During our second week out West, we managed to get to The Emerald City of Seattle (photos here), and while it had more of a “real” city feel compared with Portland, we felt right at home there, as well. Not least because of our amazing hosts Rick and Maggie, who not only welcomed us into their stunning home in Gig Harbor (overlooking Puget Sound), but truly made us feel like extended family.
We started our discovery of Seattle with a walking tour of Pike Place Market. Founded around 1907 and originally the Farmers Market, it is now the longest-operating market in the US. Strictly regulated, great care has been taken not to allow big brands to come in and take over; the only recognizable name was the first ever Starbucks, which – when it opened in 1971 – was an absolute pioneer.
Over the next 48 hours, we did a little museum and sights-hopping, starting at the Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum, where we admired glassblower Dale Chihuly’s body of work. At the nearby Pacific Science Center, we saw a special exhibit entitled “Spy: The Secret World of Espionage”. The enigma machine, semi-submersible canoes, poison-tipped umbrellas and deadly gas guns… it was like a history lesson mixed with lots of 007, although surprisingly, there was no mention of anything related to Snowden or Wikileaks.
The City Pass we had purchased included a trip up the Space Needle, so I ventured up there for the view, while Phil (who suffers from vertigo) waited down below. After that we both enjoyed the EMP Museum, a museum dedicated to contemporary popular culture (and founded by Microsoft Co-Founder Paul Allen). Extremely well curated, we saw exhibits from the arts of fantasy, horror cinema, video games, science fiction, and costumes from screen and stage (among them Reeve’s Superman costume, and Game of Thrones regalia). Our last stop was the Seattle Aquarium, which I wanted to see mainly because the staff there had bred otters successfully. Ever since the Youtube video of otters holding hands while asleep went viral, I’ve been a fan, and the cute and playful ones we saw didn’t disappoint in the least!
Sadly, we had no time to head out on a harbor trip that would have also been included in our passes, so tried to give them away. This turned out to be harder than expected: The first couple didn’t trust our “they’re free” offer (I think they thought I was trying to scam them), the second already had tickets, and the third person I asked (a Japanese man) laughed me off with a “no, no, no,” cupping his hands in front of his face. We finally managed to find a couple who were headed towards the harbor and who gladly took them, and we ended that day delighted to have been able to make someone else happy. The moment was brief: we came back to our car to find a parking ticket!
While in Seattle, Phil had posted a pic on Facebook of me standing in front of that first-ever Starbucks. Brenda, whom we had met met while in Thailand, commented on it that she, too, was living (close-by) in Portland, and that we should visit. It was the 4th of July weekend, and we hadn’t made any final plans yet, so we took her up on the offer, headed back to Portland (photos here), and ended up having an unforgettable party on a floating home; fireworks, Jazz concert, BBQ, and all! Brenda and her boyfriend Zach also introduced us to “Voodoo Doughnuts,” a place that sold bizarre concoctions such as “Bacon Maple Bar” and the “Voodoo Doll Doughnut.” We four all went in on their top-selling 12 for a private breakfast tasting, and left Portland the second time on a sickly sugar-high.
We made a few additional stops on our way back to San Francisco. First, to celebrate Phil’s birthday, I found a wonderful place called the “Steamboat Inn,” where we stayed in a cabin overlooking a river and got the royal treatment. The next morning, we headed out to nearby Crater Lake National Park (photos here), an impressive caldera lake. The trail I convinced Phil to join me on, while listed as “strenuous,” was an easy 30 minutes uphill; we were almost all alone on it, and had amazing views. We also made a stop at Lava Beds National Monument to do some exploring of lava tube caves (photos here), and see some petroglyphs.
Once back in SFO again, we spent a few final days working at the wonderful Workshop Café, Phil took his first ever ride on a cable car, and then we got on a plane and moved over to the other Coast, and New York. More to follow…
