So a little background. I lived in England for 7 months in 2006. It was a dream come true, but of course I was horribly homesick. I probably would have left early if it hadn't been for our neighbors, the Jones, or as I call them, the Duncans (I couldn't remember their last name, just the dad's name). Claire was just 15 when I met her. She's now an amazing young woman who saved up her pounds and pennies to come visit me. After a fab week and a half, it was a teary goodbye at Seatac yesterday. Here are some photos from our adventures.
MONDAYWe enjoyed cupcakes at Cupcake Royale and wandered around Ballard
One of the best photos anyone has ever taken of me.TUESDAYShopping and dinner!
We're both huge fans of Gordon Ramsay, so we had to have dinner at Yanni's, which was featured on the latest season of Kitchen Nightmares. Honestly, I'm not even sure why, because this restaurant has always been great.
No more rumors! It's actually happening! Claire was not impressed, since Zara is plentiful in England.WEDNESDAY
I usually avoid touristy things, but I'm so glad Claire was so persistent on going up the Space Needle. We went at sunset, found free parking (!), and the views were spectacular. It wasn't even cold and windy, like I had expected.
THURSDAY
We had lunch at Cafe Presse with my family and my best friends. We had a pomme frites eating contest, of course. I took her to almost all of my favorite restaurants and bakeries. We missed out on Top Pot, though, because we were both sick of sweets and baked goods by the end of the week. 
After lunch, we all went to Volunteer Park, since the conservatory was free for First Thursday. Then we sat in the grass and fed the squirrels, and ourselves, pastries from Bakery Nouveau.
On my way to dinner, I jumped out of my car into traffic to rescue this racing pigeon. Everyone keeps telling me how brave and awesome it was, but lets be honest. It was idiotic. I dropped him off with a man in Tacoma who has racing pigeons. Hopefully he can nurse him back to health, because I didn't know what I was doing. Someday I'll have pet pigeons, though.FRIDAY
My dad and stepmom, who also lived in England, took us to Kingston for dinner. It was the most beautiful gray evening.SATURDAY & SUNDAYWe went down to Shelton to stay with my mom. That means more pastries, of course.
Raspberry tart and chocolate-banana cream (I think) from San Francisco Bakery in Olympia.MONDAYWe took Claire to see the Pacific Ocean for the first time!
TUESDAY
After a stressful day stuck in a car with no A/C, it was nice to finally make it home to Seattle. We went to Kerry Park, had dinner at Mezcaleria, and watched the sunset from Queen Anne Boulevard. It was the perfect note to end our vacation on. Unfortunately, one of us had the idea of going to Ikea on the way to the airport. Claire made it home safe and sound, though.♠
