Jeabet (daughter) and Liam (grandson) rode over on the Puget Sound ferry from Bremerton to Seattle and we drove from Kent to meet them in Seattle at the waterfront.We all had perfect timing and saw each other right away. Liam was super excited to see us even though we had only been gone a day. I sure love his sweet self. He saw the big ferris wheel and I asked him if he wanted to get on it and without hesitation said, “nope.” I was relieved because I sure as heck did not want to either.
Our first stop was the Seattle Aquarium.
Keep in mind that it is fairly small and does not house any large sea life like sharks, whales or dolphins. We did have fun watching the seals and otters as they are so cute and always wanting to put on a show. It is a learning aquarium with many hands on type of exhibits for adults and children and learning areas. It did take only 90 minutes before we had seen the entire place though and as we were leaving, the most exciting thing Liam saw was the scuba diver inside the large tank feeding the fish. She waved at him and he was beyond happy. I had just purchased him a set of toys which included a scuba diver, so he thought he was something else. (by the way, he really is).
Then we headed over to Pikes Place Market to have some lunch and look around. There is a LONG set of stairs then up Pikes Place Hill Climb which just about did us all in. It is a fairly long walk up a steep hill. You also pass the gum walls where everyone sticks their old gum and I really had to wonder who started that trend? Watch out where you step too.
We lunched at Pike Place Chowder and obviously had chowder. I had the sampler pack and was able to try four different kinds. I shared with everyone else too. There was plenty to go around. By the way, they ship. I thought the New England Clam Chowder was the best. http://www.pikeplacechowder.com
There were so many street performers even though the temperatures were still cool, and you want to help them all out but there are just too many. One really stood out from the rest and we stood around for a while and really enjoyed his show. Even Liam remained quiet and entertained. He was quite amazing and funny.
You can check him out at www.EmeryCarl.com
After that we really needed to walk and digest some food. We did not get far until we came upon Le Panier and the thought of a good baguette was too tempting to pass up. We got in line and then a woman and daughter scooted ahead of us, I am assuming not realizing we were already in line and I asked them, “are you in line?”. She had a snippy attitude response, so I called her out on her attitude and she did not have much to say after that.
We went in for a baguette but came out with eclairs, merengue, torte and macaroons as well. Try the pistachio macaroon if you visit. Everything else was just as delicious. Liam scarfed an eclair in seconds then wanted ice-cream. Yes, I bought him ice-cream too. He can sure eat when he wants to. http://www.lepanier.com/#ourstory
After the stuffing of our faces, we strolled through the market and loved all the beautiful flowers and a vegetarian’s dream come true with the freshest most colorful produce stands I have ever seen. We bought many items but my favorite was the “Opal Apple.” It was very crowded so having a stroller was not the best idea.
We watched the amusing, silly fish throws that are one of the main attractions at the market and had a few good laughs.
I shook hands with a friendly Muslim gentleman serving free coffee and offering peace to all and thanked him, as I felt it was very brave and humbling for him to be doing this. I did not have coffee though, too late in the day for me.
We walked over to a Target on the corner, it was 3 floors, to buy a booster car seat for Liam so we could all ride to check out Chinatown and see more city sites. Jeabet wanted to see the troll underneath the overpass. It is a tourist “attraction” and I had never even heard about it. It is huge.
Sadly as we drove around and walked the city streets, it became abundantly clear that Seattle has a real issue with its homeless population. It is a bit difficult to explain to a six year old why a person is sleeping on a street corner over a grate in hopes of staying warm. Liam thought he was “playing dead.”
We decided a fun ride on the Monorail was next, which travels from Seattle Center Station (adjacent to the Space Needle) and Westlake Center Station (5th Avenue and Pine Street), walked around the mall some, bought some candy, grabbed a pretzel then headed back. Liam thought it was fabulous, and to see his little enchanted face, made driving through the city for me most definitely worth it. http://www.seattlemonorail.com
Before the Monorail ride, Liam was surprised to meet and get pictures with Darth Vadar and a Storm Trooper. He is a bit of a Star Wars fanatic and he now wants a Storm Trooper costume very bad. LOL
The daylight hours were winding down and it was time for us to drop them off at the ferry, then drove back to our hotel and collapsed from tiredness.
Yep, realized Seattle is by far the worst place I have ever driven for road conditions and other drivers.
Recent Comments