SEATTLE: OUR 4-5 DAY GUIDE - PART I

Recently, we spent a few days in Seattle before and after our cruise to Alaska so I'll be breaking up our "holiday" into a few parts. I had a few questions for my friends who had already gone to Seattle so I thought I'd create this post to give you an idea of how much you can do in a day in Seattle. I'm still working on the Alaska video so I think I will do all the Seattle posts first and then I'll do the Alaska post.


FINDING A HOTEL:
For most people coming to Seattle, you'll either decide to stay near the airport (in which they have complimentary shuttles to take you to the hotel) and rent a car or stay in Downtown (near Pike Place Market). For those who decide to stay in Downtown, the prices will be about double (if not triple) the costs of the hotels near the airport. If you are not going on a holiday weekend, I would highly recommend placing a bid on Priceline. Look on different forums to find out what people are bidding and you can usually find some pretty affordable deals.

We ended up staying at Hotel FIVE before we hopped on our cruise (1 night) and Hotel Max after we came back (4 nights). The prices ranged between $150-$180 per night. As you can see from the picture, Hotel 5 is right next to the monorail but the monorail has only 1 stop at the Seattle Center (which is where the EMP museum and Space Needle are). Both places had great customer service but Hotel FIVE is definitely more recently renovated and more modern than Hotel Max. Hotel FIVE's bathrooms are to die for although watch out for that crapper because man oh man, it scared the bejeezus out of me the first time I flushed. Ladies and gents, it was hecka LOUD. Hotel Max is a bit on the older side in terms of the bathroom appliances (? is that what they're called? lol) and such so if that kind of stuff gives you the heebeegeebees, then I wouldn't recommend it. Tony was saying our room at Hotel FIVE did feel a bit like a dorm room though. Both places offer Wifi but it is not complimentary. Tony booked the hotels thru his work so we got complimentary Wifi but otherwise, I think you have to pay. For Hotel Max, I think you can get free Wifi if you like their Facebook page.


SEATTLE DAY 1:
Arrived at SeaTac airport at 3pm. We stayed at Hotel FIVE in Downtown for our first night in Seattle. I checked out a few places for transportation from SeaTac to Downtown: Lyft, Uber, private shuttles, public transportation. Because we had a checked bag which was quite large, we originally wanted to do Lyft (for some reason Uber wouldn't give me a quote online). Unfortunately, when we got to baggage claim, I began searching for available drivers in the area. There weren't any. Then finally 1 popped up and I thought "Fantastic!" but when I clicked on "Request a Lyft" the person did not respond. I estimated that a Lyft would have cost $25. Another option was the Light Rail which is the one we ended up going with. At $2.75 per person, you really can't beat it. The only problem is that our hotel was about 4-5 blocks from the Westlake stop. It wasn't that much of a walk in actuality. I would highly recommend the Light Rail to anyone traveling to Downtown from SeaTac. It's very similar to taking the BART out of SFO. It takes a little less than an hour (estimated 55 minutes) to get to Downtown.

Once we checked into our hotel, we wanted to catch some of the happy hours that were around. If there's one thing people in Seattle are great at doing, it's drinking. Doing it and doing it and doing it well. After speaking with the hotel staff, who were more than happy to point us in the right direction, we decided on The 5 Point Cafe. GREAT happy hour menu and by great I mean dirt cheap. We got a burger and fries, their Chicken Fried Bacon, and 2 beers all for $20 including tip. When I got the bill I thought, "There's actually a place with food cheaper than SGV?!" This place was also on Anthony Bourdain's Layover if there's any food show addicts out there. I will admit that if I wasn't traveling with Tony, I'd be a little intimidated by going to this place. There's an outdoor seating area and it looks like a motorcycle gang stopped by for a few drinks.

After our "appetizers" we decided to travel west to Pike Place Market. There we found Rachel's Ginger Beer which our friends had been raving about on their recent trip to Seattle. Seattle was having a heat wave (it was 6pm and 79 decgrees) so having the Pink Guava Ginger Beer was super refreshing.

enjoying the nice view of the waters while enjoying some ginger beer

original starbucks - let the lines begin!

me at the original starbucks

A lot of the places in Pike Place Market were closing up shop so we quickly walked around just so we knew where everything was and stumbled upon the gum wall! We left our mark :).

After doing some more walking around, we were deciding on a place to eat and The Pink Door came up as one of the highest rated places in Downtown Seattle. We decided to give it a try and thank goodness we did because the food was absolutely amazing! We actually went back on our last night in Seattle and got exactly the same thing again and it was just as amazing. I would highly recommend it if you like Italian food. They had live music playing on Thursday night and it was super romantic. They also have an outdoor seating area which was where we sat the second time. I got the papperdelle and Tony got the lasagna. The papperdelle was absolutely delicious. The pasta tasted homemade and was extremely thin, to the point where if it was any thinner, it would break. The flavor was also amazing. I love spicy food and often times I end up adding red pepper flakes to everything to make it more flavorful but I didn't even think to add anything to this. The pesto lasagna was also delicious but I would say the papperdelle was even tastier!

papperdelle - melt in your mouth delicious!

pesto lasagna

One of the things that Anthony Bourdain mentions on The Layover is that because all these places are near or in Pike Place Market, you wouldn't expect them to be any good. In any other city they would just be tourist traps but these places are actually amazing and they really don't need to be. Super kudos to these places for making my stomach an extremely happy camper.

After dinner, we were pretty tired so we walked back to our hotel.


SEATTLE DAY 1.5:

Started off the next morning with breakfast at Seatown which was one of the places that Anthony Bourdain visited on his show as well. I ended up getting the same sandwich that he got on the show. It was pretty good. Tony got the congee because we didn't know what the hell congee was. Apparently it's just porridge lol. The porridge had pretty good flavor as well.

the view from inside the restaurant

cinnamon booze crunch and seatown mary

fried egg sandwich with dungeness crab

jasmine rice congee

After breakfast, we headed back to the hotel to pack up and check out of our hotel. We then got a town car to take us to the cruise terminal which was $18 (not including tip). And we were off on our cruise!

Stay tuned for the rest of the Seattle posts!

Thanks for reading!

Sunday Sounds: Bonnaroo 2014 Series - Warpaint

photo cred: http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/

I heard Warpaint's "Keep It Healthy" on my way home from work and absolutely fell in love. I would highly recommend their entire new self-titled album with my favorites being "Love is to Die", "Keep It Healthy", and "Drive". One of their older songs that I discovered is "Undertow". It's one of those songs where you just wonder where have you been all this time?!


Keep It Healthy




Undertow




Love is to Die





Drive

Sunday Sounds: Bonnaroo 2014 Series - The Naked and Famous

photo cred: http://cheeseontoast.co.nz

One of my biggest regrets for Coachella this year was missing The Naked and Famous. After a few days of Coachella withdrawals, I went on Coachella's YouTube page and found that they still had the video of the Young Blood performance. I feel like that song just encompasses Coachella. Anyway, making an extra effort to see them at Bonnaroo!


Young Blood



Hearts Like Ours




Punching In A Dream


Also refer to my Coachella post about them as well.

March 2014: Month in Review Part 2

Mar. 15: Hiking at Torrey Pines

Whenever we wake up early on the weekends we spend the mornings thinking about 2 things: where to hike and where to brunch. One of the more talked about hikes in San Diego is the Torrey Pines hike just because it showcases some of the best that San Diego has to offer. The hike offers some of the most amazing views and even lands you at the beach if you choose to go that direction. There is a path where you can actually hike down to the beach depending on whether it is low tide or high tide and then walk along the beach back to where the hike begins. There are also multiple paths so even if you've been once before, there are plenty of other trails you can try out. 

hiking down to the beach
(amazing what a few vsco cam filters can do huh? lol)

cool railings they have. just a few steps down and you're at the beach!

After the hike it was time to decide where to eat. We decided on this place in Del Mar called Stratford Court Cafe. It wasn't anything to write home about but it was decent.

Later on that night we met up with some friends that just came back from Hawaii. They were craving some shave ice so we went to this one place in Tierrasanta called Sunset Ice Shack. Considering this place has 5-stars, I was not impressed. Honestly they have some cool names for their products but they taste weird! Meh. Nothing beats having simple flavors in Hawaii.

Mar. 16th:
There's something about chain restaurants that I freaking love. First off, I love Cheesecake Factory and people think I'm weird but honestly their stuff is delicious. One of my favorite chains that I've discovered in San Diego is Sammy's Woodfired Pizza. OMG. Take a look at this Truffle Mushroom pizza *drools*. It was absolutely DELICIOUS. We opted for a light meal since we were about to head over to Tony's grandmother's house for their annual St. Patty's day celebration so we got the Spicy Thai Grilled Chicken Salad. Both dishes were delicious.

Mar. 18th:
After work, the man came by and picked me up for some happy hour at Whisknladle. I've been there before with some of my friends from LA when they visited but the man has never been. We weren't that hungry but we ordered the Spicy Fried Chicken Wings (a little disappointed with the portion size on that one.. see picture below), bacon wrapped dates, as well as the Bone Marrow from their regular menu. Their bone marrow was super good as usual and the dates were good as well. I opted for the white wine sangria and Tony got the bartender's choice.

bacon wrapped dates

bone marrow

spicy fried chicken wings

Mar. 22nd: Kings of Leon

A few day before the 22nd, I was mulling over whether or not to get tickets for the Kings of Leon concert. I've wanted to see them in concert forever but I wanted to see them at one of the festivals. Coachella line-up came and went, Bonnaroo line-up came and went and still no sign of Kings of Leon (this was before the Lollapolooza line up was announced...) so I decided to just go for it and look for some lawn seats for the concert. I wasn't too hopeful that there would be anything left since it was literally 2 days before the concert but I just went for "Best Available". Lo and behold I found orchestra seats in the 6th row. I nabbed them right away and was so glad I did. I think just seeing them play Closer was enough to put me over. Eargasms for sure.

Mar. 27th:
The man's birthday dinner at Fogo de Chao. I actually wasn't too impressed. I think my favorite cut of meat was the top sirloin.

Mar. 28th:
Birthday celebration continues at Blue Water Seafood Market and Grill. I swear every time I come here I am not disappointed. Despite the long lines, their portion sizes and delicious food make up for it. I'll have to say that the prices are a tad high but I'm willing to pay for the tastiness.

Mar. 29th:
And even more birthday celebrations. Late lunch at Cucina Enoteca. Extremely delicious.

And that concludes March! Happy Friday everyone!

Sephora 15% Off Beauty Insider Haul

I posted a picture on Instagram of a few things I hauled from Sephora and some of you had asked what I liked most and my opinion on some of the products so I thought I'd do some mini-reviews on some of the products I've tried for the past few days. Hope you enjoy! Did you buy anything in the recent Sephora Beauty Insider sale? Share your purchases in the comments section below!


1. Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette 
I've heard a lot of beauty gurus talk about how they like this palette more than the 1 & 2. I thought I'd check it out for myself. When I opened up the package there it actually looked like it was used for one of the colors :/ and there was also quite a bit of fall out. I actually really like the palette. I haven't used it very much yet but I've been using "Nooner" every single day!

2. Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner in Intense Black
When Ingrid (missglamorazzi) first mentioned this in her video, I knew I had to try it because she always mentions how oily her eyelids are (mine are probably about the same) but I completely forgot about it. So when Estee (essiebutton) talked about how her mom had swatched it on her hand and the staying power of it, I was reminded that I must get this product. I tried it out this past weekend when I was in LA and oh-em-gee, it's amazeballs! It literally stays on all day and it doesn't smear at all!

3. Benefit the PORE fessional - Agent Zero Shine
One of the 3 samples I got. It actually came with a little small brush. Haven't really heard much about this one so we'll see.

4. Benefit Bigger Than BB Big Easy Liquid to Power
Another one of the 3 samples I got. Still haven't gotten to trying it out yet.

5. Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil in Perversion
I think Holly (hollyannaeree) has talked about this one a lot so I'm finally getting around to trying it. I tried it out on Friday and there are 2 things that really bug me about it. First, why haven't they made it a twist up?! (yes, I'm probably the laziest person on Earth). Secondly, it somehow got smeared on my contacts and it's a freakin' mo-fo trying to get that stuff off! *Sigh* I had high hopes.

6. Soap & Glory The Righteous Butter with softening shea butter and aloe vera
OMG. This stuff smells so freaking good. It doesn't smell like you just slathered yourself in fragrance though. It just smells like you just came out of the shower. It's also extremely moisturizing (not as much as a those super thick creams). It also doesn't feel heavy like some of the thick creams do.

7. Origins Clear Improvement Active charcoal mask to clear pores
I really like this mask so far. I've tried it once last week since my skin has been having a field day. I've been having a lot of breakouts and I do feel like this has helped a little to dry out those super oozy one (TMI I know lol).

8. Josie Maran 100% Pure Argan Oil
My first time purchasing the actual oil. I had the lotion (I think) before. I've only used this once since I've gotten it but I'm not a real big fan of the scent :/. I'm not sure if it's just me but it smells like they tried to get rid of the scent but it smells like they put something into it to get rid of it and it just smells plain weird!

9. Caudalie Vinosource Serum S.O.S. Desalterant
There's probably a reason why my favorite bloggers/vloggers love this stuff. I love it too. Super moisturizing without feeling heavy. I actually follow Claire's (heyclaire) skincare routine video where she uses the SK-II Facial Treatment Essence first and then puts the serum on. My skin is pretty oil and acne prone (same as hers) and I really do feel like my skin looks and feels smoother after using these two products together.

10. NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Medium 2 Ginger
This was another oh-em-gee product for me. Like seriously where has this product been all my life?! I've been buying all these drugstore concealers and they are always so drying. The whole point of me needing concealer is that I need to cover up those nasty pimples and hyperpigmentation and not draw more attention to them because of the dryness. This concealer is great because it's super creamy (as stated in the name). I don't think I got the right color though... it's a tad darker than my current skin color so I think I'll probably repurchase a shade down the scale but I think it'll be a perfect shade for summer.

11. Korres Wild Rose + Vitamin C Advanced Brightening Sleeping Facial
Super moisturizing and it does feel a little greasy. I used this 2 days in a row and I kinda felt it made my skin break out because it clogged up my pores O_O. So I'm not sure what to think of it. Maybe it was just user error lol.

12. SK-II Facial Treatment Essence
My final oh-em-gee product. Now, I'm not 100% sure it's this product by itself or just my current skincare routine but I've definitely noticed my pores getting smaller (especially the ones around my cheek area). It's gotten to the point where I don't even need to use my Benefit PORE-fessional O_O (I know!). I hope it's something that'll actually keep working though and not something my skin will just get used to.

13. Soap & Glory Clean, Girls Skin Softening Creamy Body Wash
Haven't started using this yet but I heard it smells like Chanel Coco Mademoiselle (which is my fragrance of choice) so I can't wait to try it!

14. First Aid Beauty Facial Radiance Polish
Haven't tried this yet either but it's just a deluxe sample that I used my Beauty Insider points for so we'll see how it goes!

Sunday Sounds: Bonnaroo 2014 Series - Frank Ocean

photo cred: earmilk.com

There was a time when every time a song would come on the radio or a show, I would Shazam it and it would be something from Frank Ocean. His stuff is absolutely amazing. My favorites are Pyramid and Thinking About You. For those of us that watched Gossip Girl, you may remember some of his tracks from their final season. I remember watching one episode and literally 3-4 songs that player were by Frank Ocean. Have a listen below and I hope you enjoy!








"Cause I've been thinking about forever..."



"Real love... I'm searching for a real love..."