Getting To Know The Queen City Beyond Pike Place Market
One of the great mystery cities of America seems to be Seattle.
By that, I mean it’s a place a lot of people know about, but not a lot about, if you know what I mean.
Allow me to explain. People know it exists but because few have traveled there relative to more popular tourist cities, not a lot of folks have first-hand experience with it.
What they know and what impressions they have of it have been formed by what they have seen in movies, TV shows, in pictures, maybe from someone who has visited or once lived there and perhaps by watching the passionate Seahawks fans pack the stadium and loudly cheer in a cold rain.
So having been there a few times myself, I’ve compiled this list of 5 Things To Know About Seattle. By the way, this is stuff you’re not likely to see or read anywhere else. Hey, I like to be unique.
1.) Seattle Is Worth Visiting
You’ll realize this when you start reading. So start reading! Ha.
2.) It Rains, But Not In The Summertime And The Rain Is Mostly A Drizzle
Here’s an interesting fact. Seattle is tops in the USA in sales of sunglasses. The theory goes that the sun is out so infrequently, that when it happens locals forget where they put their shades and have to go buy a new pair.
Here’s another interesting fact. Seattle is a gorgeous city when it’s not raining. If you think that’s never, then go in the summertime. It’s on the ocean and colorful sailboats are often on the water. The sky is a beautiful shade of blue – the music lyric from the old Here Comes The Bride TV show, “the bluest skies you’ll ever see are in Seattle” is correct – and the temperature is a pleasant 70-something degrees.
The people are friendly and there’s a lot more to do than watch workers throw fish around Pike Place Market.
3.) There’s More To Do Than Throw Fish At Pike Place (And Here’s My To-Do List)
Pike Place Market is where to go to be a tourist. It’s a fish market with some other businesses in there, and you can’t go to Seattle without visiting it, if for no other reason to tell your friends “yes, I saw them throw a fish.”
But there’s so much more and here’s my quickie list: Just out the door and down an alley is Kell’s Irish Pub. This is a great place to hang out, have some pints and meet some locals, especially around Happy Hour time.
Walk along the waterfront. It’s a nice stroll and one time, I grabbed a beer and went aboard a tall ship that was docked there, which made for a nice use of an hour or so of my time. On weekends, I love going for a long run around Green Lake Park and hanging out there in the afternoon. Another park with a sensational view is Gas Works Park, which overlooks Lake Union.
Also, go across that tall bridge (you can walk it but don’t look down) to the funky artist area of Fremont. Here, past the statue of Lenin (yeah, what!?) you can see a movie on the wall of the Red Hook brewery. The University District is the home of the University of Washington and I love roaming around college campuses.
4.) U-Dub Has One Of Only Three College Football Stadiums On The Water
And this is a good thing.
5.) The Seattle Nightlife Is In Several Different Areas
I like to start my nightlife at Kell’s but for the real Happy Hour with a great scene, head to Paco’s in Queen Ann. This is around the Space Needle. Later, you’ll likely find me in Belltown, which is what I call the Manhattan Beach of Seattle, meaning mostly young-ish single people hang out here.
One of the big nightlife areas is Pioneer Square. This is mostly old bars but there’s some good live music (and a lively Irish bar) and it’s near the Mariners and Seahawks stadiums, which are THE places to be on game days.
Capitol Hill is nightlife Nirvana for some people but frankly it’s a bit too grungy and gay for my scene (calm down, I just want to be around girls).
So there you have it, my one-post guide quickie to Seattle.
Cheers!
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