Seattle Day One

My dear friend Phoebe and I have been itching to travel to Seattle together. The idea first sprouted when we were studying crazily hard for our first Anatomy midterm this past quarter, and as a reward for finishing one of the most demanding courses in our undergraduate career, we decided to reward ourselves with a Seattle trip!

Funny story. Phoebe and I actually missed our flight on our way to Seattle. We wanted to save one night’s lodging worth of money, so our original plan was to arrive super early Tuesday, and leave super late on Thursday to maximize our time. However, at 6am in the morning, our brains were not thinking clearly and we got to the airport way too late after staying up the night before to plan out our trip. The excitement and planning got the best of us. We came face to face with cranky (obviously not morning) people, hustled through the LONGEST security line, kindly begged many many people to let us cut them, and sprinted to the FURTHEST gate in the new San Jose airport terminal. Literally nothing was going in our favor, and I realized my stamina was quite low since I couldn’t keep up with Phoebe sprinting to our gate. Panting, we stepped up to our gate at 7:31AM for our 7:30AM flight, and we missed it. We found it even more embarrassing that they announce all late or missing passengers over the speakers for everyone to hear. Thankfully we were able to catch the next flight out, for only an extra $25 to secure our spots, whew. Phoebe and I both laughed, saying that missing a flight was one of those things we had always wished to experience, but would never actually willingly do it. So… I guess it was something to check off our bucket list. Our adrenaline filled bodies did pump us up for the rest of the day though!

The AirBnb was placed in the heart of downtown, and was only two blocks away from the Seattle Center, which was home to the Space Needle and a couple awesome museums. Our first stop, and one of my absolute favorites, was to the nearby Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum. Tickets were $22 per person, and I was hoping for a special student deal price, but sadly there was none. That being said, I still think that this small museum was worth every penny. The Glasshouse Sculpture above has got to be one of his most breathtaking works. The entire piece is gorgeous, but also massive. I looked up and saw it strung but only a few black cords, and marveled at how that thing stayed up.

Dale Chihuly’s display featuring light shining down on a bajillion glass pieces was breathtaking. My favorite part about this little hallway was actually observing the patterns on the walls that resulted from the textures and colors each glass piece reflected the light. It honestly kind of reminded me of the glass flower ceiling at the Bellagio in Las Vegas.

Multiple locals we met joked with us, asking us why during spring break we chose to travel to somewhere even COLDER. We kind of chuckled in agreement, never really having thought about the weather differences before. It rained fairly lightly for the most part, and the overcast gray skies honestly reminded me of home. Call us crazy, but I still think it was a good decision.  I guess I was just more in the mood for cool museums and coffee shops than bikini’s and beaches. I need some time to make my flab disappear anyways..heh.

We only had to walk outside a couple steps to get to the Space Needle and the Experience Music Project Museum pictured here with the metallic pink and orange wall. With a limited amount of time, the EMP Museum was on our to do list, but we only ever got to walk around and admire the front. However, it is definitely on my list to do for next time!

We did so much in such a short amount of time, and I’m so excited to be able to continue to share more with you all! Stay tuned for Part 2 and Part 3.

I’m Feelin’ 22

March 9th marked my 22nd birthday! Woot! My friends had surprises lined up for me the entire day. It started at midnight with my housemates singing to me, blasting Taylor Swift’s song “22”, and then feeding me delicious Tiramisu (which was the beginning of “fatten Carmen up day” as I liked to call it). My boyfriend also knocked on the door and surprised me with many of my favorite snacks, including blue corn Tortilla chips, Ghiradelli chocolate, and fruit snacks (please dont judge me haha, I love feeling like a little kid).

Every class I went to, I was met with friends who handed me beautiful flower bouquets, lots and lots of desserts, surprise meals for breakfast, lunch, AND dinner. It was so intricately planned, props to the boyfriend for organizing it all so well.

This little octopus pictured above was a prize I won from a free wheel you get to spin on your birthday at this sushi place in Davis called Mikuni’s. Our server was actually a friend I had made in my Anatomy course this quarter, so he hooked it up with some free dessert as well!

I did have a pretty intense final at 8am the next morning, so the “surprise party” for me got moved to the next night. Which made it all the more unexpected! I dove to the ground because the people jumping up yelling SURPRISE threw me for a loop! A bunch of my friends pitched in to buy me a new wide angle camera lens *swoon*. I had been looking into purchasing one and I am beyond excited to use it!

My roommate gifted me a succulent that she potted herself! Isn’t it the cutest thing? My other friend gave me a “Toast” cookbook and told me that it looked like my Instagram, and I told her that I would be so flattered if my Instagram ever looked like that. I am so excited to make some more delicious fancy schmancy toast though! Here’s a few pictures I snapped on my phone of my friends below (gotta put faces to these wonderful people who made my day so special):

Here’s to a great year of more growth in friends, more growth in adventure, and more growth in my FOOD CONSUMPTION. I seriously stuffed beyond belief with love, sweet words, and desserts. Couldn’t have asked for a better day!

Sutro Baths

One of my hands down favorite spots in the Richmond area in San Francisco, when I go back home, is Sutro Baths/Lands End. It’s an easy, simple hike, and full of amazing scenery. The area used to be a glamorous public saltwater indoor pool in the early 20th century, but then it burned down in the mid-90s. However, it’s glory lives on because the ruins are actually one of the most visited landmarks in San Francisco! Needless to say, I love it.

I think that every single time I’ve been there, I’ve seen engagement shoots, wedding shootings, or just boyfriends that want to take pictures of their girlfriends (like the guy Harry is accidentally pretending to kick), so needless to say, this is a good good spot.

As college comes to a close, everyone has been stressing out about what is to happen next. They are thinking a lot about what career path to choose, which location to settle down in, etc. But I’m just sitting here knowing that wherever I go, God’s got my back. To trust Him is so exciting, because he always makes good of the unexpected. I’m settling on the fact that I’ve made lifelong friends here at UC Davis, and that there’s time to be taken advantage of now! Instead of worrying too much about what is going to happen, I’m making sure to enjoy every TINY bit of the last few months I do have left!

This quarter has been my most difficult quarter, academics wise, and I’m SO EXCITED for it to be over! For some reason, all three of the hardest classes I have ever taken are only offered winter quarter, so I was forced to do it all at once. I find myself asking… when was the last time I had enough sleep. HAHA so sad!  But then, my friend Phoebe and I are going to venture off to Seattle this spring break as a way of rewarding ourselves after this difficult difficult quarter! So keep your eyes peeled for more spring time adventures to come!