Whenever I travel to Seattle, it feels so amazing to me that one minute I'm on the east coast, and the next, I'm on the west coast, having traveled across the entire expanse of this country in such a short time. I love waking up the first morning, and being in this very different place!
Day 1: View from Aaron's terrace at night - looking across Portage Bay at the University of Washington:
Day 2: I woke up to stereotypical Seattle weather - rain! Up until now, I've been pretty fortunate with the weather here. In truth, it has really rained very few days of the total time I've spent here since my first trip in 2001. But that may be due to the time of year I usually come: between late April and early June, when the weather is usually getting nicer. This year I am hearing that it's been an unusually rainy and cool spring, and summer has been late in coming!
Despite the lingering, on again, off again rain, we went out and kept busy. We ran some errands, spent some time in a coffee shop, checked out camera equipment (didn't buy anything!) and visited a street market, In the evening Aaron, Julia and I went out to an Afghan restaurant for dinner. This was a first for me, but from the online menu it sounded very much like the kind of Sephardic food my former mother-in-law used to prepare, and it was! Pretty tasty, and a positive experience.
Day 3: Woke up to another gray, gloomy morning!! But by late morning it was looking like it was going to clear and brighten! Yes!! After Aaron took care of some business this morning, we spent the afternoon exploring within the city limits. We visited Seward Park and did a 2.5 mile hike around the lake. It was great to get out and exercise and take a few pictures. I also saw my first ducklings of the season at the park, but they were too far away to get a good photo!
Bee on Water Iris
Beware: Lots of Poison Oak
(we saw lots of these signs along the path!)
Day 4: What a wonderful morning, finally! This morning the sun pour[ed] in like butterscotch and stuck to all my senses! (from Chelsea Morning) Yay Sunshine! Today I met Jill for the first time (another online friend from the Daily Pics site!) While standing outside Aaron's apartment, waiting for her to pick me up, I was dive-bombed by a pair of crows who were putting up a terrible fuss, no matter where I moved! Later I did some research and found out that crows can be very aggressive while nesting, and that there have been reports of other "attacks" here in Seattle.
One of the aggressive crows:
The fuss with the crows began when I was
photographing some pansies in front of the Red Robin:
photographing some pansies in front of the Red Robin:
When Jill arrived, we drove south to Tacoma to visit the Glass Museum and other Chihuly Glass exhibits on the Chihuly Bridge and in the Federal Courthouse. Here are some photos from that portion of the day:
Inside the Federal Courthouse (above and below)
Especially impressive was the Chihuly Bridge: a 500-foot pedestrian walkway connecting Tacoma’s Museum of Glass, the International Center for Contemporary Art, and the Tacoma waterfront. A portion of this bridge consists of dozens of multicolored ceiling panels, showcasing native-son Dale Chihuly’s stunning creations! I took at least a dozen photos of different panels until my neck and back began to protest!
Above is a collage I created from some of my photos of those ceiling panels in the Chihuly Bridge.
Jill and I at Tides Tavern in Gig Harbor, WA
View from our window table:
View from Elk Rock Overlook:
Aaron & I! This photo taken by self-proclaimed volcanic rock "expert" from North Carolina!
Getting her pups into the scene! She kept posing them on that ledge, to get the perfect shot with Mount St. Helen's in the background. It made me nervous, but she was determined, and the pups were good and didn't move!
View from Castle Rock:
View of the Lakes from Johnston Ridge:
To the top of the Ridge:
Cloud Shadows:
View from inside Johnston Ridge Observatory:
It was a wonderful outing with Jill! But the day wasn't yet finished. When Aaron got home from work, we walked to Fritz's houseboat for wine and cheese, a now annual tradition that began three years ago, when Aaron was in the Urban Design and Planning Program. (Fritz is UW Professor Fritz Wagner, Research Professor in the Department of Urban Design and Planning). This event is always fun!! Thunder and lighting punctuated our visit, sitting on the upstairs deck, and then it started to rain again on the walk back to Aaron's.
Day 5: Woke up to more rain! I rolled over and went back to sleep for a while. By the time Aaron got up for work, it looked like it was trying to clear up, so I followed Aaron out the door, and went for a walk along Lake Union. I went as far as Lynn Street, then stopped at the Market and got a few things, and started back to Aaron's along Eastlake Avenue. Just a few blocks from home, it began to pour again. The rest of the morning was very strange - clearing and raining, clearing and raining. But by 1:00PM the sun had come out and it looked like it was really going to stay nice for a while, so out I went again! This time I headed east on Fuhrman Ave, around the bend to the highway. I got some nice photos of the houseboats along Portage Bay, and my final reward of the day was a Great Blue Heron! Great walk!!!
Portage Bay Houseboats!
Marshland near the highway:
And then the biggest treat...a Great Blue Heron!!
Topping off the day was a celebration dinner for both Aaron and Julia (Aaron's 30th Birthday and Julia's Graduation from UW College of Built Environments) at Ivar's Salmon House on North Lake Union, one of my all-time favorite restaurants! The Coho Salmon is great, as is the Alaska Halibut!
Ivar's from Aaron's side of Lake Union:
Aaron & Julia
Day 6: This morning I decided to do some shopping. Driving Aaron's car (my old car) was a panic! I've done alot of walking the past two days, and my knees are protesting, so I spent the afternoon relaxing and working on my photos!
Seattle Flowers:
Day 7: The weather was "iffy" again this morning, so I spent most of it indoors on my laptop, working on photos and my blog. Aaron came home from work early and at 4PM we went to Julia's graduation and reception, followed by a BBQ and deck party at their friend Amanda's. I met Julia's Mom (Jeanne) and Dad (Chris). Nice people. Good food! No pics!
Day 8: Aaron and I took off early this morning and bussed downtown to Pike's Place Market and the Waterfront. It was a magnificent day - perfect in Seattle terms - sunny and in the 70's, without a cloud in the sky! We did lots of walking and lots of picture taking! The mountains were out in full view - the Olympics ringing Puget Sound, and Mount Rainier to the southeast. I don't recall ever seeing them so clearly in all my visits here! Mid-afternoon, we met the Lindgren's in the Olympic Sculpture Park for an hour or so, then parted company with plans to meet later for dinner! Some photos from the afternoon:
Flower Vendor
Me in front of Ivars (Downtown)
Public Stairway somewhere downtown
Aaron and his phone
Olympic Sculpture Park: Ask Me!
(Aaron, Julia, Chris & Jeanne Lindgren)
Wildflowers
More sailboats in Puget Sound
Julia & Aaron
Walking back to the bus stop, we passed the Space Needle rising from trees and sculpture
Were a Bride & Groom actually having wedding photos taken at the Experience Music Project (EMP), or was it just an ad campaign photoshoot?
Dinner with the Lindgrens outside on the deck at Maximilien's in Pike Market, with a wonderful sunset water view!
One of many groups performing in front of the original Starbucks
Inside Pike's Place Market:
Flower Vendor
On the waterfront: the Olympic Mountains provide a magnificent backdrop for sailboats on Puget Sound!
Me in front of Ivars (Downtown)
Public Stairway somewhere downtown
Aaron and his phone
Olympic Sculpture Park: Ask Me!
(Aaron, Julia, Chris & Jeanne Lindgren)
Wildflowers
More sailboats in Puget Sound
Julia & Aaron
Walking back to the bus stop, we passed the Space Needle rising from trees and sculpture
Were a Bride & Groom actually having wedding photos taken at the Experience Music Project (EMP), or was it just an ad campaign photoshoot?
Dinner with the Lindgrens outside on the deck at Maximilien's in Pike Market, with a wonderful sunset water view!
Day 9: Today we started off early to drive to Mount St. Helens, an active volcano in the Cascade Range, about 100 miles southeast of Seattle. We arrived late morning, before the crowds hit and the clouds moved in! By the time we left around 3PM, it was so overcast that St. Helens and surrounding mountains were totally invisible!
View from Elk Rock Overlook:
Aaron & I! This photo taken by self-proclaimed volcanic rock "expert" from North Carolina!
Getting her pups into the scene! She kept posing them on that ledge, to get the perfect shot with Mount St. Helen's in the background. It made me nervous, but she was determined, and the pups were good and didn't move!
View from Castle Rock:
View of the Lakes from Johnston Ridge:
To the top of the Ridge:
Cloud Shadows:
View from inside Johnston Ridge Observatory:
Day 10: Last day! After packing, Aaron and I did some errands in the morning, then took a walk along Lake Union, looking at the houseboats, which are different than the ones on Portage Bay!
Entranceway to Slip
Between houseboats
Me
California Poppy in Seattle:
Contemplative Aaron? No he was just messing with his phone!
It's been great hanging out with Aaron for ten days, as always! But all vacations must end, and this one is now over! It's off to the airport for a 9:40PM flight back to New York, arriving 5:55AM tomorrow! Adieu Seattle! Hope to come back to see you again....soon!
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