Me and a couple of gal pals, exhausted from the incessant lectures and assignments that are part-and-parcel of completing a Master’s degree, decided to let our hair down and road-trip it to Seattle last weekend.
My aunt and uncle live just outside of the city, so I leapt at the opportunity to reunite with family and add a new destination to my (growing) travel list.
It was on a Friday, in the early afternoon, that we jumped into my friends car and set off for Seattle.
The 5-hour journey from my little podunk town situated in Western Washington to the big cit-ay was not without its perks.
Washington is a beautiful state.
We were regaled with snow-capped mountains that had me precariously dangling my camera out the car window, in the hopes of capturing their majestic beauty and imposing presence as we sped by in our SUV.
Hungry, and needing the restroom, we briefly frequented a truck stop, where we relieved our bladders, stacked up on snacks, filled up on gas… and stuck out like sore thumbs. We carefully avoided the looks of the truckers, who in turn regarded us intently, then turned to each other, with questions in their eyes: Who were these girls who spoke French to one another, each more different-looking from the other, and rolled up in an SUV with a Canadian license plate?
Our needs satisfied, we climbed back into our vehicle and snapped pictures all the rest of the way to Seattle.
Once there, I split up from my two travel companions and was picked up by my auntie, who took me back to her lovely home. After getting re-acquainted with my aunt and uncle, laughing hard and catching up on all the happenings since the last time we saw each other over a year ago, I spent time playing with their dog, Drake.
After a peaceful sleep and long lie in, I ventured out into my aunt and uncle’s neighbourhood and took a few pictures. The weather was glorious, and all the flowers in the neighbourhood were in full bloom.
My aunt and I then jumped into her car with the intention of doing some sightseeing in the downtown Seattle area. But first we ran some errands, which included a German bagel shop and a beauty supply store.
I got a kick out of taking the following pictures for Liebling. I mean, a German bakery and delicatessen in a suburb of Seattle? Really? My aunt and uncle swear by this place for pastries and deli meats. I didn’t have any, but it looked pretty authentic, what with all the products imported from Germany and all the signage in German.
At my request, we dipped into Sally’s Beauty Supply store so I could get some products for my hurr. For two years, I suffered in Hong Kong without access to hair products specifically designed to care for African-type hair. It was bizarre to be in a store, after all this time, that catered to my needs. I had to laugh when I saw the following:
Oh, we are sooooo not in Hong Kong any more!
After running around a bit more we finally went downtown to do some sightseeing… But I’ll save that for another post. Stayed tuned for part 2 of my Seattle adventure!
197 Comments
that "durag" pic and your comment made me laugh out loud! hilarious. so, what hair products do you recommend i bring? i'm about to move to the philippines.
@Single PAP: So exciting you're moving to the Phillippines! Is your hair relaxed? I would recommend bringing your own vats of relaxer. I couldn't find ANY black hair products in Hong Kong, to be quite frank, so I would recommend that you bring all of them! I have dreads and am not really picky, so I just washed my hair with generic shampoos. I really DID miss hair grease, however. But I used castor oil as a substitute and it suited me just fine. 🙂 When are you moving?
Oh you caught us on a good weekend. Last weekend was beautiful. Hope you're enjoying your adventure up here in the PNW. If you get back into Seattle, let me know. Be great to catch you for lunch or something. And yes this is beautiful place, that's why I live here.
@flaming: Girl! I didn't realize that you were in Seattle proper! I thought that you lived in Forks?! Sorry to have missed you, it would have been so cool to meet up with you and Matt!
Durag? Welcome back, girl!! Washington State looks quite nice.
Great pics! I LOVE the one with you and the pooch (of course I would though lol). Can't wait to see more pics of Seattle 🙂
P.S. Damn you for making me want a Twinkie THIS BAD.
You are so selling me to this town!!!. Can't wait for part 2.
By the way, the Asians also relax their hair, albeit they use a lesser strength relaxer than we(kinky haired black people) do, like redkin.
No I just visit Forks LOL. Next time you come to town, let me know. I live right outside King County in Snohomish County but still close to Seattle.
My son swears by those "wave builders"!!
The NW US looks beautiful…I have to get out there one day!
Awesome times! Hahah, as soon as you said beauty store, I knew you were probably going to Sally's or something of the like. It's hard hooking up your hair abroad… haha, it's one of my biggest worries! 🙂
I am so heading to the US this summer for my "vats" of hair products!! Yeah here in Paris I can get products but not ones that are free of yucky ingredients. The US is far advanced when it comes to truly natural haircare!! Can't wait! Will be trying castor oil too bc alot of the natural hair blogs talk about that!
@Terri: It's very pretty here! Quiet, but pretty.
@Crystal: So far I've been able to resist the temptation of the Twinkie!! But it looks mighty good… And I did visit the first Starbucks, btw!
@foosrock!: Yes, I knew that and it shocked me because I just assumed that they all had super straight hair naturally! Even funnier were the Asians who put kinky perm in their hair so they could rock afros…
@Flaming: Darn! My bad. I don't think I'll make it back before I leave here! Maybe we'll meet one day in Toronto or London?
@Mae: I was JUST watching a Youtube vid on how to get waves LOL… Too funny!
@Erika: I would never know that's an issue for you because your hair always looks great! Did you have somebody in your town do your hair or did you go to Paris to get it done (or did you do it youself)?
@Opal: Trust me! The States has truly got it going on in that regard! I can totally vouch for the castor oil (the pure one)- that was the ONLY hair product I owned while in Hong Kong because I was able to buy it from the health food store. It really sealed the moisture in my hair! I definitely recommend it.
The Pacific Northwest is really pretty. The drive to Seattle is nice, especially once you hit Ellensburg, but it doesn't hold a candle to the drive from Eastern Washington to Portland (my fave US city). The interstate take you through the Dalles and it has to be the most stunning strips in the US. For me, its a tie between that and Highway 1 going south along the Pacific coast which I also highly recommend.
But, I wanted to say, there's actually a little German town up in the hills not to far from Ellensburg/Wenatchee called Leavenworth. The city has a strict building code so everything in the center must adhere to Bavarian styling. You can find Excellent saltwater taffy there!
@Oneika, if you don't make it back. I will definitely see you in either Toronto (I've been wanting to visit) or London, I've been there but I'm dying to go back. I like your travel plans better.
@joycey4 I love Leavenworth, what an awesome place. I go once a year, the drive from Seattle up Hwy 2 is pretty dang nice. There are lots of beautiful drives up here in the PNW. One of my favorites is up to Forks, it's so dang beautiful you have to pull over and cry for a minute it's so gorgeous. I love Portland too, if I didn't live in Seattle I'd live in Portland. It's such a relaxed friendly town.
I love your pics and your so freaking cute!!!
@Joycey4: Thanks for the recs but unfortunately I'll have to leave them for next time as I'm flying home on Saturday morning! You know, a girl in my class was JUST talking about how we should go to Leavenworth!
@flaming: In Toronto or London it is, then!
@Andi: Gracias! But really, I must say the same for you!!!
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