Day Eight: Hand me my nose-ring!

Day Eight surprised us with more of those famous Seattle clear skies. The view from our breakfast table was a little awesome, and I was excited to explore the city. And here's where I talk about our hotel. It's called the College Inn, and it's located right across the street from the University of Washington campus. Built in 1909, it's an Historic Building. That means no elevator, shared bathrooms on every floor, and odd illustrations of children who are actually just tiny adults in each room. It's also quite cozy, with a rotation of friendly young men staffing the tiny attic office, free Wi-Fi, and complimentary breakfasts. It's got all of the minor inconveniences of a hostel without any of the major ones. Comfy, but those creepy Nor'Westerners haunt the showers and the hallways, staring silently and making awkward situations unbearable. Luckily, I'm famously unflapped by awkwardness.


A crisp to the air meant that I was sad to have run out of clean socks two days ago, but shoes, I've learned, can hide all sorts of secrets. I was also a little sad to have started out our day with a $30 parking ticket but, again, unflappable. Public transport took us into the city, and I ignored the way my toes kept sticking together in favor of the sights and sounds of Seattle. And the smells. The smells too.

The Explore Music Project was just short of being really really great. I have to admit, I was way more impressed by the Seattle Center's food court which has within it a bounce house so large it is literally a bounce city and a vending machine that vends Nora Roberts books. The Science Fiction Museum was pretty rad, but I don't know if it beats being able to put a ten-spot into a machine and having a paperback drop down. I mean wow!

But the real "I mean wow"s go to the Seattle Underground tour. After a delicious free-sample harvesting through Pike Place market, a walk along the waterfront...


and a speed-demon appreciation of the Seattle Aquarium...


we took a street car to Pioneer Square for the three o' clock attraction that is just about exactly what it sounds like. It seems that in the mid-1800s Seattle burned to the ground and, when it was rebuilt, it was regraded anywhere from 8 to 35 feet above the previous ground level. Our tour guide was a whirling dervish of punnery which was alternately fantastic and claustrophobic depending on how tall the brick building stacked atop us was. The tour was absolutely fascinating, filled with stories of greed, sex, and poop. We also got our trip's first jab about being Californians, which was kinda cool. Alas and alack, the odd underground lighting meant no good pix came out. But you can do a Google image search as well as I, so take a look!

We had a ton of other adventures in Seattle, but I have to struggle through two coffees and a mocha latte and get to sleep: we're going to be leaving way too early tomorrow morning to drive for way too long. Wish us luck!

Listened to: "Sometimes You Have to Work on Christmas" by Harvey Danger (along with a random assortment of their other tunes), the music we Experienced Project at the EMP, and Slimpickins, a street musician duo playing at Pike Place.


Mystery words: "Mike pooped his pants in Seattle."

Mike writes words as well!: astoriedyear.blogspot.com