Summer excursions in the Pacific Northwest

A few weeks ago we had a visit from a friend of ours from New York (pardon me, I meant to say originally from Weymouth, MA but now in "forced exile" in Jersey City/Hoboken/NYC), which was a great excuse for outdoor activities. A few of us from the office decided on going for a hike at the Snow Lake trail, part of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, near Alpental at the Snoqualmie Pass. We had a wonderful sunny day and the payoff was amazing! See pictures here.

During the Labor day weekend we decided to take a day trip to Long Beach, WA and Astoria, OR. Part of the drive along US-101, the scenic coastal highway, was a real treat! In Long Beach we walked on the boardwalk, found a whale skeleton and strolled on the beach watching a multitude of kites flying in the sky. I couldn't resist taking off my shoes and walking barefoot on the warm sand. Then we drove further south to the bottom of the Long Beach peninsula and hiked up to the Cape Disappotment lighthouse. We stopped over at Fort Columbia before heading to the other shore of the Columbia River and Astoria, OR. The highlight by far was the visit to Astoria Column and an amazing view of the surrounding rivers, bay, mountains and the Pacific Ocean from its base. We had a great dinner at Drina Daisy, a Bosnian restaurant in the heart of downtown. Hoon had "burek" (meat-filled rolled pie) and "gulaš" (goulash) and I had "pita zeljanica" (spinach and cheese rolled pie) and "sarma" (meat and rice filled cabbage rolls). It was excellent! This is comfort food for me, the kind grandma used to make, and a perfect ending to a perfect day. See pictures here.

During the holiday weekend we also visited Microsoft. Hoon started working there full time a few weeks ago and Kiki and I wanted to check out his new (shared) office and take a stroll on the campus.