Summer is Here and Weekend Recap!

I just heard that "Memorial Day weekend" is the unofficial start to Summer! I like it! The weather around Seattle has actually been quite good lately, which is nice. My friends and I have started a weekly tradition of walking around Greenlake to get some exercise instead of going out for happy hour, coffee, dinner, etc all the time. It is really fun to see all the dogs, babies, etc that I don't usually get to see during the week. And its nice to talk with my friends too!

I finally finished planning Florence and I am freaking. out. excited. Italy planning is DONE! I think we are going to buy the Florence card (50 euros each, ouch!) which lets us into 33 museums for free, without having to wait in line. Does anyone recommend this? It's relatively new, but I am curious as to how it works (i.e. is it better to make reservations at each separate museum which costs less or is it worth the extra money to be able to skip the lines? My concern is what if everyone buys the card then it defeats the whole purpose of getting in faster. Maybe I'm over thinking it.)

We spent about 24 hours in Portland this past weekend and we had a blast! It was my friend Hoku's bachelorette party! First, Jake and I had brunch at Irving St Kitchen and it was easily the best food I've ever eaten. Seriously. I had a crab cake sandwich and Jake had a burger and they were amazing! We also got some very tasty drinks. Mine was called A-riya-ana or something of the like. It was ginger beer, lime juice and bitters. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Jake got some beer. I forget what it was called.

Irving Street Kitchen

We went to a club called YOLO (which stands for "You Only Live Once")  for the festivities and we had a blast! We loved our Bellinis!

Happy Bachelorette Party, Hoku!

On our way back home to Seattle, we stopped for one last brunch. This time it was at Besaws on 23rd (one of my favorite shopping areas in Portland). Apparently it was established in 1903.  You can read about it on their website.  We met up with my friend Mel and her boyfriend Cole. I didn't take any pictures, but in case you were wondering, the food was really good too! I highly recommend it. Thanks for the wonderful suggestion, Mel! So glad we could catch up. After we got back to Seattle, we just relaxed, went grocery shopping, the usual. I definitely enjoyed relaxing and sleeping in! We went to Trader Joe's and got chocolate croissants which were delicious! I will post a pic of one tomorrow.

Besaws | on 23rd in Portland

That was my weekend in a nutshell. How was yours?