Birthday Wishes

Happy Birthday to Me!

The birthday wishes have flowed in since early morning, and for which I'm very thankful. Among the many celebratory comments were two birthday 'musts': buy myself a cupcake and some flowers. Now, since I was heading to Pike Place Market, I figured this couldn't be that difficult, right? As appealing as the idea sounded, buying myself flowers with no where to put them didn't really seem like the most rational idea, so I decided to focus my attention on the cupcake.

Two bus rides later and I found myself walking down the steep hill towards the red-lit "Public Market" sign, camera and shopping bag in hand.

(via Flickr)

I managed to spend 4 hours walking all around the market and 1st Avenue browsing clothing, furniture, office supplies, crafts, fish, produce, meat, and all bakeries. I picked up several gifts along the way for my family and for myself, but could not seem to find a bakery that sold cupcakes! I was getting tired and thought I might be pushing my luck with the weather, so I headed back to Ballard cupcake- and flowerless.

Aimlessly wandering through Ballard, I stumbled upon Cupcake Royale and the sign in the window tells me they have been voted "Best Cupcake in Seattle" -- how perfect! I ordered the "Classic" cupcake of vanilla cake, chocolate icing, and rainbow sprinkles... to die for.

(via Cupcake Royale)

I was feeling very pleased with myself for finding the perfect cupcake, but I really did want those flowers... so on my walk back from the bus station there happened to be a tiny wholesale flower market where I picked up a bunch of red tulips for $2. I subsequently cut them down and tossed them into a pale pink cup so that I could sit them next to my bed for one lovely day.

My night ended with a lot of conversation in the hostel which moved to downtown Ballard to my new favorite bar, Hazlewood. New friends, good conversation, and a cozy lounge was the perfect ending to a great day!

Oh, and I officially want/need to move to Seattle as soon as my bank account permits it.

All's well that ends well

Well, I've waited a year and traveled for something, like, 13 hours to get to Seattle, but I'm finally here!! I was an exhausted, head-aching, famished, wet mess when I got here and wanted nothing more than to curl up in my assigned bunk bed at the Seattle Hostel, but after settling in and making the "I'm here and alive" phone calls back to Tennessee, I ventured out to find food. The closest place that was still open at 5:45pm was Ray's Cafe and Boathouse across the street.

(via Flickr)

Ray's sits right on the bay shore and I was looking forward to eating my meal near a window. Now, it's a little daunting to eat meals in restaurants by yourself, but I knew going into this little vacation that I was going to get very comfortable with my own company. I popped a couple Excedrin, ordered the seared Ahi Tuna on Cucumber and ginger slaw, and finally felt able to relax and enjoy the view. The food was amazing and during the meal the clouds broke just in time to provide a gorgeous sunset for my viewing pleasure. It was in that moment that the long journey melted into the background and I realized that I was starting to experience the Seattle that I had imagined for so long.

Now as I sit here watching the sun go down, I'm planning my trip into the city tomorrow to experience the glory that is Pike Place Market! Markets are my favorite kinds of places to get lost, so I intend on clearing my schedule so that I can spend the day wandering stalls, shops, and walking under the flying fish.

Oh yeah, and since it is my birthday tomorrow, I'll be sure to stop by a cute little bakery to buy myself a celebratory cupcake :)