Seattle, Washington

A view of Seattle from Kerry Park with Mount Rainier in the background.

The vacataion started with a drive to Buffalo, NY. where we had a "sleep, park & fly" hotel booked for the night before our flight. The car overheated in Niagara Falls - great, just what we needed at the beginning of two weeks vacation and on a Saturday afternoon when everything would be closed in 45 minutes. Anyways, we got into Buffalo okay in the end. We flew early the next morning to St. Paul, MI changed planes for Seattle, WA. I have always loved being near the ocean. Puget Sound glimmered in the setting sun. Fresh seafood, great coffee and famous west coast beers here we come! I was so tired but also very excited to finally have arrived.

We stayed at The Moore Hotel (www.moorehotel.com). It is in the heart of Seattle. Not only is it an economical place to stay, it is within walking distance of so much to do & see. The old building has character, friendly front desk staff and it's conveniently located near the Seattle Art Museum, Pike Market, and loads of shops & restaurants. Parking is very expensive in Seattle so it's a good idea to park the car in one spot and then take alternative modes of transportation while in the city. Public transit is free in the downtown core.

Our indoor picnic.

Next to our hotel the Moore Theatre had a marquee advertising that Feist would be performing that evening. Yes, in hind sight I should have gone but I was wiped. Call me old but I couldn't muster the energy to even go out for dinner. Instead, we picked up some stuff at the Pike Market and had a wonderful pinic dinner in our room. Some old cheese, pickled beets, French stick, salad and of course beer.












Pike Market is packed with vendors of all kinds. Fresh fish,cut flowers and produce,bakeries, imports from exotic places and my favourite was a great comic book shop in the basement. Wandering around has it's rewards.


Seattle has pigs the way Toronto has moose. I think I photographed twenty or so all over the city. This golden pig is right in front of the most popular fish vendor. If you hang around long enough you can watch as they call out an order. The fish mongers will skillfully throw a huge salmon into the air for another guy to catch in some brown paper for shipping. They advised that they can ship anywhere in the continental US for next day delivery by UPS.

Lowell's inside the market's main building where you can dine with a view of Puget Sound.
Dungeness Crab Omlette...so good we went twice!

Experience Music Project is an interactive music museum featuring the history of modern American music with a special focus on Jimmy Henrix. Because your admission gets you into the Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame as well, planning your day with enough time to take in both will let you get lots of bang for your buck. (http://www.emplive.org/visit/index.asp?categoryID=160) I found that even getting through EMP was a lot to get through. They have a bar with a descent selection of draft for those that need a break from information overload.

Hopvine Bar & Bistro was recommended to us by the young man at the front desk. Unfortunately, he gave us the approximate location and we ended up wandering around for over an hour. I was hungry and tired and we were going to miss happy hour. I was very unhappy at this point. By the time we got there I was very unpleasant company and I think I scared away our first server. Thank goodness the place had excellent beers. I started with the Point Defiance IPA. It had enough hops to wipe out my foul mood - delicious and thirst quenching. I then had the Rogue Shakespear Stout which to my surprise, I didn't enjoy as much. Their nachos with homemade salsa was very good. I would recommend Hopvine to any who are looking for a good selection of American draft with a focus on locally made brews. (507 Fifteenth Avenue East at the north end of Seattle.)

On the walk back to the hotel, we passed the other place we were looking for but missed completely, the Stumbling Monk (1635 East Olive at Belmont Avenue East). It is very poorly marked with a small, dark wooden sign above the entrance door. It specializes in Trappist-style Belgium beers. We didn't stay for a drink but checked their chalkboard. They have excellent prices for these kind of imports. They open late in the day (after 8 pm?) and it is a very understated - no fancy decor, more like a friend's basement.

This was written on the sidewalk outside Hopvine. Kinda reflects the laid back attitude of the hippy culture that is the underlining pulse of Seattle.

Seattle Art Museum located a stone's throw from Pike Market. It houses a good collection of contemporary art as well as some execellent historical pieces. I really enjoyed how the curator choose to display pieces from different disiplines and eras together. Rather than showing pieces grouped by time period, it is apparent that their focus was to show relationships and connections of the pieces themselves. It was a fresh way to present a whole new approach to looking at art.

Pike Pub & Brewery is opposite the Seattle Art Museum. It is big and slick and I was not expecting too much from it but it was a convenient place for lunch so we stopped in. Both Bier Guide and I had the tasting tray.
He correctly ordered the pulled pork sandwich. I incorrectly ordered the hummus veggie sandwich. Many of the beers were competent but nothing to write home about. Don't get me wrong, it's always good to try local and never write off anything until you've given it a try but would I go back? Likely not. (http://www.pikebrewing.com/)