Month: August 2015
Location: Seattle
One of the places that I have
always wanted to visit, in fact for several years, has been Seattle. Well, that was about to change because I was
headed to the great ‘Pacific Northwest’. The previous night had been a
bit…interesting, and had ended with me stumbling home; literally. So it wasn’t quite the ideal start when I
woke up after noon, just a few hours before my flight and rushed to the
airport. I had recovered considerably by
the time the plane circled around Seattle and was in good spirits when I
reached the hotel…even securing complimentary internet during check-in. I was ready for the weekend.
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| A beautiful evening |
Right off the bat, Seattle
impressed me immensely. There was a
slight mist in the early evening air as I left the hotel to get a bite to
eat. Well, when I say a bite, I really
mean several of them. I went to a sushi
joint called ‘Blue C Sushi’, where
sushi plates were literally passing by in front of me on a conveyor belt. All my life I had waited for something like
this! The problem was that it was sushi,
one of my favorite food groups, and each plate was color coded to reflect the
price. I had a multi-colored tower of
plates in front of me before I called it quits.
It was a good start.
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| The disgusting 'Gum Wall' |
I woke up early the next morning
and was on my way for a “Walking Food
Tour” of the famous ‘Pike Place
Market’. It was a lovely morning as
I waked through the downtown and a couple of blocks from the market, went to
one of Seattle’s innumerable coffee shops, ‘Seattle
Coffee Works’. It was a charming
place and as I waited, I heard an order come through for a drink with 6
shots. When I observed that it seemed a
bit excessive, the barista said that it was for a girl who works at the market
and as I would soon see, she would need them this Saturday morning when the
rush starts! Well, I had certainly
picked the right day. We had been asked
to go down a narrow alley and meet outside a theater. What I didn’t know was that this theatre was
also the location of the infamous ‘Gum
Wall’ of Seattle. This is a truly
disgusting wall, where visitors from all around the world have stuck gum as
some sort of a tribute or just for the heck of it…and I am not talking about
unopened gum here.
I saw some other people who had
assembled outside the theater and learned that they were in the tour party as
well. We were discussing our location
and this awful spot when mercifully our guide arrived and took us inside the
theater. In the lobby we got introduced
to other members of our group and our guide, Nick, told us a bit more about the
wall. Apparently it had started as a
joke and cascaded into what exists today.
The theater – which is still operational – has tried pressure cleaning
the wall several times, but every time they get rid of the gum, someone starts
anew and it grows again, so much so that this is now the 2nd most “germiest” place on the planet after the
‘Blarney Stone’ of Ireland. After that illuminating conversation, Nick
asked if we were ready to eat and I for one just wanted to get away from there.
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| The famous 'Pike Place Market' |
We started off by climbing down
to the base level of the market, as Nick mentioned that this was a publicly
owned building and the city’s pride and joy.
As we went down the stairs, the backdrop of the ‘Puget Sound’ – Seattle is not on the ‘Pacific’ as most think – and it was a beautiful sight. We stopped outside a coffee shop for some
gluten free ‘Madeline’s’ as Nick told
us about the various bars around the market and the exciting stories
surrounding them. We took an elevator to
the top and exited into the heart of the market which was now starting to
buzz. Our next stop was to try an
outstanding ‘Greek Yogurt with fruit’
followed by ‘Maple Bacon Donuts’
because, well, who doesn’t want a piece of that? As expected, there was a big line for that,
though being on a tour, we didn’t have to wait that long. Nick pointed out that the tiles in the market had
names and that was one of ways through which the market raised money, by selling tiles to people
to put names down. He showed us a set of
tiles that had numbers on them and asked what was unique about them. I quickly realized that they were all “primes” and pointed it out. He said that it was true and that years ago a
man had purchased a set of tiles and asked them to be labeled accordingly. When asked why, he had said that many years
prior to that, he had met his wife at this exact spot in the market and she was
a 'Mathematician'. When people ask me what
I enjoy most about my travels, it is stories like this.
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| Looking back at the market |
We stopped at a tea shop for some
herbal tea and then it was off to the renowned fish stall to witness the famous
“Fish toss”, perhaps the most
familiar thing associated with this market.
While munching on some delicious salmon, we saw a few rounds of that and
I enjoyed the enthusiasm with which they did this activity. We then visited another popular place which
makes cheese in front of everyone, followed by an artisan preserves shop, a coffee shop
specializing in “croquettes” and
finally a luxurious chocolate place in which I had some of the most decadent
pieces of chocolate. Our tour was at an
end and Nick had been an outstanding guide who had kept us laughing, and fed us
well. He encouraged us to explore more
of the market place and before departing, I asked him for some recommendations
on Seattle eateries and he gave me a few pointers. I walked past the very first ‘Starbucks’, or not, depending on who
you ask. There was a huge line waiting
to get in and considering that the ‘Starbucks’
coffee is same everywhere, I thought it was bit of a stretch. But hey, whom am
I to belittle tourism. By this time the market was absolutely crawling with visitors and I saw what the 'Barista' had meant earlier. Having just been
a part of a food tour, you would have thought that I was all set as far as
lunch was concerned, but no sir. Nick
had recommended a place nearby called ‘Seatown
Seabar & Rotisserie’ and I just had to stop by for a bite.
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| At the 'Pacific Science Center' |
I had no specific plans for the
afternoon, so I started walking towards the premier landmark in Seattle, ‘The Space Needle’. I decided to visit the science museum nearby,
known as the ‘Pacific Science Center’. As I was purchasing the ticket, the agent
asked if I wanted to attend a ‘Laser
Show’ while I was there. I asked
what the music was and there were different options depending on the time. Once she said that the immediate one coming up was ‘Beatles’, I was sold. I went straight to the dome where the show
was being conducted and there were several families in the line. As soon as the doors opened, all the kids
went and lay on their backs staring at the ceiling, where the laser show would
be projected; while I took one of the seats as did the parents. The show started and very soon I saw why the
best place to be was as the kids were doing, on your back. So I left my seat and did just that, staring
at the ceiling as for the next 20-30 minutes my favorite songs in the world
were set to a dazzling display of laser lights.
And I did not care if the adults felt that I should have been on a chair
because this is the ‘Beatles’ and I
was going to get maximum out of this experience.
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| The brilliant 'EMP Museum' |
After the show I walked about the
museum, including an exhibit called ‘Grossology’
which shows kids through cartoon models what happens to food once you consume
it...yeah. Finally, before leaving I went for a show
inside the ‘Planetarium’, which unlike
the one in ‘Adler’, is a much smaller
and intimate room, where everyone sits around the periphery while the show is
conducted from the center and is very interactive. After that, I came out and walked through campus that also includes another museum called ‘EMP Museum’, or ‘Experience Music Project Museum’.
Now, while the name of the museum says “music”, the place is dedicated to all things “pop culture”. I started
with an exhibit devoted to ‘Horror
Movies’ and it was quite comprehensive in terms of some of the props that
they had as well as various viewing stations with excerpts from some of the
classic films of the genre. After this I
walked through an exhibit on ‘Star Wars’
and ‘Star Trek’ movies and another
one on ‘Fantasy’ movies. Then I visited a section on the birth
of ‘Grunge’, especially the story of ‘Nirvana’. There was even an exhibit dedicated to Chuck
Jones and ‘Looney Tunes’. But the centerpiece of the museum is a full
sized stage which would be perfect for any rock concert, and it seems that they
do host shows in here.
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| Seattle from the top of the "needle" |
I left the museum and while the
logical thing would have been to go on top of the ‘Space Needle’, I was going to be back later on in the evening for
dinner at the revolving restaurant at the top, ‘Sky City’. Living in
Chicago I take the ‘EL’ to work every
day, but for many visitors, the elevated monorail that runs from this park to
the heart of downtown is an attraction.
Since it would deposit me very close to my hotel, I took the train back
and went to my room to relax before the evening’s activities. Those did not have to wait for long and I
grabbed a drink at the hotel lobby bar overlooking the street and it was
turning out to be a beautiful evening. Since
the train had been a good transportation from the ‘Needle’, I took it back there and having a reservation at the
restaurant allowed me to skip the line for the observation deck and go straight
up. As I walked around the perimeter,
the views were spectacular, and besides the downtown, included the magnificent ‘Mt. Hood’. While I did not get the window seat at
dinner, I was able to track the changing view by looking over some people. Over the course of one revolution, I concluded my meal and headed back for some
well-earned shut-eye.
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| On the way to the island |
If there is one thing Seattle is
known for, its coffee, and I had signed up for a “Coffee Crawl”. Yesterday
after the food tour, Nick had given us a coupon for discounts at places around
the market and I used it for breakfast at a biscuit place. Since I had some time to spare, I walked
through some of the lower levels of the market and came across some truly
interesting stores, including a magic shop, which wasn’t open on Sundays. At 10 am I arrived at our meeting spot and
with a very enthusiastic group, for the next few hours went around the area
near the market sampling coffee. And
this wasn’t your ‘Mocha’s’ or ‘Latte’s’, but pure coffee with no other
additives – and it was great. It was also
interesting to hear about the history of each shop, including one called ‘Café Ladro’ or “The Coffee Thief”, whose background story involved a once fruitful partnership gone
sour. I also learned about how there is
a competition for ‘Barista’s’ to
create those foam decorations that one sees in specialty drinks, and apparently
that is quite a competitive field.
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| The charming streets of 'Bainbridge Island' |
After I had my fill of coffee, I
rushed to the waterfront to catch a ferry to ‘Bainbridge Island’, a short hop away from the mainland. The ferry itself was huge and the deck felt
longer than a football field. While
initially I stayed on top to enjoy the views of the city, as we got deeper into
the waters, the wind picked up and I took refuge in the lounge downstairs,
studying the map and making plans for the afternoon – starting with lunch. Some 30 odd minutes later we were at the
island and I headed towards the center of the town. There is one main street on which lie most of
the businesses and I found a “hole-in-the-wall”
restaurant for lunch. One of my favorite
things to do is explore small towns with charming shops and soon enough I had
located an antique shop, a toy store, a memorabilia store and my absolute
favorite, a book store. After walking
about each of these, I located a fudge store and bought some of the local fudge
for a friend. I chatted with the girls
in the store and asked them for a place on the island that I absolutely had to
visit. They directed me towards a local
ice cream shop which claims to be a famous one in the state. I made a quick stop there before boarding a
ferry back for the mainland. ‘Bainbridge Island’ had been everything
that I had anticipated, and a worthwhile expedition. It had been a long day and rather than go to
one of Nick’s recommended restaurants, I went back to ‘Blue C Sushi’ near the hotel because, well it has food on a conveyor and
all that.
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| Beneath the city |
My last morning in Seattle was
another beautiful day and I was on my way to something called an “Underground Tour”. Seattle has a vast network of underground
tunnels that connect basements of many businesses. While we roamed through the dungeons, our very
enthusiastic guide told us the history of the city, when during the late 19th
century and how they had raised the downtown area after a fire and a flood. It was a hilarious way to learn about the
city and something that I would recommend to everyone. I still had a few hours left before I had to
leave for the airport and so stopped at the magnificent city library, which is
an architectural marvel. Then there was
just one thing left to do – have lunch at the famous ‘Biscuit Bitch’; an artisan restaurant specializing is
biscuits. With extremely limited seating
and volume of orders, I had to wait over 30 minutes and share a table, but it
was well worth it. After one last
look at the market place and ‘Puget Sound’,
I went to the hotel, picked up my luggage and left for the airport. I had wanted to visit Seattle for over 10
years and had finally made it here. As I
left I knew that I had found a city I could see myself living in. I cannot describe to anyone why I fell in
love with the place, I just did. I guess
it’s true for love isn’t it?
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