Melissa and Derek's Unofficial Guide to Seattle

I absolutely loved Seattle. It had everything you could ever want in a city and more--spectacular shopping, amazing food, breathtaking views, and a vibrant culture. What more could a girl ask for? It has definitely earned a place on my top 5 places to live list.

During our visit we tried to keep everything budget friendly (thanks to the recession BOOO!), but later realized how fast things just add up. Seems like money has a way of sneaking away from you while you're not looking. Considering all the things we did, I think we were able to choose reasonable but delicious places to eat, and visit attractions that were free or offered a student discount. So if you're planning on visiting the Seattle area, the following are some of the places we went to and highly recommend :

** warning there are an embarrassing amount of pictures in this post **

Attractions-

{shopping in the heart of downtown seattle. Here you will find the Original Nordstrom- my favorite department store of all time}

{if the shopping makes you hungry, stop by the nordstrom grill and try the fries and sourdough bread}

{Pike Place Market: the most amazing farmer's market. Great food, fresh produce, crafts galore}

{the reason millions of americans are able to wake up in the morning: original starbucks}

{bunches of gorgeous flowers for $5! I would have fresh flowers everyday}

{Experience Music Project- the shrine of modern day music}

{Ride the monorail from downtown to the seattle center for $4 round trip}

{Seattle Space Needle}

{the Seattle Center Park- grab some food from pike place and have a picnic here!}

All the yummy eats-

{tom douglas's infamous Dahlia lounge. he is a culinary genius. I will do a separate review of all his restaurants because I would move to seattle for his food alone}

{best brunch}

{tom douglas did it again with Dahlia bakery}

{d loved the coconut cream pie and amaretti cookie. 2 thumbs up}

{and of course, I had to try their world famous DONUTS!}

{these donuts are THE BEST. they taste like perfect little warm fluffy pillows of love. Dip it in the sweet mascarpone cheese and you are in heaven my friend}

{Wann Izakaya- they have 2 awesome happy hours! I recommend the tempura brie and japanese fried chicken}

{flaky russian meat pie goodness}

{Serious Pie- another tom douglas joint. Best pizza I've ever had hands down}

{see... I told you}

Hope you enjoyed the little guide we compiled during our short trip to Seattle!

Until our next adventure,

M & D