So you might have seen The List and read about Seattle Center in my previous post.
The next day the weather was not looking good so we decided to take the car over to Seattle. That meant we could easily go to all the fun neighborhoods all in one day – Queen Anne, Ballard, Fremont, Wallingford, and the University District!
Queen Anne was our old neighborhood. We used to rent on the Counterbalance, where TV’s Frasier supposedly lived. It’s a great neighborhood, close to downtown, but full of its own attractions. We stopped to take a picture at the picture postcard view spot – Kerry Park on W. Highland Drive – an amazing view rain or shine. It’s about the only place you can get the Space Needle and downtown Seattle all in one view. It’s the Frasier view, as close as you can get in real life.
It was raining quite a bit… I didn’t get a really good shot of B and J – oops!
Down behind Queen Anne is Ballard. Not my favorite neighborhood, but there are some fun parts. You can see Fisherman’s Terminal, where the Deadliest Catch boats are moored when they’re not up in Alaska catching crab. The Ballard Locks, where the Lake Union ship canal joins Salmon Bay and the Puget Sound, is one draw. There’s a fish ladder there where you can see salmon headed upstream in certain seasons (next time). The locks also have a nice little cafe (the Lockspot) and lovely gardens.
We checked out a few Ballard stores that looked like our guests’ kind of thing. Monster Art and Clothing was a highlight. One of our local Kitsap artists was featured on the wall, and the creative decoration and reworking of tshirts was quite tempting/inspiring.
One neighborhood over, Fremont could have had its own list – it’s one of my favorite places to wander. Sadly we forgot to go into the library (a beautiful arts and crafts structure with a stunning curved wood beamed ceiling) because we were driving instead of walking between the Fremont Troll and the statue of Lenin. Yes, Fremont, self-proclaimed center of the universe, has both a troll under a bridge and a giant communist statue. It is a unique piece, depicting Lenin as a revolutionary instead of as a thoughtful scholar, and as a bonus, it’s for sale for a very reasonable price. We saw the rocket and the dressed up “Waiting for the Interurban” statue, but not the dinosaurs (I think there are dinosaurs made from trees, but I haven’t found them yet) or the tribute to local clown JP Patches (who died that week). We checked out a vintage shop full of fun, but didn’t make it over to Gas Works Park (next time, next time).
B got a better picture of Lenin…
One more neighborhood over, Wallingford might be cool – I don’t know. The only place I know there is Archie McPhee’s. They don’t suck me in with their novelties and bits and bobs any more.
I go for the photo booth! Sepia toned classic photo strips. And they don’t mind if you borrow props from the store for your pictures, as long as you put them back when you’re done. We just crammed into the booth as we were, with some difficulty!
And then we dashed up to the U District to find a shop that had closed down. Bummer! Once up and down the Ave, into the gargoyle shop (gargoyles are cool) and then it was beer o’clock (for some people) before we braved pre-rush hour traffic home.
Jo:)
adventures in the here now 