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<\/a>Joe with Wedding Singer, Addison<\/p><\/div>\n
I\u2019ve been on enough airplane rides not to enjoy them, but on a flight out of Orange County <\/strong>last week heading up the coast, I was pleasantly surprised by what first appeared to be low-hanging clouds covering the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range<\/strong>, but turned out to be 14,000 foot peaks poking through the clouds covered with a light dusting of the year\u2019s first snowfall. It was a beautiful reminder that fall is here and winter is fast approaching.<\/p>\n My destination? Seattle, for the wedding of Chase Johnson, son of our long-time neighbors and good friends, Mark & Kathy \u2013 a great event. I had spent a good deal of time, years ago, working in Seattle creating a mortgage company within the offices of one of the largest real estate companies in the area, John L. Scott Real Estate<\/strong>. I remember traveling there nearly every week from October to April<\/strong> and never seeing the sun. But it\u2019s a great city where one just learns to cope with precipitation.<\/p>\n View of Seattle from Salty’s Restaurant<\/p><\/div>\n We had a list of Seattle attractions<\/strong> that we wanted to see between the wedding and the rehearsal dinner at Salty\u2019s<\/strong>, which itself is a Seattle attraction. Never, and I mean never<\/u>, go to Seattle and not have dinner at Salty\u2019s, which sits across Puget Sound<\/strong> from downtown Seattle and affords you a spectacular view of the city as the sun sets and the lights of the city come alive.<\/p>\n The morning we arrived, Seattle was showing off its beautiful, clear blue sky and a verdant countryside. We decided it would be a good time to go to the top of the iconic Space Needle<\/strong>, which sits downtown and was built for the 1962 World\u2019s Fair<\/strong> and has been a major attraction ever since. Views from there of downtown Seattle, Puget Sound, the lush neighboring hills and distant mountains, are spectacular! The \u2018Needle\u2019<\/strong> also now has a revolving glass floor on top that, if you have the stomach, provides a feeling like you\u2019re walking on air \u2013 a \u2018Don\u2019t Miss\u2019 attraction!<\/p>\n Space Needle through Gilhuly’s Glass House<\/p><\/div>\n Directly below the Space Needle is the Chihuly Garden & Glass Exhibit<\/strong>. If you\u2019re not familiar with Dale Chihuly\u2019s work, you may have seen it in Las Vegas<\/strong> at the Bellagio<\/strong>, Aria<\/strong> or the Wynn<\/strong> hotels \u2013 those spectacular glass chandeliers are his creations. His exhibit here features his work in a glass house and a glass garden \u2013 amazing! As long as you\u2019re visiting the \u2018Needle\u2019, see Chihuly as well.<\/p>\n With the next day came a steady rain \u2013 OK, this was more like the Seattle I remember, complete with gridlock that makes L.A. traffic look like a drive down Main Street in Mayberry. It was a good day to do the \u2018Underground\u2019<\/strong> tour. I didn\u2019t know what to expect, other than it was going to be out of the rain and probably . . . underground. I\u2019d been told that it provided some interesting insights into the history of Seattle. It did not disappoint. The docents were informative and hilarious as we wandered through the underground rubble and artifacts that was once downtown Seattle and now sits a story below today\u2019s street level. Not for the claustrophobic, but a must for the history buff. Great experience! Not wanting to dally on our way home, we walked a few blocks to the Pike Place Fish Market<\/strong>\u00a0and watched them throw some Halibut<\/strong>\u00a0around as well as be amazed at the awesome array of beautiful flower bouquets all along this outdoor mall.<\/p>\n Flying fish at Pike’s Place Fish Market<\/p><\/div>\n Yes, we managed to squeeze all that into just a day and a half in the Emerald City<\/strong> \u2013 we were truly Restless in Seattle.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Bob Sparrow I\u2019ve been on enough airplane rides not to enjoy them, but on a flight out of Orange County last week heading up the coast, I was pleasantly surprised by what first appeared to be low-hanging clouds covering … read more![\"\"](\"https:\/\/fromabirdseyeview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Seattle-night.jpeg\")
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