US Holiday - Day 24 - Seattle - Day 3

Day 24 - Sunday 2nd October

Yep the weather is better today which is a good thing. So first cab off the rank is the Underground Tour at 11am. I was up and out the door walking down towards Pioneer Square. As I walked down there was a number of people in NFL shirts. I was early for the tour so continued onto the area around the NFL stadium. People were already getting into the spirit of the game and making their way into the pubs surrounding the ground. The car park located next door was also starting to fill up and people were setting up for the tailgating. BBQ's and marquees were setup and music pumping. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. NFL is huge here.

So it was now about time to get back to the get my ticket for the Underground Tour. At about 10.50am they started filing everyone into an old bar from the late 1800's located next door to the ticket office. There were over 120 people on the tour which was an amazing number. We were given a history of Seattle and the Pioneer Square area and why the tour was created back in 1960's. I feel that the Rocks area in Sydney and Pioneer Square in Seattle still exist because of the same reason, people familiar with the area not wanting it to be dug up or redeveloped.

After the history lesson we were split into three groups and we led a short distance to where we went underground to street level back in the late 1800's. It is funny to see windows in a basement that would have been on the first floor many years ago. I won't go on any further about the reasons why, you will have to learn this for yourself when you visit Seattle. There were 2 other sections that we visited underground before being led into the gift shop. I didn't buy anything.

Next thing I wanted to cover off was the Seattle Space Needle. So walked back up the hill towards the start of the monorail built at the same time as the Space Needle in the early 1960's. Didn't have to wait long for the monorail and the journey time to the Space Needle was event shorter. Now don't think that the monorail in Seattle is the same as the one in Sydney. It isn't. The Seattle Monorail looks better and can fit more people on it. After getting off the monorail I bought a ticket for the Needle and in no time I was up the top on the observation deck. The views are good in all directions and put a perspective on the layout of Seattle, it's hills and water. After doing some circuits getting video and photos I made m way back down and caught the monorail back into town.

I walked through to Pike Street Market before heading down to the waters edge. I was going to finish off the day with a 1 hr cruise. That left at 4pm and did a lap of the waters on the western side of Seattle called Elliot Bay. We first headed north passing the area around the Space Needle, then some parks, a grain ship being loaded and then south and passed ice breakers, cargo ships, Coast Guard boats before returning to the pier. I then proceeded back to the hotel and had an early night.

Tomorrow, the Boeing Factory and the last full day in Seattle.

US Holiday - Day 23 - Seattle - Day 2

Day 23 - Saturday 1st October

Yeah it is not looking good weather wise. Very grey outside. Got ready and headed out. Didn't bother with the SLR or the video camera, instead just taking the small little point and shoot. I decide to first head down the hill towards Pioneer Square. This is an old historic part of Seattle built on mud flats that have been built up over the years. After walking through the streets admiring the architecture I noticed that I was very close to the NFL and baseball teams that are based in Seattle. And looking at a rather large poster on the side of the NFL stadium there appears to be a match there tomorrow. All around the stadiums were pubs and shops selling jerseys and memorabilia. NFL is huge here.

Across the way was a train station so headed over there as I think it is the station I will be leaving from for Vancouver in a couple of days. The station was small but at least I know exactly where it is now. I then headed back towards Pioneer Square and purchased a ticket for Sunday for the underground tour. I got this tip from mum and dad so thanks Pat and JB. Now at this point I was only 2 blocks away from the piers that line the shore on  the western edge of Seattle. So I headed in that direction and started ticking off the piers one by one. There were some there dedicated to passenger, others a combination of car ans passengers. At this point I grabbed some lunch, some crumbed salmon and chips. Not bad.

I continued the walk passing piers that contained the aquarium, restaurants etc. I then headed up a hill towards the Seattle Space Needle. I always had the impression that it was the size of AMP Tower in Sydney. It is certainly not the tallest building in Seattle but where it is located in a fairly residential area means that it does look quite tall. Didn't go up to the observation deck, instead looking to leave that for Sunday if the weather is clear.

Headed back to the hotel at this point and then did some digging into other things to do if the weather is average on the remaining two days. One thing that caught my eye was a tour of the Boeing factory. We passed the Boeing field on the way into Seattle and they had two of the new 787's parked out there. So I decided to book it for Monday. Unfortunately no cameras allowed but will be interesting to see what they are up to out there.

Had a mid arvo nap and then chilled for the rest of the day in the hotel room. John and Trish gave me a call to let me know that they are safe and well.

Let's hope the weather is better tomorrow.