Rain or Shine Guides 2017 Bucket List

Happy New Year!

It's 2017! 

It kind of came at us like a freight train and we are sitting here in the first week of January wondering how another year could have come and gone. 

To start this year off right we figured we would make a bucket list of all the things we want to make sure we do, big or small! 

Our 2017 Bucket List

1. Find #ThatNWBus at Palouse Falls 

People visiting Palouse Falls have started making a pitstop at an old abandoned school bus in the area and it is gaining fame on Instagram with the hashtag #thatNWbus. It's beautiful and run down and holds art from the people who have made the trek. Keep your eyes peeled on Highway 260 and you can visit too!

2. Float Green River

The Green River gorge in Auburn is supposed to be one of the most beautiful river canyons in Washington. You can start the beautiful float south of Seattle in Flaming Geyser State Park and take out at the SR18 Bridge. It should take you around 2.5 hours to complete, and we heard this is a very popular float filled with people partying, throwing back a few beers, and enjoying the sunshine. If you are looking for a quiet float, this might not be your spot.

3. Stay at the new McMenamins in Bothell

McMenamins is a PNW charm and their new location in Bothell is supposed to a be a great place for a little stay-cation. With a pool, restaurant, bar, movie theater, and outdoor grounds with fire pits, this place is great for relaxing, reading or hanging out with friends. It has something for everyone.

4. Try the iced cardamom coffee at Voxx

We fell in love with Fonte's cardamom latte and now we are moving on to the rumored deliciousness at Voxx Seattle Coffee, an iced cardamom coffee! We might save this one for the summer months.

5. Take a cooking class at Hipcooks

A good friend of ours recommended Hipcooks for great cooking classes in Seattle and ever since hearing the rave reviews on Bonnie and her cooking secrets we have been dying to get into one of her classes!

6. Zipline at Canopy Tours NW

It's one thing to hike through the beauty of the PNW, it's another to zip through it amongst the trees! We want to get in touch with our inner flying squirrel and check this out once it warms up!

7. Hike the ice caves

Up north in the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Park near Silverton, WA you can hike a trail to view the Big Four Ice Caves. Not only are ice caves cool on their own (they just scream Game of Thrones battle scene), but Macklemore filmed his music video for "Can't Hold Us" here. Just oozing cool points now.

8.Visit Soap Lake

Soap Lake is located in Eastern Washington and has been used by early settlers for its healing purposes and therapeutic effects due to its extremely high mineral content. While we heard there isn't a whole lot going on here, the town is trying to attract tourism and has plans to install a 52,000 pound lava lamp as a roadside attraction. So, let's recap: soak in a lake for healing AND see a giant lava lamp? Sign us up.

9. Enjoy a drink and the view at Mbar.

Mbar is new to the Seattle scene and apparently has one of the best rooftop patios in the city! There is nothing we enjoy more than cocktails in the sun, so we will absolutely be here on the first semi-warm day of the year.

10. Search out the best Korean BBQ in the city

Who doesn't love roasted and delicious marinated meat? (Vegetarians probably don't but there aren't any of those in this duo, so we are just going to say 100% of people love Korean BBQ.) We are going to be on the hunt in 2017 to find the best. Apparently Lynnwood is known to have great Korean BBQ (who knew?). First stops will be Sul Lung Tang and Ka Won.

So those are our 10 bucket list items. What do you have on your bucket list this year? We would love to hear in the comments! 

Confetti gun fail

What To Do With Seattle's CityPass

For first time visitors to Seattle the CityPass is a great way to see some of Seattle's hottest attractions without paying top dollar. One adult pass costs $74 and gives you access to the: 

• Space Needle

• Seattle Aquarium

• Argosy Cruises Harbor Tour

• Museum of Pop Culture   OR   Woodland Park Zoo

• Chihuly Garden and Glass   OR   Pacific Science Center 

If you were to go to five of those places (on adult tickets) you would pay around $140. Unlike some cities, the places on CityPass in Seattle are actually awesome places to visit so with the savings and the locations we definitely recommend it. You can visit them in whatever order you would like and it is valid for 9 days from the first time you use it. 

Now depending on how long you are in Seattle you might be able to do it all, but even if you only have time to visit three or four of the places you might still save money. Here is the order and places we would choose if we were doing the CityPass ourselves:

Argosy Cruises Harbor Tour 

• Argosy gets you out on the water, which is worth the ticket price by itself in our opinion. You get to see the city from the Puget Sound and learn a ton about the history and culture of Seattle. They have indoor and outdoor seating so it's fun rain or shine. Also, there is a bar on the boat. 

Chihuly Garden and Glass

• Chihuly Garden and Glass is completely unique to Seattle. This museum brings to life the beauty of local artist Dale Chihuly and his glass blowing techniques. It is truly a spectacular place to visit.

MoPOP

• The Museum of Pop Culture (MoPOP) is that museum for people who don't normally like museums. It is full of rock memorabilia, props from famous sci-fi movies, and an entire room devoted to the Seahawks Super Bowl win! 

Space Needle

• This one doesn't need much of an explanation. It's one of Seattle's more noteworthy landmarks and the most visited place in the city. Head up to the observation deck to take in the city, mountains, and Puget Sound below.

Seattle Aquarium

• The aquarium is right on the waterfront and is a cool building full of local and not so local fishes and marine life. There is a ton to do around it on the waterfront, so try to plan some extra time while you are visiting to check out the Seattle Great Wheel and maybe take a ferry ride to Bainbridge Island.

If you are cramped for time to go to all the places, we would recommend skipping the aquarium, especially if you have been to one of the more famous ones like Atlanta, Vancouver, or Monterey because Seattle just won't compare. If you have time though, of course go, you can see otters and that is never a bad thing!

Another thing to note is if you have small children, the Woodland Park Zoo and Pacific Science Center would be better options than MoPOP and Chihuly, which are better for ages 13+. 

You might like these other blog posts about sightseeing in Seattle: 

• What To Do in Seattle Center
• Top 20 Places to Visit at Seattle's Waterfront
• The Best View in Seattle: Kerry Park

3 Seattle Desserts to Try Now

As the Rain or Shine dynamic duo we have a lot in common, our love of travel, wine, food, and dogs to name a few, but there is one thing we will just never agree on... 

Desserts.

The line has been drawn. Spoons have been unholstered. The question on the table? Which is more delicious, fruit desserts or chocolate desserts?

It is a battle as epic as the Hatfields and McCoys, the Packers and the Bears, Bugs Bunny and Wile E. Coyote. Neither side is backing down. But hey, we don't mind, we actually look forward to the times we get to go into battle versus each other, because this means we get to eat. And so far it has proven to be one of the most delicious arguments ever.

We took this battle to the streets of Seattle to try some of the biggest and best desserts the city has to offer. Here are our three favorite finds! 

Bambu's Shaved Ice

Chocolate and Strawberry Shaved ice from Bambu

We agree on a lot, but never on dessert flavors

Tucked on 7th Ave in the International District this Vietnamese spot is churning out some seriously delicious desserts. Shaved Ice is definitely taking the U.S. by storm with shops popping up in many of the big cities and we aren't complaining! This was our first time having this cold, loaded up mountain of sweet goodness and we both almost died trying to finish our plates. We would have died happy though, that's for sure. It is a combo that tastes similar to ice cream, but a lot icier (so colder) and strangely enough, it was more dense too. They have 14 different flavors and double that amount of toppings, so there is something for everyone and they come in a few different sizes, including the family size which looks more like it would take a village. (Challenge accepted?)

Check them out.

Shug's Ice Cream Sundaes

Shug's S'more Sundae (Sarah's favorite) 

Shug's Banana Split (Has fruit in it. Obviously Kristina's choice.)

Shug's is one of the new additions we saw at Pike Place Market in 2016 (along with Old Stove Brewing and Cycene). It is an old style ice cream shop, complete with a soda fountain and ice cream made on Lopez Island. The menu features some classics (banana splits and good ole milkshakes), but a quite a few modern ice cream creations as well. They also partner with a lot of local makers to get ingredients from the community for their masterpieces, including cacao from indi chocolate and donuts from Mighty-O. We highly recommend the S'more sundae. Make sure to grab a seat at the bar if there is one available, watching them make the desserts is half the fun...obviously eating them is the other half...or maybe it's more like an 80/20 spilt....90/10? Anyways, you get it. Eating them is really enjoyable.

Check them out.

Blank Space Bubble waffles

Blank Space Bubble Waffle

This one is good for everyone, chocolate and fruit lovers alike. 

You have to venture across the bridge to get Blank Space, but it's worth it. We have no idea why bubble tea is the main advertisement when you can get THAT (^^) from the menu. Those waffles are made fresh and they are not hollow bubbles, they are little puff balls full of sweet bread that you can then soak in ice cream and coat in toppings like oreos, fruity pebbles, and sprinkles. Icing on the cake? They have macrons too! What is this heavenly place?! It is like they snuck into our dreams and then recreated them in a discreet building in Downtown Bellevue. Thank you Blank Space, thank you!

Check them out.

Rain or Shine out. Gotta go sleep off this sugar coma.

Seattle's Best Food Trucks

Seattle is definitely a little behind on the food truck game compared to its sister city to the south, Portland, and California was wayyyy ahead of the game. But lately we definitely feel a larger presence around the city and we are even starting to get some decent sized pods popping up around town. Which is exciting, because who doesn't love more casual and delicious dining options? If you just raised your hand, we kindly ask you to leave this blog. We don't want food truck haters here. After all the saying goes: Peace, love, and food out of a truck. 

If you are curious where a few of the "hubs" are you can check out this website as a resource. 

Here is part one of our "Best of Seattle: Food Trucks". Let us know in the comments if we missed any of your favorites! We have tried a ton, but not every one, so speak up! 

Nosh

Nosh serves up British/American grub and let us just say, everything they make is DIVINE. Yep, we just used that word and it was in a serious manner. We've been to the UK and are okay saying their fish 'n chips are the best we have ever had. Best. Ever. Other awesome menu offerings include the Caprese Baguette and the Roasted Bone Marrow.

RoS Insider Tip: Always use eating at Nosh as an opportunity to say "Cheerio chap!" in a British accent as you get your food.

Napkin Friends

Have you ever looked at your sandwich and thought, "Wow I really wish someone would take this to the next level."? Enter Napkin Friends. They looks at that sad, plain, tasteless bread you put on either side of your sandwich fixings and decided to replace it with two deep fried latkes aka a potato pancake. Our favorite is the B.L.T.G.A. Imagine two hash brown patties and then stuffed bacon, lettuce, tomato, gouda, and avocado in between. Hungry? 

Delfino's Chicago Pizza

Delfino's has a brick and mortar location in University Village and to everyone's delight a food truck too. They serve up Chicago style deep dish pizza as personal sized pies. Honestly we always wish we had like 1-2 more slices, but if you're craving pizza, this will hit the spot. 

Off the Rez

If you aren't familiar with Indian Fry Bread, well then you haven't been living. Off the Rez is famous for their version of tacos. They start by deep frying dough for the "shell," it comes out puffy and soft, but a little crispy. Then they top it with sweet or savory goodies! You absolutely cannot go wrong getting a couple 10 hour slow cooked BBQ pork tacos along with a nutella sweet taco to top it off! 

Where Ya At Matt?

This southern/creole inspired food truck is great when you are looking for some flavor! The smothered chicken Po'boy and the Shrimp and Grits are hard to stray away from. The spice is just right and leaves your mouth and your stomach smiling! 

Photo by Mark Gsellman

Bomba Fushion

Bomba Fushion lets you do a create your own bowl/burrito/taco style meal. They combine Korean and Mexican foods to bring you mind-blowing delciousness. Think nachos covered in spicy pork bulgogi. Or if you want something a bit more traditional you can get a colorful Bibimbap bowl with our favorite part, the perfectly fried egg!

El Cabrito Oaxaca

If we had to pick one food to eat for the rest of our lives, it would probably be tacos. So this food truck gets a lot of love from us. El Cabrito makes traditional style Mexican food for a great price. The taco plate is where it's at. $7 for four street tacos. yes please! We recommend piling them with the carnitas or al pastor because this places knows how to cook pork.