One Short Day in the Emerald City

Yesterday we spent a beautiful day exploring Seattle. We started at the picturesque University of Washington and made our way to the Seattle Center. We saw the Space Needle, International Fountain Seattle Opera, and Experimental Music Project. We made our way up to the 5th Ave theater where the marquis for the touring production of IN THE HEIGHTS is already up! We then walked down to the Farmer's Market where there are endless stalls of fresh food, flowers, and goods (lots of shopping happened here). I got to go in the first Starbucks - my dream come true. The market was lots of fun - so many people milling about, lots of fresh produce and specialized goods, and a fun and friendly atmosphere. Everyone we interacted with was so friendly - a noticeable difference from New York. Lots of bike riders and green initiatives around. We saw the Gum Wall, Seattle Aquarium, and we visited the cruise terminal where a Norwegian Cruise boat was docked. I'll be there in 5 days! The views from and around the water were stunning - mountains, trees, and water are everywhere.

We walked (a long way) up to Capitol Hill - a fun neighborhood with lots of shops and restaurants. Seattle is so much more spread out than most cities I'm familiar with (Boston, New York) - it's not as walkable, and seems a lot bigger. It's also situated on hills, and feels a little like San Francisco in that way. Michael took me to the beautiful (and huge) St. Mark's Episcopal Church where they have a 4,000 pipe organ and beautiful views. We took the bus back to Seattle Center for dinner by the International Fountain before a performance of RUINED at The Intiman Theater.

RUINED was a truly stunning production. I highly recommend learning more about it here:

http://www.intiman.org/2010Season/ruined/default.aspx

The Pulitzer Prize winning play is about the civil war in the Congo and the femicide that occured as a result of it. It was a lovely production in a beautiful theater, and a really important piece of art for 2010. The production is travelling to South Africa later in the year to share it with the large population of Congolese ex-pats in Johannesburg.

A wonderful day in the emerald city! I fell in love with Seattle and its fresh, young, do-it-yourself spirit. It has a very at-home atmosphere (so different from New York) and the views and the city itself are beautiful. Off to San Francisco in the morning!!