My first summer visitors...

My friends Robin and Marc are my first official summer visitors to my new place in Seattle. (Actually, my younger brother was my first visitor but I had moved into my apartment the week before and he, unfortunately, arrived in towards the end of our 28 day raining streak - so he counts.) So Robin and Marc are my dear friends from the samba group with which I was involved for 4 years. They were part of the bateria (band) but are probably the example of the couple I most want to be like. All of us admired them and so I was thrilled when they told me that they were coming for a visit. They had been traveling throughout the western United States for the last 3 weeks or so, enjoying mountains, hikes, wildlife, and occasionally getting lost.

They showed up at 4:30 p.m. - a wee bit earlier than I anticipated. I got out of my gym clothes and we walked down to the Hiram Chittenden Locks and Fish Ladder in my Ballard neighborhood. Pygmy had taken me here once before and I had accidentally stumbled upon them. The locks are so boats can easily navigate the waters as it changes from fresh to salt water. The fish ladder is so the salmon can get through the locks without being damaged by the boats. Marc asked me if I picked this neighborhood because of the locks (and beautiful surrounding park) - I told him I had just rediscovered them. We then walked over Madame K's for pizza, wine and tasty salads. The place is played like a brothel and has a very lively atmosphere - my friend Annika joining us for dinner.

Saturday woke up early and took a walk through my favorite weekend piece of paradise - discovery park before we tromped around the city visiting Pike Place Market, the piers, Pioneer Square . We talked about how clean the city was, how active and filled with tourists, how Cleveland could have a water front like this. We talked about old power and new power and how difficult it was to get thing done. It reminded me how great it was to live in a more hopeful community. We headed back to Ballard...

I had a previous engagement with a Peace Corps friend who I was seeing for the first time in 5 years. We had been great friends during Peace Corps but hadn't hung out much since. We found we didn't get a long as well "state-side". But dinner was delicious and the conversation was lively. Robin, Marc and I then headed to the Sunset - one of the great music venues in Ballard (which has a very strong music history) - to hear a band that played to loudly and had horrible feedback with their amps but was otherwise a good band.

Sunday brought us all to a walk around Green Lake before Marc and Robin headed north to Vancouver where his sister was getting married to her lifelong partner - legally. I headed off to a BBQ. It was perfect weather all weekend. It was wonderful to have friends out - to show them around - to reappreciate your new community.