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August 10, 2004
Riding Around America: First Days in Seattle
I left Portland Sunday afternoon aboard the Cascades, which is almost like a commuter train between Portland Seattle. It was a short trip at only four hours and it was the most unique train I've traveled on so far. It makes several trips back and forth between the two cities each day and has an engine and baggage car on each end of the train for quick turnarounds. The cars are regular size, not double deckers like the Superliner's and are much nicer. Each car has several televisions which show a route map and current location of the train, like trans-oceanic flights do. The seats have much less leg room, however, which is justifiable considering the short duration of the trip. I slept msot of the way and missed a lot of scenery unfortunately and the trip was pretty uneventful until the train reached the Seattle-Tacoma area. As we were riding past an airfield the conductor directed our attention to a huge crowd of people looking up in the sky. Apparently there was an airshow going on and the Blue Angels were flying around. I caught a glimpse of them several times as they flew low in the sky, making elaborate smoke patterns in their wake.
I headed to the hotel when I got off the train and eventually found it. It's located right in the center of downtown, a short 12 story building amongst skyscrapers. I unloaded at the hotel and, since it was a nice day and still early, I decided to go up in the Space Needle, Seattle's famous landmark.
The Space Needle was built in 1962 for the World's Fair and looks as good now as it probably did when it was built. It's impressive from all angles, and looks as if it could have been built just a few years ago. I walked around underneath it for about an hour, looking at the other buildings nearby. The Experience Music Project sits next door, in a multicolored blob-like building. It's interesting, but it's still a blob. Another remnant of the '62 Fair is a large, earth shaped fountain. It shoots water over 30 feet in the air, and little kids were dancing around in it.
Finally, I bought a ticket for the Space Needle and went inside. After a short wait in line, a group of us jammed into an elevator and shot up to the top. I say shot because the elevators actually go pretty fast. They also have windows in them and a guide points out some of the sights on the way up. The enclosed platform at the top has multiple levels. The bottom is taken up by a rotating restaurant which is powered by a 1.5 horsepower motor with a very high gear ration. The upper level has a small exhibit about the history of the Needle, and then of course there's an outdoor viewing platform. The view from the platform is simply spectacular. It was a brilliantly clear day and Mt. Rainier stood out clearly, despite being nearly 100 miles away. The mountain is so huge that it looks fake and the view of the mountain and the downtown buildings combine to make Seattle one of the most beautiful skylines I've ever seen. The view of Seattle from the Space Needle is better than the view of New York from the Empire State Building and certainly better than the view of Paris from the Eiffel Tower. It really is that spectacular.
After taking in the view for nearly a half hour I went back down to ground level and then walked along the Seattle waterfront. it was Sunday and late in the day so not much was going on in the city. The famous Pike Place Market was closing down and there weren't many people on the streets so I went back to the hotel and relaxed for the rest of the evening. That was Sunday.
Yesterday the first thing I did was walk to the Seattle Public Library. The central branch is two blocks from my hotel which is very convenient because the library has free wireless internet access. The library building itself is brand new and just opened a couple of months ago. I won't say much about the library know because I plan to devote an entire entry to it in the future but I will say this: it is stunning. After a couple of hours of catching up on emails and walking around the library I went down to the waterfront and walked out on some of the piers. I grabbed some "chips and salmon" for lunch which was pretty good and then went back to the Pike Place Market.
Although the market isn't quite as large as I expected, it was much busier than it was the day before and the stalls were filled with merchants selling everything from paintings to fish to fruits and vegetables. I bought a small painting of the Seattle skyline from one of the artists which will look nice on my wall back home.
Next I went to the Pike Place Fish Market which is semi-famous for being the place where the workers throw fish around. There was a crowd of several dozen people standing around watching these guys do their thing. The workers throw big fish to each other for packaging and let members of the audience hold the fish for photo opportunities. It's fun to watch and I got a few good pictures which I will post later.
I walked around downtown for a few more hours and went to a grocery store to pick up some food before heading back to the hotel, and then back to the library before it closed. Can you tell that I really like this library?
Today will be filled with more tourist type activities. I'm going to try and hit three things today: Klondike Gold Rush National Park, a Russian submarine, and an underground tour. Then tonight I'm going to Safeco Field to see the Seattle Mariners take on my favorite baseball team, the Minnesota Twins. So far, it looks like a great day for baseball.
Posted on August 10, 2004 at 11:26 AM
Comments
Pikes Market!? Get some Market Spice Tea! Great stuff... I see I can order it on the Internet now.... you have to be careful and refrigerate it when you use it, or it can go bad...
Posted by: Joel at August 10, 2004 10:02 PM
Really enjoying this. Saw your "shameless plug" on Frommers' message boards, and have been returning to read as the adventure unfolds. Good luck! (You'll pass a mile from me between SDY and ALB on the CHI/NYP leg of your trip)
Posted by: Robert Bump at August 11, 2004 2:08 PM
You guys are the 66218 best, thanks so much for the help.
Posted by: Caty Tota at June 17, 2006 7:14 AM