Be It Ever So Humble

I don't think I've ever been somewhere that I liked visiting but didn't want to live. Until I went to Seattle. The city is absolutely gorgeous, and there was so much diversity; a different ethnic restaurant every couple of doors (I found Thai food! It was delicious*). But the roads were crazy, going in all different directions, and narrow, and parking was outrageously priced. We paid $30 a night to park at our hotel. As registered guests, we got a discount. Sheesh. On the plus side, most things were within walking distance, and there was free/cheap city transportation so we were able to leave our car at the hotel parking lot (no sense paying twice for parking) while we saw the sights.

It was a good trip, and though we were gone a week, it seemed much, much longer than that. Mostly because of the kids; they didn't travel as well as we hoped they would. I'll post more on it throughout the coming week. It'll probably take that long to write about everything. And the only other excitement I've got going on in the coming week is getting all the laundry and unpacking done from our trip (that'll probably take a week, too).

*Mae Phim's was one of the better Thai restaurants I've found outside of Thailand. It wasn't a big flashy restaurant, and the ส้มตำ I ate was really yummy; similar to what one would find in Bangkok (ส้มตำ in Northeastern Thailand is way better). Still, something is lacking at all the Thai joints I've been to in the States: Dirt. Here in the U.S., with all our health codes, chefs have to clean the pans and mortars too well in between meals. That's a lot of flavor being left out of the food. Also, I have yet to find a rock or a bug in any of the food I've gotten at a restaurant here. And of course, the ambiance is all wrong at these places. Sure they have pictures of the King on the wall, little shrines for Buddha and various elephants and other art, but there are no funky smells wafting in from outside...