One of my friends came to the city this fine 4th of July weekend. They put her up in the downtown Fairmont Olympic Hotel, right in the middle of all the action. I was pleasantly surprised to learn two things: #1 The hotel was the original site of the University of Washington and #2 That Luly Yang couture is still doing well and located there (this was where I bought my wedding dress 9 years ago). She had three days to take in the sights once her date with the local giant was done. My husband and I obliged.
Here’s what we did for three days or 72 hours:
Day 1 (The first 24 hrs)
To relive old days, my friend and I had a slumber working from home party. I stayed with her overnight and logged in to work early in the morning. After a few hours of good hard work, we went to brunch at lunch time! We had no clue this was a thing and Bacco Bistro delivered the best breakfast for lunch menu we could have asked for. From 7am to 3pm they serve juices and breakfast fare, along burgers and a few sandwiches. The wait was about 15 mins during the midday rush and the service was slow but lovely. If you are in a rush, don’t go there on a Friday, much less on a long weekend. After a stroll around Pike Market Place, we headed back to finish the work day.
After we finished work, we went out for chocolate and snacks at the Seattle Public Library. Because it was Friday, they closed at 6pm which gave us enough time to peruse the fiction section only. This Rem Koolhass structure is a must see for visitors; a building that was design to allow as much natural light inside as possible. After closing, we walked to Safeco Field to catch a Mariners game against the Orioles. At the end of the game they had patriotic fireworks in honor of Independence Day. It’s always a pleasure to eat at Safeco because you can eat anything from sushi to hot dogs and garlic fries. The beer, spirits and wine selection are excellent as well. I grabbed my bad from her room and went home to catch up with my family. Tomorrow the plan is to hang again as my friend leaves on the 4th (Monday).
Day 2 (48 hrs in)
My husband, sister, her roommate and I met with my friend at the Crab Pot in Alaskan Way to try the local seafood and check out the pier. We shared two Coves and two Alaskans in a table of 5, and had the crab dip and chowder for starters. The total came to $20 per person which is not a bad deal for fresh clams, mussels and three different type of crab legs.
We walked to the parking lot, which was a 5 minute hike, and headed out to Lake Stickney, the Future of Flight and the Mukilteo Lighthouse. I had to show my home at 4 pm (it has been listed as of June 30th) so my husband played tour guide while I handled Zach. At 5:30pm we headed out to the University of Washington to walk the grounds and check out the engineering buildings and libraries. However, most of the facilities close at 6pm so we could only sneak into the Music Hall. The bulletin boards were full of comics, good info in programs and college applications and admissions data so we had a lot of fun tracking the changes since 2005 when we enrolled in the Bioengineering program. Not much change apparently other than the number of applications is way more than 10 years ago. The spots are about the same: 3 to 1 ratio of applying to accepted. Wow.
From UW, we went to the U Village, the mall next to the campus, where we attached our name to the wait list at Din Tai Fung. The expected service time was 1:45 so we decided to hit Fran’s for some chocolate. The free sample was salted caramel which was divine! My friend is a chocoholic and she swears by this place so we decided to try it. At $2 a piece we can say it was worth it. I haven’t had such memorable chocolate in a while. My husband ended up buying five pieces, one with raspberry and another made with whiskey for me. To kill another hour, we swung by the Amazon Books store and purchased a few titles. Both my friend and myself love books with a passion so it was only natural to sit down and read our purchases while the restaurant called us to be seated. After 30 minutes of reading, we got news that our table was ready. Yay!
The dim sum, buns, soup, fried rice and spinach family style plates were really good. I know it is a lot more economical and authentic to eat in the international district section but I didn’t have the time to explore my options there. My friend loved it though, and even enjoyed the spinach platter. After an hour of conversation and fine dining we headed out to the hotel to drop off L and head back home. By pure chance she left her phone in our car so we had to double back to give it to her. An hour later we were home, asleep in our beds.
Day 3 (Countdown to 72 hrs)
Because we had a wedding to attend, day 3 was spent mostly getting ready for this event, my friend decided to go to the Seattle Art Museum and a movie while she waited for us to finish our social duty. After a couple of beers and lots of dancing, we had to retire before we could get together with her so she spent the day hanging out and packing. Tomorrow she leaves for home and I can’t thanks her enough for spending time with me. Girls do know how to have fun!.
If you ever have 72 hrs in Seattle, these are a few things you can do and explore while in the city. There’s lots to do including the 4th of July fireworks in downtown which can be seen from Gasworks Park. If you like wine, head to Woodinville to sample bottles of over 150 labels and tasting rooms. You can also, check out Snoqualmie Falls and the Ballard locks which are outside the city area.
Enjoy!
Mrs. Enginerd - Nerd Whisperer 