Pike Place Market, like the Space Needle, is so synonymous with Seattle. Every picture or video I’ve ever seen of it though is always of that same fish counter where they throw whole fish back and forth between the customers. That’s cool and all, and they were doing some of that when we went, but it didn’t even come close to being the coolest thing we saw at the market.

Being a foodie, I was much more thrilled with the absolutely gorgeous produce!

And sure, there’s fish too…

There were so many unusual foods that I have never seen in any Atlanta market, like ereyngii mushrooms and halibut cheeks. I would lose my mind and the entire contents of my wallet if I shopped there regularly!

There were also vendors of all sorts. You couldn’t walk ten steps without hitting a tulip stand.

And of course there was plenty of other various and sundry weirdness…

Hand-made ocarinas and cats in sweaters, two things I did not expect to see!

Also, the first Starbucks ever in existence is right outside. We just peeked our heads in but didn’t buy anything. Strangely, we didn’t patron a single Starbucks the entire time we were in its hometown.

We got a recommendation from a local to go see the Chittenden Lochs. I wasn’t sure what to expect from it, I’m not really into boats and other nautical stuff like that. We were gonna be in the neighborhood one day though so we decided to check it out anyway. So glad we did!

Here you can see side by side how the water level changes to raise and lower the ships. These are two different boats, but you get the idea. It actually happens really fast too, in less than 5 minutes the loch fills with around 12 feet or so of water!

And then there was the dam and fish ladder…

Apparently when it’s the right season, tons of fish shoot out of those pipes backwards! We didn’t see any fish, but it was still cool to be there next to the immense sound of the crashing water.

The fish ladder was inside, and it was so dark that none of my pictures came out. I had no idea what a fish ladder was but apparently it simulates an uphill against-the-current swim for salmon so they will instinctively use it to pass the dam and continue on their journey.

Really cool way to take advantage of an otherwise gloomy day. If that isn’t a Pacific Northwest experience I don’t know what is.

So, Jeff and I aren’t really into doing too much touristy stuff on vacations. We try our best to just do what we would do if we actually lived in that place, like go to bars and restaurants and walk around a lot. And that was the bulk of this vacation too.

That means that next up is: Food and drank!

May 13, 2011 Alayna Discussion 5 comments

It’s really hard for me to pick which neighborhood of Seattle was my favorite. I think Jeff loved Capitol Hill the most with its urban grunge, tattoo shops, and hip bars and restaurants frequented by the young 20’s crowd. I liked Ballard, a seemingly upscale and trendy area with tons of eating and shopping that manages to come to life at night.

From our hotel we could see the downtown area only a few blocks away. Seattle as a whole was very walkable, and anywhere you couldn’t walk you could take a bus. And the buses are much nicer and cleaner than Atlanta’s Marta system, which frankly scares me.

We definitely spent the most time in Belltown though, being that our hotel was there and we wanted to be able to walk to most of the things we did. From what I understand, Belltown used to be a bit seedier and industrial but has recently boomed with tons of bars and restaurants aimed at roping in the happy hour crowd and holding onto them for the night.

We were just 2 blocks from the Space Needle, though we decided not to go up it (Jeff and I both don’t like heights.) But just under the Space Needle was another attraction that did sound interesting – The Experience Music Project and Science Fiction Museum.  Yes, a music and sci-fi museum, together!

They were showing exhibits on the life of Jimi Hendrix, the story of Nirvana as a band and as the influence of an era, and even….Battlestar Galactica! I’m really showing my nerd colors now!

Jeff thought it was hilarious how excited I was about this. He probably had the most fun in the sound lab playing around with all the instruments. Isn’t my guitar-god husband so sexy? 😉

Sadly, we were too early for a huge Avatar exhibit that is coming to the museum soon. That would have been pretty cool.

One other neat attraction just a few blocks from us was the Olympic Sculpture Park, an outdoor extension of the Seattle Art Museum.

It was so cool! A beautiful waterfront park with huge modern art sculptures and amazing concrete architecture…

This picture doesn’t do that metal tree sculpture justice, it was enormous and far below the balcony we were standing on.

I called this one the “red elephant.” I don’t know why but it just reminded me of an elephant somehow.

And there were amazing views everywhere you looked.

My husband emits rainbows…

Eye see you!

We weren’t sure what to expect from the sculpture park, but it ended up making for a great date, along with a stroll along the piers with a view of Mt. Rainier in the distance.

Next time: Pike Place Market and the Chittenden Loch.

May 12, 2011 Alayna Discussion 8 comments

Finally getting around to writing about our recent Seattle vacation. Jeff and I have both been really jet-lagged and not sleeping well because we got a little spoiled by the super-comfy hotel bed! It’s safe to say a new mattress is in our future.

So anyway — general attitude towards the city of Seattle: I LOVED IT.

The whole frickin’ city felt like it was personally hand-crafted with me in mind. Everywhere we went we were completely blown away by how good the food was, how the vibe was just right, how polite and friendly the people were, how clean the air smelled, how interesting the trees were, how easy it was to get around, how distinct the neighborhoods were, how fresh the fish was, how beautiful the mountains were……..I could go on and on.

I mean, I wasn’t even off the plane before I was in awe of the landscape. Check out this view of Mount Rainier peeking up over the clouds from our plane window.

And beneath us rolled more blue-colored mountains with white-capped peaks covering the landscape like a wrinkled satin bedsheet. It was an amazing welcome.

We spent our first full day walking through literally miles of nature paths. Our first stop was the Japanese Gardens, approximately 3 acres of minutely manicured traditional gardens surrounding a lake full of enormous glittering koi.

I could have watched those koi for hours….if not for being distracted by this little guy….

And these guys…

Apparently there was a steampunk convention going on that day and there were around 20+ people in full garb. Awesome.

After the Japanese Gardens we took a break for lunch and then headed back to the Arboretum. An arboretum is essentially a “tree garden.” This one was over a mile wide and absolutely covered in trails that lead you through many different species of local foliage.

I was so inspired by all the beautiful things around me that I even started putting together an art project! I took a bunch of photos from around the park to include in a “texture study.”

I haven’t felt inspired to create art in a long time. I can’t wait to use those images in a real-life piece!

The arboretum was really amazing. It was a very relaxing way to spend our first full day in Seattle. Touring gardens is probably one of our very favorite things to do on vacations for just that reason.

Tomorrow: The Olympic Sculpture Gardens and the Music and Sci-fi Museum!

May 11, 2011 Alayna Discussion 7 comments