Thanksgiving Weekend

Thanksgiving was great this year. I experienced so much of Seattle, and had a great time with friends. Here's the story:

On Wednesday night Jana's cousin Riana came up from Portland. Then Thursday afternoon I picked Holger, Antje, and their baby Lara up at the airport. They were visiting from CA; it was the first time we'd seen them since we moved away. We laid low the rest of the day, just hung around home and Magnuson Park.

We waited until Friday for our Thanksgiving meal, which worked out great. My friend and running partner Mark arrived from CA around lunch time, and we started cooking. Massive meal. Turkey, phyllo stuffed with artichoke hearts and onions, spicy green beans, sweet potatoes, salad, and stuffing. We ate until late afternoon and then headed downtown. Antje and I dropped off Jana's cousin at the train station and then wandered around Pioneer Square and the waterfront with Lara. We even saw a fireworks show. That night we played Apples to Apples, had pie (pumpkin and apple), and drank tea and apple cider. Hooray for apples.

The next morning we made blackberry pancakes with the berries we picked behind our apartment when we first moved in. Yummy. Then we went downtown to pick up our marathon race packets. Mark and I would run the Seattle Marathon the next day.

We spent the rest of the day downtown. It was all decorated for Christmas, and we gave ourselves a nice tour: Pike Place Market, the first Starbucks, best spice store I've ever seen (World Spice Merchants, the waterfront, another Starbucks (lots of coffee for others this weekend), Pioneer Square, Magic Mouse Toy Store, Elliott Bay Book Company, the new library, Seattle Art Museum, a gelato shop, Pike Brewery, and a view of the market at night. Then we went home for some sleep to get ready for the marathon the next day.

Mark and I barely got to the marathon in time -- we got there after they sang the national anthem. It was cold (sub-40 degrees), but it would warm up. We planned to run slow because Mark was sick and had a marathon next weekend. I wanted a 3:30 pace. Mark wanted 4:00. (His PR is 3:09 and mine is 3:04.) We started at the 3:30 pace, but Mark was coughing and struggling, so we slowed down in the second half. I didn't mind at all because it was sunny and mid-40s by then. Most of the run was right along Lake Washington -- very beautiful. Most of the people running near us were just about dead, but I felt great and relaxed as I smiled and took in the views. We finished in 3:47, which wasn't bad considering how sick Mark was.

After the marathon we went to Hale's Ales in Fremont/Ballard. Pretty good beer, although I forgot to order the sampler and just got an IPA. After Hale's we went to Gasworks Park to take in the view and then checked out the Fremont statues: Troll, Interurban, Lenin (we had East Germans with us!), and the rocket. I really love Fremont. We also checked out the Google office and the drawbridge.

Then it was time to tour the Theo chocolate factory. (Yes, beer and chocolate are great post-marathon rewards.) They have a great tour, with lots and lots of samples. I loved their coconut curry chocolate. Seriously good stuff. After the tour we did more Fremont wandering and eventually made our way to Jai Thai, right at the Center of the Universe. We sat in the front window and really enjoyed the meal. It might have been a mistake to sit cross-legged at a traditional low table after a marathon, though. My legs were killing me when I stood up.

The next morning we did a tour of UW. Mt. Rainier was visible from Red Square. After the tour I brought our friends to the airport and took a long hot bath to soak my sore muscles and read The Golden Compass. Perfect weekend.

Here are some pictures from the weekend. And some more pictures.