Visit to Washington

So if you've been reading my blog since last year, you'll know that for spring break 2010 we had made plans to go to Washington. It was sort of last minute, and we were planning on it being low cost. Unfortunately, about a week before we were supposed to go, we ran into unexpected travel costs and had to cancel. We ended up  here for a few days instead. Anyway, because of our last minute choice not to go, we had to cancel our airline tickets. Turns out because they were ordered online with a promotion, a refund was not an option but we received a credit that had to be used by March 1st 2011. Thus, our February trip to Washington.

I have been to Washington 4 times now - 3 (including this trip) that I actually remember, but this was Matt's first time. I had been telling him that I thought he would really like it there - and guess what? He really did, even more than I thought. My brother and sister-in-law were cool enough to let us stay with them for 3 of the 4 nights we were there. His two older girls were nice enough to let us sleep in their room while they slept on a bed in the living room. It was a really fun visit, with a nice balance of family time and alone time. Being my typical self, I had  researched things to do and made a list of places to see. The rest of this post is probably better explained with pictures...
you are hereby warned for picture OVERLOAD. Seriously, not joking. {all pictures courtesy of MK photography} :)

Thursday, Day 1
Volunteer Park Conservatory - This was a series of connected greenhouses in the middle of a large park. Each greenhouse had its own temperature and humidity in order to house plants specific to various climates.

Seattle Asian Art Museum - also located in Volunteer Park. I thought this would be an interesting change to the typical art museum since it was all art from Asia or done by Asian artists. Some of the art was from a long time ago and some of it was more modern. It was pretty neat.

Statue outside the museum

I wish I had a huge wall in a house to put this

Or this

Friday, Day 2

Olympic Sculpture Park - A free, outside area with walking paths throughout that led to giant sculptures

Columbia Center Tower - Instead of paying the $18 per person to go up in the Space Needle, I found a lot of travelers suggested the view from the Columbia Center Tower. With our student ID's it was only $6 for both of us to enjoy the view with no time limit. It was crazy how much of the area you could see and how different every area looked as you faced different directions. 

The tower

We did manage to get this picture of the Space Needle while walking to a Thai restaurant for lunch.

Because we drove around for about 15 minutes and still couldn't find parking, we ended up parking at the Seattle Library. It was a pretty neat library, with some cool architecture and really bright colors. It has its own unique funkiness to it. 

This was inside their elevators. Definitely a wake up in case you forgot your coffee. It was also the color of the escalators.

The windows/walls of the library

 Ferry Ride from Seattle to Bremerton - We weren't sure we were actually going to do this but after seeing the ferries come and go from our view atop the Columbia Center Tower, we thought it was something we shouldn't pass up. You can drive your car on or walk on - we drove the car on. The whole inside was pretty big. It had lots of seating, tables, booths, and even a small concessions area with simple foods and coffee. It was a neat experience, and I'm glad I didn't get sick!

After our ferry ride, we drove from Bremerton to Gig Harbor where my brother lives. Eddie and Kelly were able to get a babysitter that night so the 4 of us could go out to dinner. We ate at Tides Tavern, a pub type restaurant with views of the harbor where you have to be 21 or older to get in. It was nice not having any kids in the whole place. Their food was pretty tasty (I got a seafood platter, Mmm) but beware they are not too fond of people who don't order drinks. Sorry, no pictures of this outing :(

Saturday, Day 3

We reserved Saturday for the Toy family and whatever the girls wanted to do with us, since this was their day out of school. They chose to go to Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium. It was a smaller zoo but still interesting. I, of course, could probably spend a whole day at any zoo or aquarium... 

Matt and Leora

After the Zoo, we headed back to the house for lunch, some video games, and then Matt and I drove down by the harbor to explore and get some pictures. 

Later, we played Sing Star with the girls while my brother cooked us dinner. I'll spare you the pictures of me singing - but I did get this cute one of Matt and little Evalin. 

Too bad I didn't take pictures of the dinner, 'cause it was delicious! We ended our last night at the Toy home by watching Clash of the Titans. A visit to their house wouldn't be complete without at least one movie night.

Sunday, Day 4

We woke up early this morning to attend the Seattle Bites Food Tour in Pike's Place. The tour was neat, although pricey. We went various places through and around the market, all while learning the history and eating some samples along the way. For the price it cost, we most likely could have gone to more food vendors of our choosing, but we probably wouldn't have known where we were going anyway.

Grunge wall - decorated for Valentine's Day with reds and pinks and the saying "Make Love" across the wall.

Gum wall

After the tour, we explored Pike's Place a little more on our own and purchased a few souvenirs for home. We got a small Chinese painting from Master Calligrapher Jin Bao Shu and also a night cityscape picture by architect Patrick T. Kerr. We also walked about 6 blocks to the Historic Pioneer Square in hopes of participating in the Underground Tour. Unfortunately, we missed the last tour to leave and were unable to go. Next time though. 

Our last night we spent going to an Italian restaurant for dinner and then checking in to The Cedarbrook Lodge since it was closer to the airport than my brother's. This hotel was quite satisfactory. Not only did they have a breakfast in the morning, they had complimentary string cheese, chips, candy, water bottles, and the best part - Haagen Daz ice cream. This hotel also has awesome reviews on trip advisor.

All in all, this was a great trip. We will definitely be going back. Shout out to Eddie and Kelly for letting us stay at their house and being awesome hosts! In case you didn't get enough pictures, here's a couple more taken on the island where my brother lives.

If you've made it to this point, I admire your patience and curiosity.