We spent the day in Seattle, doin' the tourist thing. Pike Place Market, which was wonderful, Saludi's Restaurant, which was more hype than substance, and the Space Needle, which, in addition to a fine view of the city, also offers beer and - so surprisingly - Starbucks coffee at the top. Here's a quick breakdown of our oh-so-humble observations of the city:
#1. Far too expensive for just about everything you can think of.
#2. Working way too hard to make the impression of being a sophisticated city while housing an inordinate number of desperate appearing people. I know the "grunge" thing got its genesis in Seattle, but I don't think the people living out of bags are trying to make a statement...
#3. Lots and lots of tiny, pretentious restaurants but no real places to just get a great meal.
#4. Wear great walking shoes and prepare for your trip here by working up to a 5K on steep inclines.
#5. Well advertised "free bus zone" with few free buses available.
#6. Incredibly long traffic lights and people who aren't "brave" enough to walk against the "Don't Walk" signs - even when there is no oncoming traffic in sight. (One native described the pedestrians - even the citizens in general - as sheep. That assessment, actually, seems pretty accurate to us.)
#7. When on a motorcycle, all hill are uphills, all lights are too long, and when turning, there will be at least 3 people crawling across (OK, OK...slowing walking across) the street in front of you.
#8. When you ask for directions, expect the person directing you to refer to the compass direction of where things are: "Oh, it's north of here," or "Just go six blocks east." Well, if you don't know the city well and there doesn't happen to be any sun, "Left" and "Right" might prove more practical.
#9. The Renier cherries at Pike's Place were at least $1 per pound more expensive than they were at home at Kroger.
#10. Many people here have a very strong anti-Bush sentiment. So, they can't be all bad!! :)
Left Seattle around 5:00 and arrived in Vancouver at about 9:30 after stopping for dinner. Looks like an interesting place. We have plans to cruise around, camper-free, for a few hours tomorrow and to pick up a few of the things we will need pretty quickly (100% DEET, Bug-B-Gone, for around the grounds near our camper, an extra couple of pairs of long johns, ear buds for Jack's I-Pod...) and check out some the neat looking pubs. I will post more at the end of our day tomorrow (Remember, we're 3 hours behind you...)
Miss you!
L
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