Grateful for the USO and a Spur-of-the-moment Seattle Date

Ahh, isn't traveling fun?! It was super great to be traveling with my husband though. I have never done that before this trip, and sitting next to your sweetheart on the plane and having someone to laugh and talk with and a hand to hold or shoulder to lay your head on during the long traveling days makes everything SO much better. Seriously.

Because we booked the cheap tickets, we were blessed to enjoy a 14-hour layover in Seattle after a 3.5 hour flight from Kansas City, Missouri. We arrived in Seattle at 5pm and since our next flight didn't take off until the next morning, we decided to spend the night out on the town!

I love public transportation: avoiding traffic, not having to worry about parking, and being able to multi-task while you're getting to where you need to be. Maybe my appreciation for subways and lightrails is because I grew up riding the subways in Tokyo. Marshall and I walked 10 minutes to the light rail at the airport and rode 30 minutes to downtown.

It was a perfect summer evening. I had been in Seattle before, so sharing my past memories and experiences with my husband was special. We walked along 1st avenue and found a cute French restaurant with outside seating.

I guess I expected the menu prices to be expensive since we were in Seattle. But I was pleasantly surprised when our tab came out to $32 before tip! Here is what we ate:

Pre-Appetizer:

Our waitress came out with two small slices of crusty crackers spread with a great herbed cheese. It was so cute, I wish I remember what she called it!

First course:
Pork pate with honey walnuts, pickled cucumbers, and real mustard.
I loved how sophisticated it tasted.

Main Course:
Marshall ordered a warm puree of salt cod with garlic, olive oil, cream, and potato served with marinated olives and grilled bread.

I ordered a spring fish soup with rich halibut broth, mussels, green garlic, peas, carrots, and bay scallop sole dumpling.
It was so fresh and delicious. I wish every restaurant used quality ingredients like this!

Dessert:

The waitress brought out two homemade salted caramels with our bill.

Those topped off our dinner perfectly.

This meal wasn't your typical American fare. It was such a pleasant eating experience, especially since we were able to have an outside table to enjoy the summer evening. I am so glad my husband knows how to appreciate and enjoy real and delicious food.

After dinner we walked out to the pier and made it just in time for the sunset at 9 pm. We held each other close as we watched the sun dip behind the mountains.

Mt. Rainier was out that night. Gorgeous.
I didn't bother getting a sunset picture. They don't do it justice anyways.

As we arrived back at the USO at the airport, gratitude filled my heart. I just spent a beautiful evening with my best friend in a beautiful city, and now I was climbing into a bed (where I got a solid 6 hours of sleep).

We had a great 2 week vacation, but now I am back home and am loving it!

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