ALOOO! It’s Travel Bucket List Wednesday, so what better day to officially announce my Seattle, Portland, Vancouver trip?! I’ve heard about the eclectic trio of cities quite a bit throughout my travels: as far off as Egypt, where one of my roommates happened to hail from the seat of King County.
“You would LOVE my city — especially since they have the best coffee” to “Keep Portland Weird” have always pique my interest for the Pacific Northwest. SO, when I was invited to a travel blogger wedding by Seattle, I knew I had to extend my trip beyond Washington state!
I know some of you have probably been crossed-eyed ever since I mentioned the term “Hippie Hajj” on last week’s blog post too, so here’s your answer 😉
The beautiful Pacific Northwest by Bureau of Land Management, Flickr
Seattle, Portland, Vancouver trip: aka the ultimate hippie pilgrimage
In case you don’t know much about Islam, Hajj is the sacred pilgrimage each able Muslim must make to Mecca at least once in their lifetime in order to make it to heaven. It involves elaborate preparation and several rites of passage, so speak.
Add to that that, the more I read about each city, the more my theory is cemented: a Seattle, Portland, Vancouver trip is basically the ultimate hippie pilgrimage. Very walkable, co-ops, good farmers markets, great food trucks/stands, dive bars, etc. Or perhaps we could swap the word “hippie” for simply “HIP”? Either way…
This shall be my Hippie Hajj, dammit! A full week on each city 😀
Shibby777, Flickr
My Seattle itinerary: lots of local events!
I spent the ENTIRE day today putting together my awesome Seattle itinerary. I’m always flexible, but I wanted to make sure I didn’t miss a thing. And so, I was in luck: LOTS of events scheduled! Excited as heck, for sure.
**VisitSeattle.org, Seattle.gov & The Stranger here UNBELIEVABLE travel planning sources — especially the latter!
–Seattle free walking tours: Pike Market Experience & Seattle 101.
-Take advantage of SEVERAL free wine tastings happening every Thursday & Saturday all over the city.
-Speaking of drinking, I want to tour a couple of breweries + must visit the UNICORN on Capitol Hill. I hear it’s funky.
-Catch a band or show at one or more of these venues: Showbox, Tractor, New Moe’s, Chop Suey, Fun House (I may have misspelled one of these, my apologies!)
-Madison Park Art Walk
–Splinter dance [FREE! *Tue 9/17]
–Sylvia O’Stayformore’s Queen’s Brunch: every 3rd Saturday starting at 11 AM
-Seattle Italian Festival
–Guest Chef Night at FareStart: $29.99 for 3-course dinner. All chefs volunteer their time and ingredients! ALL proceeds toward helping rehabilitate homeless people, teaching them skills to be able to work in the food industry. Amazing initiative
-Other foodie activities: Rainier BBQ to try cobra and rattlesnake; Little Uncle on Capitol Hill for Thai street food; try Somali food in the International District; book at least one foodie/gourmet tour of the city.
-Break bland airport food routine at Ivar’s Fish Bar for their famous clam chowder or smoked salmon chowder.
-Try at least 2 different food trucks every day (yes, really).
SO many more on my list, but must move on for this post’s sake!
SEATTLE
My Portland itinerary: loose plans
Given that I spent way too many hours today planning my Seattle trip, I have nothing but loose ideas of what I want to do in Portland:
-Visit Voodoo Doughnuts and by a sexual-innuendo souvenir T-shirt to Mr. B
–Secrets Of Portlandia Free Walking Tour
-Portland’s Old Town, Northwest (Nob Hill) & Pearl District
-Hike Wildwood Trail through Washington Park
–The Grotto: National Sanctuary of Our Sorrowful Mother looks beautiful!
-Possibly one Stray Boots tour: supposed to be a mashup between an informative tour + scavenger hunt. NICE!
–Lan Sue Chinese garden: never been to China, never been to a Chinese garden. Should be a cool experience!
–Hair of the Dog Brewery
-Some kind of foodie tour
-Some kind of wine tour (tentative)
-A state or national park (not sure which one yet!)
-Day trip to Oneonta Gorge (although I’m afraid it might be too cold in October!)
Kathleen Tyler Conklin, Flickr
My Vancouver itinerary: (sort of) no clue yet! HELP MEEE
The regular “to do” lists are making me kind of yawwwn… I want something quirky! Got any Vancouver recommendations?! For now, this is all I got on my list:
-Forbidden Vancouver tours: look quirky, fun enough
-Some kind of food tour
-Some kind of pub crawl
-A state or national park (not sure which one yet!). MUST be reachable with public transportation btw, as I don’t have a drivers license… Don’t ask! 😛
Oh, and visit the Guinness Record Holding narrowest building in the world in Chinatown, Vancouver! (Leeann Cafferata, Flickr)
Have you taken a Seattle, Portland, Vancouver trip? Write your tips below!
UPDATE: due to an unforeseen emergency, I had to cancel my #HippieHajj trip…but don’t worry, we will make it happen soon!
Wow, sounds like really have prepared for your hippie pilgrimage. I’ve been to Seattle and Pike Peak’s market is a must. There are a lot of great restaurants around the market you should try – Steelhead Diner is one that comes to mind.
In Vancouver, do visit the pretty Stanley Park and cross the Capilano Bridge. Haven’t been to Portland and I Iook forward to your experience about it.
Have a wonderful pilgrimage.
Steelhead Diner: got it! Thanks for the tips 🙂
Voo Doo Doughnuts is an absolute must. My suggestion would be to view their menu online and choose your favorites because once you’re in the shop – there are SO many to choose from it can become annoying to the people behind you who know what they want! Ha! Ha! Seriously, though, really good eats!
Already got the Voodoo on the list. Will definitely be checking the menu in advance, thanks!
If it’s a park you’re looking for in Vancouver, of course there’s Stanley Park. I suggest renting a bike, riding the seawall, and stopping at Third Beach which is towards the end of the seawall for a dip in the ocean (if it’s still warm enough by the end of September). Or go to Lynn Canyon – you can access it by bus and there are lots of trails to hike and a beautiful 30 foot swimming hole. It’s fed by a glacier so only swim there if you can take the cold!
So many great tips Megan, thank you so much!
Will you be around Vancouver between September 18-26 by the way? 😉 If so, it would be lovely to meet you/hangout!
Yes, it would be great to meet you! Give me a shout on twitter (@megkho) when you know what your schedule is like.
It sounds like a full itinerary filled with adventure, have fun!
thanks Noel! 🙂
Sounds like a fun itinerary. A foodie tour through Vancouver’s Chinatown would be great fun. If it’s a sunny day try to get to the top of Grouse Mountain for views as far south as Mt Baker in Washington. I have a post on Vancouver – 30 Ideas to Keep you Busy – so there’s got to be something in there that catches your attention.
hikebiketravel.com/4481/visiting-vancouver-30-ideas-busy
Have fun.
I’ll definitely check your Vancouver post out. Thanks for the tips!
Have a great trip! 🙂
thank you!