My 34th birthday was on January 25th and I was blessed enough to have been gifted a birthday vacation to Seattle, Washington and Vancouver, British Columbia. And let me tell you something: it was absolutely amazing. I’ve never been to the Pacific Northwest and I haven’t been on a vacation since before I started culinary school, so it was very safe to assume that I was on the verge of being completely burnt out between two years of accelerated school semesters while working (and blogging) full-time. Mama needed a break!

I was very intentional with not being plugged in during this time as well. I brought my camera to take photos of the scenery and of my food finds, but otherwise, I mostly stayed off social media, didn’t bother bringing my laptop, and limited my phone usage to just letting family and friends know of our arrival and departure times between the two cities. I wanted to be present for every moment. And it was perfection.

Starting out in Seattle, Washington, I spent the first two days exploring the city by visiting a beautiful dispensary for some herbal refreshments and eating our way through town as a result. Worth it. Authentic Chinese dim sum, fresh scallop poke from an Uwajiyama deli, authentic Hawaiian soul food from a family owned spot, late night Seattle street hot dogs, and local pizza.

Then, we headed up to Vancouver the next afternoon to visit the Capilano Suspension Bridge Park (it was the last night of their Canyon Lights attraction) and was completely blown away by the captivating beauty of the city and of its nearby forest. High rises, houses, and apartments all banked by the Pacific Ocean and pine covered mountains. Gorgeous.

The next morning, we hit up a local bakery while shopping for some souvenirs and food items to bring home. I grabbed delicious pastries and local coffee. Ate some bomb sushi and takoyaki (fried octopus balls) for lunch. On our way leaving Vancouver, we passed through Richmond to share a plate from the famous HK BBQ Master, which was featured on David Chang’s Netflix series Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner. A very long wait for takeout but completely and absolutely worth every single minute. The authentic Chinese-style barbecue was out of this world!

Arriving back at Seattle that evening and a little later than we anticipated thanks to traffic, we did more exploring and bar hopping with some friends that night downtown. I was able to quickly walk to Pike Place Market (which was just a few blocks from our hotel) to take some beautiful nighttime photos before we partied to celebrate my birthday. The next morning, we got up early (hangover included) and hit the market for some more shopping and photo opportunities. Y’all. I was completely floored. Pike Place Market is truly THE open-air farmers market of my dreams. So much insanely fresh seafood, locally and organically grown produce, fresh flowers, a variety of spice and tea shops, diverse food stalls, and art vendors.

We spent the afternoon snacking and enjoying the scenery. My last afternoon in Seattle was made even better by the concierge at our hotel surprising me with a little birthday cake and bottle of champagne for my birthday while we were gone. I made sure to enjoy my glasses in the oversized bathtub. And if you’re imagining the Treat Yo Self episodes with Donna Meagle and Tom Haverford from Parks & Rec, you wouldn’t be wrong. That was essentially my weekend. Love it.

All in all, my vacation was exactly what I needed. If you’ve read this far, I just want to say thank you. It’s really awesome knowing that y’all care if I enjoyed myself on vacation and have been patient enough to wait out on new content while I unplugged a bit. Now that I’m back home and fighting off this West Coast jet lag, it’s time to get back to cooking!