Adventures in Seattle

Thurs. August 29: Our first day in Seattle was a full one. My daughter, Marsha, and her husband, Alex, were working, so Linda and I were on our own. We started the day with a visit to the Space Needle. While we waited to enter the historic landmark, we read murals along the walls detailing the history of the building’s planning and construction. The elevator ride to the top of the Needle took 41 seconds. The view was amazing. After our Space Needle experience, we took a short walk to a nearby restaurant that Marsha recommended — Tavern 5 Point Cafe. The burgers and fries were delicious, and the atmosphere was dive-bar quirky.

After lunch, we walked back toward the Space Needle to the Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum, located next door. We enjoyed our walk through the museum’s lovely exhibits and gardens. In addition to the glass artwork, the museum contained photographs of Dale Chihuly at work and information about his life and work.

We had some time to rest up back at our hosts’ home before heading to dinner at The Walrus and the Carpenter in Ballard. This was an upscale restaurant with many options for raw seafoods and meats, and a few cooked, plus different vegetable dishes and delicious breads and cheeses. We were glad we had made a reservation, as the place was hopping! We ordered several small plates to share before heading down the street to a concert at Conor Byrne Cooperative. This establishment had not long before been financed/sponsored by various people and groups in the community and now was a cooperative. We had purchased tickets for the Women in Folk concert in advance. We could bring our own foods, if we chose, and had to purchase any beverages there. All the singers were amazing — what a great ending this was to a lovely day!

Fri. August 30: Marsha had the day off and went with us to Pikes Place Market. We strolled along the Green-Duwamish River through the Olympic Sculpture Park on our way to the market. The market was filled with so many sights, sounds, and smells. We sampled gelato and chowder, and watched as workers at the fish market tossed fish. We bought a few souvenirs, looked at the iconic gum wall, and touched the pig sculpture for good luck. After our market fun, we took Linda to the airport for her flight back home. It was so great that she could experience Glacier and Seattle with me!

In the evening, Marsha, Alex, and I strolled through their Ballard neighborhood to check out the locks and the Hiram M. Chittenden Fish Ladder, which had an underwater viewing gallery and educational information. It was so neat! We stopped for Mexican food at Matador, and called it a night shortly after arriving home.

Sat. August 31: The day dawned lovely and sunny, which was great, because we had a hike planned. We drove an hour or so to Snoqualmie Pass, where we hiked to Olallie Lake via the Pratt Lake Trail. The hike, including walking to and from the car, was approximately 8 miles round trip. It was a beautiful trail with a gradual upward climb to reach the lake, sometimes with a wooden footbridge or just rocks to ford streams. We occasionally encountered other hikers, but the trail wasn’t too busy. Once we reached our destination, we first swam in the icy mountain lake — yes, we were crazy but determined! Then we sat by the lake and enjoyed our lunch.

After returning from the hike, we rested up a bit and enjoyed a quiet dinner at home. Later, we went out for some more live music. Ballard is an active neighborhood with many restaurants, shops, and entertainment and activity options from which to choose.

Sun. September 1: We enjoyed a quiet day, beginning with some beach time and followed by take-out Indian food for dinner. Game night rounded out the day.

Mon. September 2: Labor Day began early for us so we could get in line to catch the first ferry to Bainbridge Island. We lined up for the ferry around 7 a.m., and boarded by 8. The crossing took 35 minutes. Our goal, or should I say, my goal, on Bainbridge was to play pickleball at the Founders Courts. Bainbridge Island is where pickleball began back in the ’60s. Although the original court that was owned by pickleball’s inventors is privately owned and not available to play on, these newer courts on the island are public and had open play times that day. I enjoyed games with various welcoming people, including Jim, John, Paul, Eric, Cindy, Bonnie, Kimrick, Janet, and Myra and her daughter, Julia. We were interrupted after a bit by some rain, and after rolling the courts, got them dry enough to continue playing. After a couple hours, Marsha and Alex returned for me and we headed back to the ferry and on to Ballard.

In the evening we had a lovely Vietnamese dinner on a Seattle rooftop hosted by two of Marsha and Alex’s friends, Sharon and Natasha. The food was delicious, and I enjoyed meeting so many of their friends.

Tues. September 3: While Marsha and Alex worked, I drove 20 minutes up the road to play pickleball at the Shoreline courts. Everyone was very welcoming, and I played with Maddie, Tom, Denise, Tim, Ish, Ross, Jennifer, Steve, and a few others. The day continued with a long walk with my daughter after her work day ended, and a quiet evening at home.

Wed. September 4: This was another work day for the kids, so I headed out to some new (to me) courts at Green Lake. These six outdoor courts were only a fifteen-minute drive away. The stacking method was interesting — you stacked your paddle on the pavement with the handle facing a certain direction, based on your skill level in the game. After some discussion with one of the players, I stacked my paddle with the handle slanting between one category and another. I enjoyed my play with different people including Akiko, Mo, Bob, two Steves, and Nick.

In the evening, we got some groceries and grilled up on their rooftop. I was sad to leave them, but we had made the most of our time together. The next day, I loaded up my car and hit the road once more, heading on to Oregon.