seattle and the unpredictable weather
when dana and i decided to head to the west coast for the skagit valley tulip festival, we didn't really have anything else on our agenda except we knew we wanted to stop at the pike place market. i know, stereotypical but hey, we couldn't help it! as i mentioned here, dana and i had taken the 6am flight from new york to seattle to maximize our first day. we also wanted to feel out what this whole crazy seattle weather situation was going to be like because the forecast predicted rain every single day. but tim gunn would have been proud because we definitely made it work. we became mini al roker's because we would obsess over the hourly breakdown of the weather and constantly checked the radar for updates. any time there was a patch of good weather coming up, we ran to the location!
so naturally our first stop right off of the plane was the pike place market to see the classic fish toss (well after we got our nails done of course)! dana even got to stand underneath as fish were being tossed above her! we made friends with the workers and they let us try a bunch of different fish they had! but if anyone knows me knows that fish isn't really my cup of tea so i had to grin and bear it out of politeness. we decided to pick up some flowers (definitely more up my alley) and explore the area some more.
on our way back to the hotel, we stumbled upon the cutest soda parlor that gave us memories of a similar one in new york...that tragically closed...so naturally we had to stop in for a milkshake! we chatted with the ladies who worked there who were beyond sweet and even gave us a great recommendation for dinner! pro tip: if you don't have plans for a meal when you're traveling, just ask a local! we made reservations for that evening at purple cafe and wine bar and headed back to our hotel.
thankfully our hotel was right in the middle of all of the action so we didn't have to walk too far to all of the fun! but aside from the location itself, the interior of this place was so chic! i felt like i was in a trendy brooklyn hotel and i never wanted to leave...especially when i saw that bathtub! and then of course the woman at the front desk had bath salts and chocolate sent up because the employees were just perfect like that. each one truly went out of their way to make our stay more comfortable!
the hotel even had complimentary bikes to borrow! so once it stopped raining again, we took them out for a spin! but at this hour, my hair was not feeling the humidity and needed to manage it by putting it back with my favorite hair bow...and with a switch of my shoes, dana and i were ready to hit the road! still staying in the same area of the pike place market, we decided to ride one street over from where we walked to see what else we had missed.
and of course, we stumbled upon the one and only, nastiest gum wall. but with grossness aside, we had to partake in the tradition! this wall is located on post alley between union street and pike street, just past the market and around the corner. unfortunately though, at this point it was basically pouring. i completely gave up on my hair and just threw it up in a bun. but i'm actually glad i did because i completely forgot how messy blowing bubbles could be! and just as a fun history lesson on how this unsanitary tradition became a thing (we had no idea until we overheard a tour guide talking about it), it started because the old theater in the alleyway told guests to leave their gum outside before entering...and that's just what they did! somehow it caught on and purell sales spiked ever since (kidding but not really). and if you also want to partake in the fun but forgot your bubblegum, the coffee shop on the north corner sells double bubble!
dana and i had such a fun time in seattle regardless of the crazy weather and we even got to finally meet erisha of a thing created while we were in town! she took us to the delicious il bistro for dinner on our last night.
until next time seattle!
coat: sara battaglia
top: kate spade
pants: j.crew
shoes: kitten heels - zara (similar here and here), flats - chanel
bag: mark cross (budget friendly version here)
sunglasses: celine
