Night out on the Town!

 
Three weekends ago we got together with 3 other couples to enjoy dinner and conversation at Wild Ginger in Seattle.  This particular group tries to get together more than once a year but sometimes scheduling is difficult.  We all live out in the hinterlands (Puyallup, Kent, Woodinville, Stanwood) so Seattle is most often the central location unless someone is hosting an overnight party.

This picture was taken early in the evening.  The reflection makes it look like I have olive soup but what I actually have is a Hendricks (gin) martini with three olives.  I can only drink one of those and remain upright and without a hangover as long as I pace myself with milder beverages (i.e. a couple beers) for the rest of the evening.

Dinner, conversation and fun lasted for at least three hours.  Wild Ginger serves meals family style and each of us ordered appetizers and entrees to share.  Ahi tuna, duck and steamed buns, chicken satay, eggplant, spicy green beans… Yum, yum, yum!  We finished the night with either a dessert or dessert drink.  I had Madiera since Randy and I had reserved a room at the Sheraton, which is within easy walking distance.  However, our part of the dinner bill cost more than our room.  Imagine 3 other couples paying as much.  We were a profitable table that night.

The weekend was really nice and relaxing.  We don't spend an entire weekend in the city very often so waking up in a nice hotel room with a view was a treat.  I mentioned in the morning that if we were able to get that particular rate every night, our monthly housing bill would only be $3500, which is less than many people's mortgages.  We briefly fantasized about that… housekeeping, laundry, no lawn or weeding… Not sure what we'd do with the pets.  Or our camper.  Okay, not practical but fun to think about.

Before breakfast we arranged a late checkout then went over to the Hilton for their top floor view at breakfast.  Not sure I'd recommend that unless you want the buffet.  They don't seem to want to wait on you if you'd rather order from the menu.

After breakfast we walked all over the place, down to Pioneer Square and up to Belltown then back.  Nordstrom's was having their half yearly sale, which I could not resist.  I bought two, yes two, cashmere sweaters for half price.  By then it was lunch.  We ate at the Tap House, which is just a block or so north of the hotel.  They offer something like 160 beers on tap.  I had a well-crafted Belgian and probably the best ahi tuna salad I've ever had (it's the dressing that makes it special).

Then on to Play It Again Sports for skis.  Their skis are in remarkably good shape — no damage to the bottoms or even topside in most cases.  I bought a modern pair of Head skis.  Fat and shaped.  My Volants from 2001, which were modern shaped skis back then were too out of date for them to consider for trade.  But I got a good deal and they matched the color of the cashmere I bought at Nordstroms.  Bright pink!

Ordinarily I don't care about matching my skis to my outfit.  Well, I still don't.  It was entirely a coincidence but a fun one.  I do a little research on skis but don't ski well enough yet to entirely notice the nuances between models.  I finally noticed the difference between my 3-buckle and 4-buckle boots last year.  Some day I'll notice the difference between skis but not yet.  One of these days I'll get on my new inbound skis but for now I'm enjoying my backcountry skis until more than one resorts open.