So, our last Nomad Life stop in the Pacific Northwest was in Redmond, Washington: the land of Microsoft and Nintendo and a whole lot of techies. We’d lived there for 5 years in the mid-90’s - before buying our place on the Sammamish Plateau in 1998 - so we knew our way around. Unfortunately, we’d booked an extended stay h/motel in the Overlake area many months earlier, during the height of the FIFA World Cup pay-way-too-much-for-way-not-so-much reservations craze, and this place was as good as we could get for what we’d budgeted.  Not the greatest decision, but we managed. (And made a point of staying out of the room as much as possible.)

First joy was the next morning joining friends Matt and Lisa for a Wednesday late AM matinee of the new Odyssey movie. Oh my!! Filmed 100% in IMAX and you could tell. Fabulous flick! The Cyclops story!!! (If you know the actor Bill Irwin who played the role, so obviously evident. And terrific.) We then mutually shifted to the Pine Lake Ale House for an early dinner and an array of fine craft beers. Not that you need to know this, but of the 11,000 different beers I’ve experienced over the last 15+ years (thank you Untappd app) 1,833 of them have been at the Ale House. Owners Kevin and sister Annie do an incredible job rotating the taps with exquisite beers from all over the Northwest. And beyond. Always great to see them. Matt & Lisa were there the day they opened - 25 years ago - and we not long after.  We also encountered a few regulars and longtime friends. Great day!

But wait, it wasn’t over! Wednesdays mean trivia time down the plateau at the Sammamish Big Block Brewing, where we teamed up with long time gamemates Bryan and Matt (and thanks for joining us, Roopa) as we resurged the We Drink and We Know Things squad, a force to be reckoned with, not so long ago. But not so much that night. Great questions . . . not so great answers. (We tried to make up for it the next night at the Redmond BBB location with Solo Trivia Girl hosting, but fared no better. Well . . . better, but still not better enough.)

After sprucing up we ventured to Woodinville, western Washington's premier and ever-growing wine hub, now with 125+ wineries and tasting rooms. We’d heard about happy hour at the rooftop bar in The Somm Hotel & Spa, called The Shed, and were eager to check it out. Beautiful afternoon, sunny and low 80° temps, a perfect day for a chilled pinot grigio and perhaps the best burger we’ve ever had. And we’ve had a few. Seriously. The Shed Burger. A half-pound of wagyu beef, tillamook cheddar, red onion, lettuce, tomato, shed sauce, and pickle spear. With a slew of kettle chips. At 19 bucks we thought it a steal. Just thinking iabout it makes my mouth water. And we couldn’t resist the seasonal cobbler: marionberry compote, oat crumble, bourbon caramel, and vanilla ice cream. With excellent Cafe Vita Americanos. The venue’s incredible with mind-blowing views of The Mountain (what locals call Mt. Rainier) and the luscious length of the Sammamish River Valley. No hot air balloons that day, but they’re frequent flyers throughout the summer. We wandered a bit and learned the hotel is a Marriott Autograph Collection property. $272-600 a night or 41-60K Bonvoy Points. From what we witnessed, well worth the splurge.

That first Friday happened to be the final Friday of July’s weekly Issaquah Wine Walk, one of our favorite community events. But don’t get me wrong. We don’t walk. We plant ourselves on the sidewalk patio of our favorite wine joint on Front Street, Vino Bella, and work our way through a bottle or two of chilled Sauv Blanc and delicioso snacks while watching the wine-walkers stroll by, empty glasses in hand, as they seek their next venue. We toast them as they pass and wish them great cheer. Then sip again and foot tap to the rhythmic beat of CT Classic Soul playing just inside the window behind us. Thanks always, Claude and son Aaron, for your friendships and the joy your shop brings us. See you again for your 20 year anniversary in October.

 Our second week we enjoyed another $6.75 senior matinee, seeing the new Spider-man blockbuster. (So good!) And on a couple of occasions, we shifted our walks to the Kirkland area, rekindling our love of the area after our time spent there to kick off last year’s Nomad Life travels. Coffee at 5 Stones, happy hour at Rock Creek Seafood & Spirits, and a snack at the new Von’s 1000Spirits adjacent to Cactus. And rummaged around our long-term storage unit, gathering up a few overseas travel items and checking for critter damage.

Friday was laundry day, prepping everything for our next two weeks in Pittsburgh. We chilled outside the h/motel laundry room for a few hours reading our Kindles as the washers and dryers did their thing. Lesson learned: when using credit card-operated h/motel clothes dryers, that extra paid cycle, though intended only for a quick 10 minutes to get the damp out, actually locks in at the full 45. No STOP button. No opening the door. Just 35 more minutes of shaking our heads, gazing through the door at our tumbling clothes, fingers crossed that they wouldn’t burn up or shrink into unwearability. All ended well, though. Phew.

And Saturday we joined Matt and Lisa for a day-long crawl of the awesomely quaint ferryport town of Edmonds: exceptional coffee and snacks at Il Viale Espresso, then a wander through the sprawling Edmonds Farmers Market. The berries and fresh baked breads looked amazing. Then a tasty seafood chowder and charcuterie lunch at Salish Sea Brewing, a walk to Brigid’s Bottlehouse for a sampler flight, then another beer and snack at the Churchkey Pub, as authentic a British tavern as you’ll find in the area. Matt & Lisa’s son Blaine joined us there and then stayed along for the last two stops, beginning with a Detroit-style deep square-dish pizza dinner at the newer Moto Pizza a block down the street. We learned they have these 2-inch wide, 6-inch long baking pans - like those brownie pans that give everyone the crusty edge?! - so we chose four flavors, had them cut those up into six inch-wide taster chunks, and in we dug. Cheese, supreme, pepperoni, and everyone’s favorite . . . crab. Seriously. Insanely good. Filled to the gastro brim - well, almost - we finished as initially planned at the renowned Daphne’s Bar with room for only a dozen patrons or so inside, but with two highboy tables outside, one given up to us by an on-his-last-sip gentleman who saw us across the street and waited for our arrival. Cheers, kind sir.  We each imbibed a different classic: Aviation, Corpse Reviver No. 2, Long Tail, Old Fashioned, and Manhattan, and all agreed they were divine. A great day with great friends in a great little town.

Sunday we enjoyed our last brunch at Jack Sprat, ran a few errands, got the car washed in prep for its two months of storage, then practice-packed our bags, narrowing down our clothing choices to what would fit in one roller bag and one hand bag each. Took a few renditions for each of us, but we eventually figured it out. Temps in Europe will hit potential highs of 85°F and lows at night down to 50°, which means some creative layering. My black thinsulate vest is my personal answer for staying warm in any situation, so the packing battle was a bit easier on my side of the bed.

Monday meant checking out of our digs and driving out to Cle Elum to drop off the Volvo at our vehicle storage unit there, and visiting for an hour with Meghan and her family. Jaxon’s already back at MSU for dormitory resident advisor training, but everyone else was there. Such fabulous grandkids, and only getting better.  Meghan then drove us the hour back to Bellevue and dropped us off at the light rail station, and we were whisked away to a station five minutes from our Marriott, and a good night’s sleep, and a shuttle to Sea-Tac for our 10am flight.

And so begins our 51-day journey to Pittsburgh and beyond. We’ll post after these 2 weeks in PA, and then after each stop in Europe. I’m thinking that’ll mean ten posts from there. And we’ll still be catching up with our 2025 Italy travels with a few posts before we fly to Paris on August 25.  However it all works out . . . 

We’ll be in touch.