Sleepless in Seattle!

Well, Meg Ryan! I am not, but I have been Sleepless in Seattle for last 30 hours! Sadly, neither have I met a Tom Hanks lookalike either, but hv met many lovely people.

Leaving Dublin, I was so well looked after by the wonderful Aer Lingus cabin crew and especially cabin manager Shane. Fab service throughout the almost 10 hours flight to Tacoma International, where Aer Lingus now fly 5 times weekly. We arrived into a wet and grey afternoon which was disappointing, but Seattle is known for its damp climate. My kamikaze Ethiopian cab driver pointed out places of interest to me, as he flew into Downtown! He showed me what I had thought to be another airport, but he identified as the Boeing dispatch facility! Here the Aircraft are ‘collected’ by the customers! Hundreds of aircraft of varying sizes scattered all over the tarmac, having come from the Boeing HQ 40 miles other side of the City. An interesting place to visit, on another trip, it being the largest aircraft manufacturing facility in the world.

Hotel Theodore greeted me warmly and upgraded me to a Suite! Happy days! Located centrally on 7 th Avenue I had selected it as it was smaller than many other international brands and was supposed to hv jazz sessions in the evening, but not while I was there. In order to stay awake for a couple of hours to help my body clock adjust, I strolled out. There is a big homeless problem in the City, but then, what major city doesn’t suffer in this way. I saw many people bedding down in the shadow of large department stores, but felt quite safe walking alone. Surprise surprise, the shops were open til 9 pm, so , one had to browse in Saks 5 th Ave, Barneys, Gap and Nordstrom! The shoes and the boots were to die for, but sadly my luggage allowance was already well stretched! However I did manage a few purchases and when I discovered a Sephora, stocked up on my make up. Final visit to Barnes and Noble across the street from the hotel where I guiltily noted some US writers works for download on my Kindle! Books are just too weighty to pack and transport! But I did make some magazine purchases and children’s books for the gorgeous Hannah! Lovely restaurant attached to the hotel Riders where Amber looked after me and gave me some local tips. A group of 9 from Portland rocked up beside me and when they heard I had just arrived fm Ireland, the red head in the group, told me her ancestors hailed fm Kilkenny! They invited me to join them, but sleep was beckoning, or so I thought and I sadly declined.

I had a plan to see as much as I could of Seattle in the short time I was there, so with the help of Derek, the manager and my own plans, I set out early morning to start with a tour of Underground Seattle, as recommended by Shane of Aer Lingus! I had not found this in my research, but it was a great Tour. Effectively it is the old part of Seattle that existed at sea level until the end of 19 th Century when following the Great Fire of the City, it was razed to the ground. The engineering feat to rebuild on top of the old city is quite fascinating and walking through what were originally the sidewalks as u hear people walking above you, is quite eerie. Patti, our guide from Underground tours was enthusiastic and regaled us with great stories of houses being relocated, speakeasys and places of “negotiated pleasure” being run in these underground caverns during Prohibition and how it has now become a popular tour to do, by locals and tourists alike. This all took place in Pioneer Square which actually is not a Square, but an area with lots of examples of an older style of Architecture , as seen in the Smith building and the Pioneer building but sitting comfortably alongside modern sky scrapers such as the Columbia building. I then took my self along to the Klondike Gold Rush Museum to learn how Seattle became rich as a result of the Gold Rush at the end of 19 th Century. Most interesting facts figures and photographs, poignant stories of men and women ,many of who lost everything and few who became millionaires. Fascinating to see the list of essentials they needed to bring, from warm underwear, to shovels and food, enough for a year, all of which they had to carry themselves, like pack mules, over unforgiving territory in the Yukon.
The Pioneer Square area is full of small niche art galleries, interior design shops and antique bookstores, many housed in eclectic buildings with lovely features. Calm and serene type of area , very different to my next port of call, Pike Market!

Situated at the Waterfront, this vast fish, fresh produce and flower market, has to be seen to be believed! The fishmongers must also be singers and actors and to see them throw the fish to one another as they chant in unison is magic! So also is the fish! I don’t think I hv ever seen such huge salmon, coming from Alaska ,I was told. The flowers are magnificent, stalls run by Phillipinos and Hmong people from the Vietnamese/Chinese border. Lovely gentle ladies, I had a long conversation with some of them about the magnificent dahlias on sale and grown on a farm close to the City. Adjacent to the market is the first ever Starbucks, with a line a mile long, so I didn’t stay. Fab area to visit, lots of food to go, outlets and sitting areas overlooking the waterfront to relax and picnic , as well as many mainly seafood restaurant, but very busy and crowded.

Time to stoke the battery with coffee, dozens of outlets everywhere, popped into Macy’s, as u do, then off on the Metro shuttle to the Space Needle. I felt rather proud of myself that I mastered both the underground train system and the overground Metro, latter which was originally built for the State Fair in 1962! The Space Needle, which dominates the Seattle skyline is a must go, but the queuing!!!! Massively popular, after buying ur ticket and allowed thru on ur time slot , it can take almost 30 minutes to get into the lift to go up! It is quite fantastic when u get up there, with the most amazing views and the revolving glass floor, but not so fast as to make u dizzy! An unusual sensation as u see the world below u disappear as u stand still!

More queuing to get back to Terra firma when I make my way to the Museum of Pop Culture created by Paul Allen , joint founder of Microsoft, also conceived in Seattle! A monument to pop, its zany, quirky and one cud spend hours there. I followed the Jimi Hendrix, Nirvana, Prince and Queen sections and having being wrapped around in sound and vision for sometime, I felt quite energised on leaving and bopped my way back on the train for Happy Hour at the hotel!! Many other attractions in that area, many designed and geared for children.

By now the energy levels were beginning to plummet but I was determined to see the Amazon HQ, not accessible to the general public , but worth a look, so off I went. At this stage my Fitbit had clicked up 30 Km’s and boy did I feel it! Down 7 th Avenue for about 6 blocks ( how great is the US grid system, so easy to use). Incredible buildings on the way , so much so, I stopped a few times to check, but when I reached No. 2102 there was no doubt that this was Amazon. A triple spherical building, beautifully located within visual distance of the Waterfront, it was a sight to behold. There is access to a foyer area where one is surrounded by 3D wraparound screens highlighting various aspects of bio diversity, with incredible imagery. There are videos of different senior management explaining how Bezos was determined to locate his HQ in Seattle, where he is from and how he wished the company to create a distinct type of working environment for his employees and how the Company has succeeded in doing just that. Amazing!

I am writing this on the Victoria Clipper as we sail out of Puget Sound and into the Pacific Ocean en route to Vancouver Island. It’s a beautiful clear morning with small fishing vessels in the water and wooded areas to our left and right. There ur reputedly 74 Orca whales and some very large octupui( not sure of the plural of octopus) in these waters, so we may be lucky to see some of them on our three hour journey into Canada!

Safely arrived in the rain to the Union Club of British Columbia, frozen in time, but more of that anon! So, Canada is now my oyster for the next few weeks. I am having difficulty downloading some of the great pics to illustrate my adventures, but please bear with me, while I overcome this latest IT challenge! In the meantime I will continue to write.