City life

For those of you who missed the pictures in the last post, here's to making up for it. Lots of new ones to share (and even more from both the Cascades and Seattle)!

I have to admit straight off the top that I didn't make it to Mt. Si and I'm a little embarassed that I keep mentioning it and never follow through, but Seattle was calling my name and I had to heed and go explore the city, which is what I did on Sunday afternoon. But before I get to that, a quick recap (with pictures) of last weekend.

If you remember, I went for a fantastic drive through Snoqualmie Pass in the Cascade Mountains. I didn't imagine that it would be so much more beautiful than the mountains I've been seeing around Puget Sound, but it was. Check out one of the ridges at the Pass (right). (No hiking for me that day 'cause I had the wrong shoes with me. Bummer! But I did see a family with a couple of young kids pile out of a car and start their way up the trail. I bet those kids were tired at the end!)

Check out my last post for more on last week's adventures. On to this past weekend!

Saturday I did something I've never done before: went to a PGA golf tournament. Yes, you read that correctly. The girl who's terrible at golfing went to a professional tournament - and enjoyed it! A fellow at my church had complimentary passes to the Boeing Classic at the Snoqualmie Golf Course and offered me a couple tickets to check it out. So Leslie, the woman I've been staying with, and I ventured over in the morning to watch the first nine holes. It was quite chilly and overcast but thankfully the rain held off until after we'd left. Honestly, I'm not sure what to say about it because my understanding of golf is so minimal, but the grounds were beautiful and the homes on the course reminded me of Greenwich homes (big, well-kept grounds, etc.). The golfers were good and watching them putt at the end of each hole was the most exciting part. No pictures, though, because it was against the rules. Oh well.

And Sunday was a trip into Seattle. Would you believe that it's literally 15 mintues drive without traffic? Talk about close! It was my first time in the city just exploring (I've had dinner at the Space Needle, but that's it) and I really enjoyed it. Pike Place Market is a busy maze of vendors, but enjoyable every second. Check out the famous sign (above), the Pike Place Fish Co. where they throw fish, flower vendors that people were going crazy for, and the original Starbucks. I refrained from going into the original because the line was just too long, but one day I'll head in for a brew from the first!

I also checked out Pioneer Square, which is the oldest section of Seattle. A good chunk of it survived the fire in the early 1900's so it's a fun mix of old and new buildings. Because I was there on a Sunday afternoon a lot of the stores were closed, but I bet I'd love it even more when everything's kicking. Check out the totem pole, and in the Web album see a cool old structure, and words on a building that any good Midwestern girl would notice.

In other news, I have an apartment! Painting and moving in this weekend so I'll finally have a place of my own to call home. Pictures to come.

Hope you're all well. Keep in touch and leave me comments!