We have since left that big iconic city of the Pacific Northwest, Seattle, and now find ourselves settling into our Island routines. I would one day like to return as there are many sights yet unseen, streets to be strolled & foods to be eaten. Hopefully we'll get a chance when Miki is a bit older and the weather cooperates (does it ever?), summer maybe...? I found Seattle to be a far more ethnically & racially diverse locale than I imagined. Growing up in the 80's on the east coast I was led to imagine Seattle as the cutting-edge birthplace of the white-grunge image & attitude, Pearl Jam, Starbucks & most recently, with the addition of Microsoft & other dot-com biz, Yuppie-ville. It is all these of course, yet to me it was more a blend of "shiny" Vancouver & "brick-laid" Boston: a new-world port on the Pacific meets the old establishments of early East coast cities. My 2 major complaints are the roads & lack of easy access to, or even a pedestrian-attraction on, the waterfront of Elliot Bay. According to the founding history, Seattle's "original" (i.e. white) settlers couldn't agree on the proposed road layouts. One guy (always a guy) wanted the streets oriented & parallel to the shore line; another bloke wanted them plotted to the points of the compass. Well, instead of agreeing on 1 solution they compromised and now the streets and intersections are a cluster of diagonals, one-way cross streets & chaotic intersections where the 2 original design plans meet. Ericka and I had to navigate one crosswalk in front of our hotel each morning where 9 different streets met or intersected! And then there's the ocean - in my eyes always slightly visible & gray sliding between tall slices of the downtown edifice - yet there was no real pedestrian-friendly site on the water. There are, to be sure, numerous piers high above & jutting over the water, but the only place we found even approaching an ocean-front park was at the Olympic Sculpture Park. And this site was just recently opened in January of this year! However, as someone pointed out to me one day during my lament, until recently the harbour area was home to industry, shipping & commerce; people didn't really have "leisure" time to hang out at a city seaside park - nor I imagine did they really want to what with all the stinky fishing vessels & dangerously large cargo & machinery moving about. Despite all this, I am curious to return one day...
2 comments:
That's crazy about the streets in Seattle! What were they thinking? haha. Ah well.
Oh and as a Rubber Duckie Afficianado (as my extensive rubber duck collection boasts), I approve of the ducky Miki has;-) She will love to visit Chicago and see how my bathroom will be all piratey and rubber ducky-y! (hint hint;-))
I hope Miki was allowed to eat a bit of that fine dessert!!!
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