quiche. 🙂

Back in Seattle, we found another park and walked around, checking out the Sunday morning vibes there and all the boaters.

After returning our rental car and taking the shuttle to the airport, it was time to head back to LA.

I snacked on a smores-style cookie from Dish D’Lish and waited at our gate, thinking back to all we packed into just a couple days in Washington.

Smiling over at Sam, I thanked him for being my travel buddy and exploring life like that with me.

We can’t wait for whatever adventure is next.

Thanks for reading!
Ari