Seattle and Sailing

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We arrived to Seattle on a glorious sunny day and our first stop just had to be the infamous Pikes Fish Market.  It is an icon for Seattle and yes, they do throw the fish!  The market was busy with tourists and sounds of one man bands filled the air.  I should also mention at this point the flowers.....flowers were everywhere and they grow BIG and beautiful in this environment.  We even came across a house of flowers....where even the front door was hidden in the beauty!

                                                 

We strolled the street had a wonderful lunch over looking Eliot Bay and then took a drive to Alki Beach where you can view the beautiful Seattle Skyline.

There are many wonderful bike trails throughout the city and we had hoped to cycle, but never got the chance.  However, since the weather was so beautiful and the sky clear, we decided to visit the Space Needle from the 1962 World's Fair.  In honor of the 50 year celebration, the top is painted back to its original color of orange.  Rising over 500 feet in an elevator gives way to fantastic views of the city.  There is also a rotating restaurant on top so you can dine and take in the city views!

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It was very romantic!  After our adventure, we strolled the surrounding area and decided to catch a movie on the big IMAX movie screen, one of the biggest in the country!  Not sure what we were thinking going to a 11:00pm movie that ended at 1:00am as both of fell asleep during the action packed Batman movie.  We keep forgetting that we are no longer in our twenties!

Despite the late night, we were up bright and early the next morning to explore more of Seattle....and what better way than a Duck Tour!  The 90 minute ride took us through all the "hot spots" of the city and of course into the water where we saw the house boat from the movie "Sleepless in Seattle" and one of the ships from "The Deadliest Catch"  It was a fun experience and one worth doing.  The tour ended just in time for us to meet up with my dear friend Bryan from my college days and take a sail in his 36 foot Catalina!

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I was even entrusted at the helm and took her up to 7.2 knots!  We sailed into the night and a great time was had by all.  Thank you so much Bryan and Ferdinand!  The next day we had hoped to ride the ferry over to The San Juan Islands, but I was feeling a bit under the weather....I am SURE it had nothing to do with the beer on board last night.  So, most of the day was spent relaxing which is always a good thing!  We ended our 4 day stay with a visit to Bryan's house to meet his lovely wife Susan and their amazing two boys.  We were serenaded by Jake on the violin and Willy on piano.  Bryan even pulled out the guitar and strummed a melody or two.  It was a relaxing evening and a wonderful way to end our time in Seattle.  It is always nice to reconnect with friends!  We loved Washington and all that the state had to offer....the mountains, the ocean, the islands....and we even got the sun!