KimTrippin: Pacific NorthWest — Day 9 (Seattle)

We had a big day in Seattle today – so much ground was covered! We needed our coffee fix to kick off the action, so we went to Capitol Hill to check out Victrola Coffee Roasters — the same shop we fell in love with on our last visit 10 years ago. The shop – and most importantly, the coffee – was still great!

We couldn’t wait to get to the EMP Museum. Not only is it the coolest music museum ever, it has a Sci-Fi branch attached to it that had a Star Wars Costumes exhibit currently on display. Needless to say, Daddy + Daughter had an all out geek-fest checking things out.

Equally as geeky for me, Nirvana: Taking Punk to the Masses was on display. So many pieces of iconic memorabilia were there, including Kurt Cobain’s guitar from the Smells Like Teen Spirit video, the cardigan he wore at the MTV Unplugged show, early demo tapes and so much more.

Finally, even more fun was the What’s Up, Doc? The Animation of Chuck Jones exhibition. Ruby got a kick out of the old cartoons, especially the classic What’s Opera, Doc? with Elmer Fudd and Bugs Bunny. I was excited to see this original sketch from what I remembered of the cartoon as a kid:

Since the EMP is right next door to the Space Needle, we took some time to take the obligatory shot.

We knew we couldn’t blow off Pike Place Market, and decided it was today or never. We didn’t make it in time for Ruby to see the fish throwing and what-not, but we caught the vibe and went to Steelhead Diner for dinner.

There were shrimp & crab tater tots on the menu and Cioppino that was like Seattle in a bowl. It was a solid 100 Things to do in Seattle… recommendation.

Last stop — Kerry Park. We had the selfie stick in hand and we were determined to get the family shot with the Seattle skyline and Mt. Rainier in back. It didn’t work out as well as we wanted, but we still got some cool shots.


This time tomorrow night, we will be in Anacortes, WA. After spending the night there, we’ll be getting up early to take the car ferry to San Juan Island. We might see some Orcas …

KimTrippin: Pacific NorthWest — Day 8 (Seattle and Bellevue)

Not too many photos to share today — we kinda took it easy. We slept in and headed to the Fremont Sunday Market in the early afternoon. It was a lot like the Farmers Market and they even had food trucks!

The Fishbean truck was really unique – they made savory and sweet fillings to go inside fish shaped waffles! I thought it was super random, but Ed says its a traditional treat. The twist the food truck gave was all the unique fillings, in addition to the classic red bean paste. Ed got the K-Pop, filled with bulgogi, kimchi & cheese. Ruby and I shared the Gimme S’mores with chocolate chips, marshmallow and crumbled fortune cookies. They were super tasty!

We saw a sliver of Fremont — a cool neighborhood in Seattle that’s known best for the music scene. Ed had a specific plans in mind for this photo op with the giant Lenin sculpture in Fremont, so we made sure to squeeze that in. :) The statue is quite controversial.

Ruby had been begging us to take her to see Inside Out, the new Pixar movie. We opted to head to the Seattle ‘burb of Bellevue, thinking they’d have a more family friendly theater. We all loved it and want to see it again!

Bellevue is gorgeous – and quite yuppie – its where all the Microsoft people live. We only got a very blurry photo as we crossed the river into Bellevue though, unfortunately. :(

Ruby got some time in the pool before bed (that’s what she’s most interested in doing – swimming in all the pools at each hotel!) and we turned in early for the night. Tomorrow will be a fun day at the Experience Music Project museum and the Space Needle!

KimTrippin: Pacific NorthWest — Day 7 (Seattle)

We spent most of the day en route to Seattle. Ed + I have been most excited about this leg of the trip because we have loved Seattle ever since being here 10 years ago in 2005. On that trip, we bought our wedding bands, we stayed at our most favorite hotel and we had several epic meals we still remember — how could this not be our city? Too bad the houses in Ballard we’d want to live in today are like $800k. (Yep, we already looked) It only took about 30 mins. and we’d decided that our feelings about this place hadn’t changed.

I asked the author of 100 Things to do in Seattle Before You Die if she’d be willing to send me a book and I’d document my #100ThingsSEA excursions in exchange. I got the book and we hit the ground running — we headed straight to Mr. Gyros for lunch to start checking things off the list. Mr. Gyros’ Falafel (and the hot sauce) were definitely list-worthy.


I happened to notice that Sonic Boom Records was across the street, so we checked it out to get it checked off the list as well.


However, the real magic happened across the street at Bop Street Records. We were looking around, and Ruby somehow managed to find the opera and orchestral section (!!!). She spotted a Don Giovanni record that was pulled out to the front of the rack. She started asking Ed lots of questions about it, and a guy working there overheard them talking. He was so surprised to see this little kid talking about the opera Don Giovanni that he started talking to Ruby and Ed! We found out that this record was a special “blue back” edition and is highly collectible. Each side of the record had a 1P on it too, which meant both sides were part of the 1st pressing and adds to its appeal for collectors. He wanted Ruby to have it though, so he discounted the record for us to make sure she’d end up with it. :) Ruby has the 1st album in her collection now and we swear — she picked this record out!

We had a cute dinner in Queen Anne and walked to the park to let Ruby blow off some steam in the playground. Sunset wasn’t until 9:11pm tonight — it stays light out so late here and she wants to stay up!


Wrapping up Week One, our trip computer in the car tells us that: We’ve driven 1737 miles (from Lakewood, CA to Seattle, WA) and we’ve spent 35h 23m in travel time. Fremont and Capital Hill in the city tomorrow.

p.s. I fixed the comments issue, so feel free to let us know if you’re reading!

KimTrippin: Pacific NorthWest — Day 6 (outside Portland)

Today we ventured outside of Portland to see some of the natural beauty that’s less than one hour away. We knew we wanted to start at Multanomah Falls and do a little hiking, but the 100 degree temps completely thwarted our plans! The heat and uphill stride were a little much for Ruby, so we cut things short. We still were able to get some sights in and enjoy the Falls for a bit though!

Too hot! That’s a wrap :(

We decided to hop in the (air-conditioned) car and continue driving north towards Hood River to take a little break. We decided to stop at the Bonneville Dam to see what that was all about. It actually ended up being quite interesting — the dam is massive and we also got to see the fish ladder that was constructed to help the salmon and sturgeon swim upstream without being harmed. There were also fish hatcheries and a big old Sturgeon named Herman! (Bonus points for the air-conditioned Visitor Center.)

Bonneville Dam:

Looking at the fish swimming upstream from underwater:

Weird looking Lamprey with their “teeth” on display!

Huge sturgeon putting on a show

After we left Bonneville, we drove to the adorable town of Hood River. The town is very quaint and the view of the Columbia River was absolutely stunning. Carrie’s 1st college roommate lives there and wanted to meet up, so we met for chips and salsa and caught up after 20 years!

Just for kicks, we crossed the bridge on the way home and drove home on the Washington side of the river. It was a gorgeous view as we paralleled the Oregon side.

We’ll be heading off for Washington in the morning for real this time — 4 days, starting tomorrow!