Tell me they did not take over Bellvue Square!

Just to emphasize that, in San Diego, Fashion Valley is not a Westfield mall and it is very good.

Oh, no! Kemper Freeman owns Belle Square and since he seems bound and determined for Bellevue to eventually be renamed Kemperton, I don't think that he'd allow something like that. :)

Westfield took over Southcenter Mall in Tukwila. I have heard that they're planning to expand it and build a new hotel.

We used to live in Kirkland. We moved there with the rest of the Californians in search of affordable real estate. I really miss it! Since you are in the know, what is happening lately in Juanita? I loved that patch and would like to own a cottage there someday.

Kirkland is still Kirkland. I don't think that there have been any drastic changes. Like the rest of the Eastside, it's become more diverse, there's been a fair amount of development, and it's still expensive. I've read that the Kirkland City Council is working to make some areas of Kirkland more pedestrian friendly, including Juanita. However, their main focus seems to be on making downtown Kirkland a true city center.

Honestly, if you've been gone a year or more, I would say that Bellevue is the city that's changed the most and has the most ambitious plan for the future. I've also noticed that Eastside cities are offering more and more every year in terms of activities and events. The Eastside will never be Seattle in terms of tourism, but I think that those of us who live on this side of the lake appreciate having increased opportunities for entertainment right in our backyards, so to speak.

Kostroma

Thank you kindly for that update. I remember when Carillon Point was just built. We participated in a restaurant there. What a world class view!

Kostroma
By the way, who let Bill Gates out of Redmond? I spotted him at our church in Rancho Santa Fe a few weeks back.

Well, we try to keep a rein on him, but what can ya do? :)

I live in Redmond and it's almost comical how many office buildings belong to Microsoft. I've heard that Mr. Gates is quite a Napoleon buff......

Was that a short shot? I was surprised how small in stature he is.
When he assisted in passing out the collection trays, I handed one of my own back to him. HEEEEHEEEE!

Nah. It was more of a reference to the megalomania thing. Although now that you mention it, there may be some correlation. :)

Boy, has this post gone off topic. I'll get it back on track a little. From perusing their respective websites, I see that Fashion Valley is a Bellevue Square type mall while Horton Plaza is a little less "upscale". I don't think my mom will care either way, as I'm usually sighing and ready to go after an hour in any mall.

And to reinforce Barbara's comments on the timing of Tammi's trip: The week around Thanksgiving will see <b>huge</b> crowds in any shopping mall you try to visit. Horton Plaza, Fashion Valley, Carlsbad Company Stores, up at Fashion Island, etc.-- all of them will be wall-to-wall. I made the mistake of trying to go to the outlet stores at Cabezon (about 10 mils from Palm Springs) the day after Thanksgiving to get some Xmas shopping done (I hate to shop), and could not get near the place.

If you have to get that Retail Fix in, make a day of it in La Jolla or even Hillcrest, then do some more offbeat things like the weekend vendors (knick-knacks, spiritcatchers and windchimes, etc.) in Balboa Park (in the museum area) if the weather's good, the Swap Meet, Seaport Village, etc.

Oh we are big-time shoppers...I'm sure we can handle it. :) We get huge crowds here that week also, as does most of the US I'd imagine.

rjw, we did that a couple of years ago. We spent the Thanksgiving weekend in Palm Springs and thought we'd stop by Cabezon on the way home. Where do all those people come from? The place is in the middle of nowhere! I did manage to find a parking space though.

Barbara, all those people in Cabezon come from all over. Palm Springs, 29 Palms, and all those podunk towns scattered through the desert feed a few people there, but I see tour buses parked in the lots, which would suggest charters from LA and maybe San Diego too (especially tourists from overseas). A lot of people schlepp over from Riverside County too. That particular day, I must have circled those damn parking lots for a good hour before I gave up.

The Day after Thanksgiving Sale (Friday)... the cars are backed up on the freeway to get to the full parking lots at Fashion Valley Mall. The biggest shopping day of the year. Fashion Valley beats Horton Plaza etc.