The Pacific Northwest, day 1 part 1

As promised, I will start writing about a recent trip to Washington and Oregon that Kate and I took in early July. This trip was very last minute it was looking as though we would be having a staycation or perhaps a drive up to Montreal and Quebec, and we pulled the trigger and rolled the dice weeks before the vacation. Both Kate and I had been busy between school and work, and we now had a bit of a break. This trip was a welcome reprieve and I have no regrets!

 The first day in Seattle happened to coincide with pride day, and of course our hotel ended up being on the opposite side of the parade route. While the atmosphere was fun and memorable, we were tired and I couldn't help but grumble a bit when we were told by an officer that we'd have to walk out of our way to get around the route. We stayed at the Belltown Inn which I would recommend to anyone looking for an affordable, clean hotel in Seattle. The neighborhood was nice close to restaurants, bars and the space needle and it was a short walk to the public market, which is similar to Fanieul hall in Boston, but is more of a functioning food market than a glorified food court. It has a fantastic atmosphere, and some scenic views of Puget Sound. We would have our first meal here (I had a lovely Salmon sandwich), and would walk through it a couple of times.

 Local brew in the market, waiting for my food!

 Characteristic clouds in Seattle, however we typically had beautiful blue skies throughout our trip.

 Totem poles, apparently Seattle "stole" one of these from the Native Americans in the area, and later was made to pay up.

 The original Starbucks in the Public Market. The inside doesn't really look any different than the average Starbucks, but people still wait many minutes to get in. The primary difference- the mermaid has nipples.

 This totem pole is in Pioneer Square, a historic district that had an interesting museum on the "Gold Rush" and how it essentially built Seattle. While there was no gold in Seattle, the city became a stopping off point for those headed to the Yukon. Below I am passed out tired from walking and jet-lag at Zeitgeist Coffee, which was ranked #9 of Seattle's Coffee houses on the list I've linked to.

Am I ready to walk more? Maybe, either way I will.