Seattle

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So today was my full day in Seattle and my first port of call was the Pike Place Markets which is definitely catered towards tourists as the seafood prices were a little extravagant compared to what you could get from the supermarkets here. I ventured throughout the market and saw plenty of produce along with arts and crafts but the most notable stall was the one selling flavoured dried pastas. They had a dark chocolate pasta which would have been good for a creative dessert dish if you like cooking.

My next stop was the North Face store to buy a cold climate jacket and ended up getting a windproof soft shell which will help me in Canada. It was only $140 which is a bargain for the quality of it. Decided to drop off my new purchase at the hotel and came to the realisation that Seattle is very hilly if you decided to walk from the waterfront up to downtown from certain sections. Makes San Francisco seem flat but I need the exercise anyway with all the food I'm eating.

My next tourist attraction was the Underground City tour which was very interesting. Basically Seattle was originally built too low so the high tides pushed water and sewerage back into downtown. So when the great fire destroyed the low lying sections, they built over it and the 2nd storey then became street level and everything below was filled in. Certain original street level buildings were preserved underground and hence this tour. My guide Gail was extremely funny, engaging and could tell a good story and she made the 90 minutes seem much less which is to her credit. Certainly somebody who enjoys their job and is happy doing it - kudos!

From there I wandered past King St Amtrak station where I would catch the train to Canada tomorrow morning before entering Chinatown which borders that station. Found a busy Pho place which was ideal on this chilly cloudy Seattle day and I was happy with my choice as it certainly was a good quality Pho. Needed to walk off lunch so walked the length of the Seattle waterfront from Pike Place back down to the ferry terminal. Although I was full, couldn't resist buying some battered fresh oysters which were deep fried. With a little hot sauce, they went down very well. I then went back to the Westlake area and did some window shopping to kill sometime and ended up having a late dinner at Blue C Sushi which is a upmarket sushi train and I loved the way the interior was decorated. After having some sake with my meal, I decided to retire after my pretty busy day and with all the walking I had done, I was quite tired. Tomorrow would be an early start as the Amtrak train departs at 7:40am.

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