My brother visited this past weekend and it was truly a memorable weekend indeed. I can’t say that he was coming out to Seattle to visit me (he wasn’t) but I got to see him for a quick weekend and hang out with his home boys. Although he arrived Thursday night it was Friday after work before we caught up with each other. With the boys looking for a recommendation for dinner pre-going out, Chad, Selman, Brandon and Paul met Bryan and I at one of our favorite restaurants in Seattle, Annapurna, at 9pm. The six of us got to enjoy each other over an amazing dinner of six different curries, Yeti imperial stout beer and garlic naan that were passed around the table. Everything was finished and everyone was happy upon leaving the restaurant at 10pm. We walked over to another UM grad’s apartment the short distance to “pound” some Jim Beam and then finally got out to the Capitol Hill bars just before midnight. We only got to hit one bar, and it was the always interesting Unicorn Bar. I had the worst Manhattan of my life and beat some random guy at Ms. Pac Man. That’s about all that I remember.
Saturday morning Bryan and I woke up a bit sluggish and severely doubted the planned hike was still on the agenda for the day. After some coffee and breakfast tacos at home we were told that the boys were feeling good and ready to hike. Bryan and I packed our bag (thank goodness we brought extra water bottles and snacks) and left to pick up Chad and Selman who were riding in our car. We stopped to get the boys some fast food in North Bend before hitting the Mt. Si trailhead at the early hour of 1pm. It was a gorgeous, perfectly clear, sunny day in and around Seattle and Mt. Si was busy with hikers. The most popular hike in Washington state was snow-free and ready for this crew. We had nine in our group and we passed several other large groups on the way. The hike is a solid 4 miles each way (though when mapped it only says 3.3 miles?) and gains 3100 feet in elevation so it is no easy or quick hike. But it is also perfectly maintained, offers a brilliant view of Seattle and Mt. Rainier from the top, lots of pines and forested undergrowth, and only a short 40 minute drive from Seattle making it ideal for the day. It took us about 2 hours to get to the top with only one decent rest. We climbed the rocky top to get some prime seats with views and full of sun. There we snacked, the boys opened a brewski and took in the views before we had to hike down to ensure we weren’t stuck there past sunset. We made it down in about an hour and 45 minutes and felt accomplished and satisfied.
We made the quick drive home to shower before all meeting up again for our sushi reservation. I will never get sushi again after a hike. On hungry post-hike stomachs, sushi costs a pretty penny. Somehow we got stuck with all the appetizers and our bills came to $50 each! Bryan and I were done for the night so we drove the boys to their pre-gaming festivities where we had to say our good byes. It was a short visit but still nice to see my brother. I was a little disappointed that I didn’t get to hang out with him more alone or have him see our house but was still happy that he came out to visit. Bryan and I shared a bowl of ice cream and started House of Cards before I was asleep in no more than 30 minutes!
Chad’s flight was early Sunday morning and we were told he would probably not be available prior to the flight so we set out on our own plans. It was another sunny and warm day so Bryan and I rode my scooter to church at All Saints. I’m so glad we did because it was a great service, we had a brief chat with the pastor and we signed up for a small group that starts in two weeks! We then scooted to the market where we decided what we wanted for lunch. We ended up at Falafel King for a schwarma sandwich for Bryan and a schwarma and falafel salad for me. The rest of the day was spent grocery shopping, messing around with my guitar, laundry (that I hadn’t done since before Revelstoke), and a homemade dinner of my classic apple cider pork tenderloin with sweet potatoes and broccoli. And I did manage to get past the first episode of House of Cards.
We got a busy week ahead!
Chelsea
Evolving in the Emerald City 