A Quick Taste of Seattle
Sep. 22nd, 2008 10:49 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
liralenWe've touched on a lot of our small Meccas on this trip.
We've had our day of rain. We've gone to Trader Joe's and stocked up on everything (no Zoo cookies, but I did get organic alphabet pasta). We went to the one Toshi's in Issaquah that always refills our quarter bottles of teriyaki sauce. We've had katsu and teriyaki with chicken long rice and macaroni salad. We've done the usual tour of a million dollar home, and seen condos that are now selling for as much as the house we now live in. Not hard on the East Side, even with the slowing of the economy everywhere else. I've had sweet uni (sea urchin), some good solid saba, an excellently done soft-shelled crab, and two helpings of Pike mackerel (sanma) gently touched by a blow torch, something I could never have had at our usual sushi place in Colorado. I've had my pit-smoked wild-caught salmon, seared crisp on the edges, with a creamy richness that rivaled the burre blanc it rested upon and perfectly accented by the deep-fried crisp capers set on the side. And I've smelled and touched the ocean again and saw the sleek black head of a seal as it played on the surface of the sea.
And I bet Ukitake hates the euphemism "a productive cough" as much as I now do.
For all that my cold is getting better. Slept a great deal, and I'm now just getting rid of crap instead of fighting off crap. Flight day was hard, I slept on the way to the airport, slept on the airplane, and when I couldn't sleep I worked on a scarf for![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
stark_black. Saturday was mostly just running around and doing everything. By Saturday evening I could taste things again, which is why we went to sushi and got to sit at the Bar of I Heart Sushi in Bellevue. That was really fun, as I don't trust the uni at home at all, and to have it be that sweet was a marvel.
Yesterday we went and looked at Historical Aircraft, entirely WWI and WWII fighter craft that Paul Allen bought and made into, mostly, working condition. It was very, very interesting to come face to face with the glass of the bomber's nest, of a Lancaster bomber, to see the ribs of a Zero and the thinness of the armor, to see the copper on the front of the American Jenny, to look into a Emmy, to see a real Hurricane, and read about the individual history of the planes right in front of us.
The surprise and delight of the trip was a really old model Soviet bi-plane, that used to be used for crop dusting, that was so slow German planes stalled trying to hit it. They were flown by a corp of Soviet women, teenagers and twenties, on night time bombing raids against the invading Germans. The Germans were so embarrassed by having to fight women, they never did that well against them. They called them "Nightwitches". I need to do more research, but there's a whole book about them, now. But the whole concept of a flying corp of women fascinated me.
It was also fascinating having the whole flow of history for that time be embodied in these planes. The philosophies of each of the nations made concrete and real in how these planes were designed and built. Like one Soviet fighter where Stalin imprisoned the designers because they'd failed on a previous design, and they were built by children in production lines in Russia. Or the Japanese fighters being built without real armor because no real samurai would choose defense over attack power, but then they lost fighter pilots at a ridiculous rate, ending up with people with fewer than an hour's training at the controls of their planes.
After the museum we headed to Mukilteo, and the ferry dock. There was a little lighthouse that we climbed up to see Whidby Island across the water. Then we played on the rocky beach there just to hear the rocks plop into the water. Boys, rocks, water, they have to throw some into the drink. Jet ate very little of his lunch time gyoza, so we headed to Arnie's right there and they had the pit-roasted salmon, with these beautiful petit harcots vert that were crisp and perfectly cooked and a velvety whipped potatoes. Other folks got macademia crusted prawns, a nice cashew crusted lingcod, or the salmon with a nice spear of scallops and prawns. I also got a cup of really thick, chewy clam chowder with bacon, potatoes, and all kinds of goodness in it. And for dessert, the "early dinner menu" said key lime pie, sorbet, or ice cream. Jet got my vanilla coconut ice cream, and I ordered myself a burnt cream. The rich custard was as perfect as the hard sugar shell, and the strawberry sliced neatly on top was rich and ripe with the end of summer.
I finished Stark's scarf between the various car trips, sitting around waiting, or playing Mille Bornes with Jet and the family. It's probably eight feet long. *laughs* Today's sunny, but the wind is cold, and we'll probably go to Pike Place, and they'll drop me off in the U-District to meet up with her. And we'll probably pack a lot more stuff in during the day and evening. We'll see.
The in-laws have dial-up, and it's just killing me. *laughs* I'll be so glad to have my DSL again when I'm home... but there's no way I can answer stuff (or even navigate the damned y!gallery interface) until I get home again.
We've had our day of rain. We've gone to Trader Joe's and stocked up on everything (no Zoo cookies, but I did get organic alphabet pasta). We went to the one Toshi's in Issaquah that always refills our quarter bottles of teriyaki sauce. We've had katsu and teriyaki with chicken long rice and macaroni salad. We've done the usual tour of a million dollar home, and seen condos that are now selling for as much as the house we now live in. Not hard on the East Side, even with the slowing of the economy everywhere else. I've had sweet uni (sea urchin), some good solid saba, an excellently done soft-shelled crab, and two helpings of Pike mackerel (sanma) gently touched by a blow torch, something I could never have had at our usual sushi place in Colorado. I've had my pit-smoked wild-caught salmon, seared crisp on the edges, with a creamy richness that rivaled the burre blanc it rested upon and perfectly accented by the deep-fried crisp capers set on the side. And I've smelled and touched the ocean again and saw the sleek black head of a seal as it played on the surface of the sea.
And I bet Ukitake hates the euphemism "a productive cough" as much as I now do.
For all that my cold is getting better. Slept a great deal, and I'm now just getting rid of crap instead of fighting off crap. Flight day was hard, I slept on the way to the airport, slept on the airplane, and when I couldn't sleep I worked on a scarf for
stark_black. Saturday was mostly just running around and doing everything. By Saturday evening I could taste things again, which is why we went to sushi and got to sit at the Bar of I Heart Sushi in Bellevue. That was really fun, as I don't trust the uni at home at all, and to have it be that sweet was a marvel.Yesterday we went and looked at Historical Aircraft, entirely WWI and WWII fighter craft that Paul Allen bought and made into, mostly, working condition. It was very, very interesting to come face to face with the glass of the bomber's nest, of a Lancaster bomber, to see the ribs of a Zero and the thinness of the armor, to see the copper on the front of the American Jenny, to look into a Emmy, to see a real Hurricane, and read about the individual history of the planes right in front of us.
The surprise and delight of the trip was a really old model Soviet bi-plane, that used to be used for crop dusting, that was so slow German planes stalled trying to hit it. They were flown by a corp of Soviet women, teenagers and twenties, on night time bombing raids against the invading Germans. The Germans were so embarrassed by having to fight women, they never did that well against them. They called them "Nightwitches". I need to do more research, but there's a whole book about them, now. But the whole concept of a flying corp of women fascinated me.
It was also fascinating having the whole flow of history for that time be embodied in these planes. The philosophies of each of the nations made concrete and real in how these planes were designed and built. Like one Soviet fighter where Stalin imprisoned the designers because they'd failed on a previous design, and they were built by children in production lines in Russia. Or the Japanese fighters being built without real armor because no real samurai would choose defense over attack power, but then they lost fighter pilots at a ridiculous rate, ending up with people with fewer than an hour's training at the controls of their planes.
After the museum we headed to Mukilteo, and the ferry dock. There was a little lighthouse that we climbed up to see Whidby Island across the water. Then we played on the rocky beach there just to hear the rocks plop into the water. Boys, rocks, water, they have to throw some into the drink. Jet ate very little of his lunch time gyoza, so we headed to Arnie's right there and they had the pit-roasted salmon, with these beautiful petit harcots vert that were crisp and perfectly cooked and a velvety whipped potatoes. Other folks got macademia crusted prawns, a nice cashew crusted lingcod, or the salmon with a nice spear of scallops and prawns. I also got a cup of really thick, chewy clam chowder with bacon, potatoes, and all kinds of goodness in it. And for dessert, the "early dinner menu" said key lime pie, sorbet, or ice cream. Jet got my vanilla coconut ice cream, and I ordered myself a burnt cream. The rich custard was as perfect as the hard sugar shell, and the strawberry sliced neatly on top was rich and ripe with the end of summer.
I finished Stark's scarf between the various car trips, sitting around waiting, or playing Mille Bornes with Jet and the family. It's probably eight feet long. *laughs* Today's sunny, but the wind is cold, and we'll probably go to Pike Place, and they'll drop me off in the U-District to meet up with her. And we'll probably pack a lot more stuff in during the day and evening. We'll see.
The in-laws have dial-up, and it's just killing me. *laughs* I'll be so glad to have my DSL again when I'm home... but there's no way I can answer stuff (or even navigate the damned y!gallery interface) until I get home again.
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no subject
Date: 2008-09-22 06:52 pm (UTC)I wrote a lot of bedtime stories for you. Mostly Bleach related.
no subject
Date: 2008-09-22 06:59 pm (UTC)*hugs and wonders*
Very neat that you wrote those for me! Thank you!!!
Mmmm... the rain.
no subject
Date: 2008-09-22 07:17 pm (UTC)Was wondering if you would like to join the not your mother's bedtime stories once I actually get it ready?
I wish we had the rain here, can't wait for the leaves to change colors though.
no subject
Date: 2008-09-24 04:51 am (UTC)The leaves are changing here...
I dunno... I'm actually kind of aiming for Mom's bedtime stories... *laughs*...
no subject
Date: 2008-09-24 05:01 am (UTC)I am not sure how adult the other ones will be, but thanks. *hugs*
no subject
Date: 2008-09-24 05:06 am (UTC)I think the title of the club kind of confused me.
no subject
Date: 2008-09-24 05:09 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-09-24 05:10 am (UTC)I kind of liked Bedtime Stories for a Bloodthirsty Lt... but... *laughs* My hubby's mom read one of my bedtime stories and really liked it...
no subject
Date: 2008-09-22 07:03 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-09-24 04:51 am (UTC)I did, and I am now. Whew.
no subject
Date: 2008-09-22 07:09 pm (UTC)Arnie's is like five minutes away from my parents house and where my husband asked me to marry him. x)
no subject
Date: 2008-09-24 04:53 am (UTC)Ahem. You were definitely not boring. *grins* I really had fun painting, eating MORE SUSHI! *dances about*, finding good chocolates, and talking with you. It was nice to do the real-time talking thing and not be interrupted by kids, spouses, or other things.
That was really fun. Thank you!!!
no subject
Date: 2008-09-25 06:06 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-09-22 07:50 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-09-23 06:05 pm (UTC)We'll be out again in the spring and make the time to see you and N and the other J. *laughs*
This was a "omg we're SOOOOO HOMESICK" bombing run in a way. Just do what we could do in three days and then go back home so Jet's in school.
no subject
Date: 2008-09-22 08:45 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-09-24 04:53 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-09-22 11:30 pm (UTC)The Arnie's in Mukilteo sounds even nicer than the Ivars ;-) We won't manage a trip to Seattle this year because all the conferences are in LA, but I hope we'll get back in the spring - I miss the place...
no subject
Date: 2008-09-24 04:55 am (UTC)Yes. Arnie's was much nicer than the Ivar's. *laughs* But there's something about Ivar's... we went there yesterday, but on the waterfront so Jet could feed the seagulls, too.
Yeah, I miss the place immensely, too.
no subject
Date: 2008-09-23 03:54 am (UTC)i don't think they have zoo cookies anymore - but if they have the ginger cats, that's just as good...
travel safe.
no subject
Date: 2008-09-24 04:56 am (UTC)*happy sigh*
Mmmm... ginger cats. They are good.
We are safe and home and still fighting off horrible colds. *sigh*
no subject
Date: 2008-09-24 05:38 am (UTC)Miles Bornes?! Oh man I haven't played that in like 25 years. I wonder if my mom still has it. I bet Cosmo would love that game.
Hooray! for good times with friends and family. :D
no subject
Date: 2008-09-24 05:46 am (UTC)Yeah!! We hadn't played it for a very long time, either, and Jet just *LOVED* it. *laughs* That was fun.
It was definitely a wonderful time...