The Life of a Nomad: The Methow Valley and Leavenworth

We ended our trip in the Northwest with a wedding in the Methow Valley in central Washington and a few days in Seattle. I had no clue what to expect from the little towns in the Valley, and despite the 100+ degree heat, I was pleasantly surprised! The small little towns like Winthrop and Twisp had some really cool coffee shops, art galleries, restaurants and clothing stores. I loved walking around Winthrop. I felt like I was transported back into an Old West town!

Main Street in Winthrop

One of my favorite spots was The Rocking Horse Bakery, which is a super cute coffee shop. I had some delicious homemade granola with almond milk for breakfast, along with a much-needed iced coffee (it was already in the 90's by 10 a.m-ugh).  They also had amazing looking cinnamon buns, which I now totally regret not ordering. I think I was in a heat coma....

Since it was soooo hot in the Valley, we decided to check out the local lakes to cool off. I'm definitely more of a beach person, but a dip in the lake was totally what I needed! 

On our drive back towards Seattle after the wedding, we stopped in Leavenworth, Washington. If you have not heard of this place, it is essentially a Bavarian village in the middle of Washington State.


One of my favorite things about this little village was that even the American chains had a Bavarian architectural style:

 
 
No, we did not eat lunch at the Bavarian McDonald's! We actually ate at Leavenworth Sausage Garten for traditional bratwurst. If anyone knows me well, I hate hot dogs. These brats were tasty! I loaded mine up with sauerkraut and tried a few varieties of mustard on the side:

This place also has killer soft pretzels. Having recently moved from Philly, I can attest that these pretzels were just as good as any Philly pretzel! And, these pretzels came with this ridiculous garlic-cheese dipping sauce. Oh man! 


It was a riot being in this little village. I felt like I was in EPCOT at Disney! After we ate lunch, we walked around the town for a bit and then hit the road for our last leg: SEATTLE, BABY!