AYCJ - Day 26 - Seattle and Bellevue

Saturday, October 2, it's day 26 in my 30-day JetBlue All You Can Jet travel adventure.

One more day in Seattle. My sister Karen picks me up from my friend Gail's house, and we go downtown to walk around Pike Place Market. It's the weekend so there are lots of people walking around. We see the fish market, the produce vendors, and other vendors selling all sorts of things.

Then because I've spent two full days immersed in many beautiful examples of fine art, I decide it's time for a little change of pace. We ask for directions to the Gum Wall. This involves going down stairs from the market to an alley down below. This is not as scary as it sounds, and I haven't researched just how, when or why the gum wall began, but... it is a wall .... of gum. It has become a bit of a tourist attraction, and here I have photos to prove it. It is, how shall I say... unique.

I'm not sure how long this gumball machine has been part of the attraction. I was told it hasn't always been here...

Then we found a restaurant called the Pink Door and got a bite to eat. The entrance is on Post Alley, where there are all kinds of shops, restaurants and bars. We each ordered a panini, while enjoying a nice view of the water from their patio. Then we couldn't resist a dessert, which consisted of 3 scoops of gelato (Italian ice cream) in dark chocolate, hazelnut, and pomegranate. Delicious.

We returned to Karen's home in Bellevue, WA, a suburb of Seattle, stopped at Trader Joe's for some 3 buck chuck, and enjoyed a delicious dinner of fresh local salmon.

In these final days of travel, I realize that 30-days of travel is about the right length for me. I have found myself thinking, "How many more flights, airports and cities do I have left? Oh, right, one more city, then I'm home!" It's been a great 26 days so far, but... I will be ready to be home by the time Wednesday rolls around.

AYCJ - Day 25 - Seattle Sculpture and Waterfront Views

It's Friday, October 1st, and Day 25 of my 30-day JetBlue All You Can Jet Adventure. Wow. It's October, and only 5 more travel days remain.

photo: View from Sculpture Park

Today Gail, her son Peter, and I drove into downtown Seattle to visit the Olympic Sculpture Park. What a beautiful spot. We strolled up paths, down sidewalks, over hills, viewing many great sculptures, in what is 9 acres of open space, free to the public, on the Seattle waterfront. Allow plenty of time to explore, and there are many places for great photos. I'm not even sure how long we walked around in there, but it was great. I do know the day started out blue sky sunny, and by the end of our walk, typical Seattle cloud cover had settled in.

The large red sculpture, titled Eagle, by Alexander Calder is one of my favorites. If you've been reading this blog since my first day of travel, you may recall that I also saw a Calder exhibit in Chicago. I always enjoy his bold, colorful, playful sculptures, mobiles and stabiles.

Photo: Calder sculpture and Space Needle

Typewriter Eraser, by Claes Oldenburg is a playful and fun sculpture. A giant sculpture of an everyday object, although we discussed the fact that many people might not even know what a typewriter eraser is. What do you think? How old does one have to be to have seen one of these in real life (and in its real size)?

Photo: Typewriter Eraser Sculpture

There are many great sculptures in this park, too many for me to talk about here. This sculpture park is definitely worth a visit.

photo: Seattle Cloud Cover sculpture

A recurring theme here seems to be art, then food. Again today, after walking around the sculpture park, we were hungry!

We walked along the waterfront, and ended up at the Edgewater Hotel. It could be called the

On-water hotel, as it is built on a pier, directly over the water. Apparently the Beatles stayed here in the 60's, and it still has its charm, designed like a lodge, with trees and timber and amazing water views. A wedding was about to start in the top floor banquet area, which looks like a great spot for an event.

We were between lunch and dinner time, so... happy hour strikes again! The three of us selected 4 items from the bar menu and it was all delicious. Patty melt sliders, 2 orders of fish and chips, and an order of lobster mac and cheese, which was rich and cheesy and delicious.

A seagull perched on the sill just outside the window as we ate, and wouldn't leave! I finally brought a few french fries outside to the patio (where it was a bit too cool and breezy for diners) and our friendly seagull gladly gobbled those up... but came back to the window to watch us finish our snacks.

Another good day of art, food, and lots of walking.

AYCJ - Day 24 - Seattle

Thursday, September 30, Day 24 of my 30-day JetBlue "All You Can Jet," "Friends and Family Across America" Adventure.

Today my friend Gail and I took advantage of Seattle public transit, and took a $2 bus ride from her neighborhood into downtown Seattle.

First stop was the Seattle Public Library. Yes, the library. If you're a fan of architecture, this building is a must. Built in 2004, and designed by Architect Rem Koolhaas, this building is a cool house indeed. In a cloudy climate like Seattle, the glass and steel building lets in an incredible amount of light. We took the elevator to the top floor, and walked down the spiral ramps, gradually descending each floor, viewing the stacks of books and varied seating areas as we walked.

Next stop was SAM. The Seattle Art Museum. Though I arrived too early for a Picasso exhibit that opens soon, there was plenty to see. As I mentioned previously in this blog, I like to visit museums because you see things you won't see in any other city. In this case, one gallery showed Aboriginal art from Australia, and I don't remember ever seeing examples of this art before, so that was fascinating. We walked through other galleries, seeing Native American art; Islamic Art; and contemporary paintings and sculpture from American, European and Chinese artists.

Like any museum visit, once you get tired of walking, it's good to take a break. So we went to the restaurant in the museum, called Taste. We were there in time for their Happy Hour, 3-6 pm, which worked out perfectly for us. A menu with $5 snacks and $3 beers was just what we needed. We shared an order of Rosemary Fries with a horseradish dipping sauce, and an order of Alsatian Flatbread, which is like a small crisp pizza, with cheese, caramelized onion and bacon. There were several other things on the menu that sounded good too, but this was just what we needed for a late afternoon pick-me-up.

We walked down to the waterfront to watch the approaching sunset over the waters of Elliott Bay in Puget Sound. Then walked back up the hill (lots of hills in Seattle) to catch the bus to return home.