Sleepless in Seattle

Glass House Studio in Pioneer Square. FUN

Each time we go to Seattle, we do something different. On this trip, we crashed with a good friend who works in Pioneer Square. So we HAD to explore this part of the city. I am a glass fan - afterall I did marry the Glassman! And I was excited to find the Glass House Studio in the Square.

Makin' glass

The Turk and I strolled around the neighborhood and found the Underground Seattle tour. Had to go! We ended up walking around UNDER the sidewalks of the city. Found out that the city originally was quite dirty with raw sewage due to poor/nonexistant sewers. Then in 1889 the city burned down which gave the city fathers an opportunity to rebuild, the right way. They decided to build retaining walls to hold the roads 10 ft or more high to provide a location for the sewer pipes. This process was going to take about 10 years to complete. But the businesses of Seattle couldnt wait 10 years. So while the city built high roads, the commercial sector built their buildings at ground level.

Stuff underground

toilet found in one of the groundfloor stores

There were ladders positioned beside the streets since you had to climb over the street to get to the other side. Eventually the streets were completed and sidewalks were built between the streets and the buildings, at the second story level. this left the first floors underground, a convenience when it was raining. People would shop underground and stay dry from the Seattle weather. Alas, the plague came and the ground floor shops were sealed off to keep the rats from infecting more people. And that is how it stayed until the mid 60's when the underground tour started. This in effect helped start the preservation of Pioneer Square - the birthplace of Seattle.

streets of Seattle were full of saw dust that filled with water and turned into deep mud

holding up the sidewalks

downtown - oldest buildings

more finds underground

notice the white bird on his head!

totem pool downtown

waterfall and stream created between high rises

Our tour guide Tulin, who lives in Seattle, took us to the Fremont neighborhood. For some reason, it is a very unusual place, but very interesting. Lenin was hanging around  and I wondered why - wouldnt you?  Here's the story. Weighing over 7 tons, the sculpture, Emil Venkov, took ten years to complete it.This statue is unique in that it may be the only representation portraying Lenin surrounded by guns and flames instead of holding a book or waving his hat - a nod to his true violent actions.  It was installed in Poprad, Slovakia in 1988.
Lewis Carpenter, an American veteran teaching in Poprad, found the sculpture lying face down after it was toppled in the 1989 Revolution. He recognized Venkov’s work its boldness, and determined that the statue be preserved. Carpenter mortgaged his house to buy the sculpture and bring it back to Issaquah. He died in 1994. The statue is now owned by his family. It is sited here temporarily for viewing and sale. And that is how Lenin came to live in Fremont, Washington!

Fremont Troll, under the George Washington Bridge in Fremont

We walked down the street to Troll Avenue to meet the Fremont Troll.  Why is he there? That's where trolls live, under bridges. This one was created in 1990 to help rehabilitate the area under the bridge.  This particular troll is holding a VW that he grabbed from the bridge. It has a California license plate!

a mini pie shop around the corner!

interesting building in Fremont

The neighborhood is full of creative buildings, sculptures, tongue in cheek signs. 

Yes, that is Saturn on top of an apartment building

Seattle is not only Starbucks!

Inhale....Exhale...Inhale...Exhale

Duck in front is having none of that duck butt stuff

Had to stop at the Theo chocolate maker, also in Fremont. Theo chocolate started in 2006.  I almost moved into the shop when I realized they have free samples of EVERY chocolate they sell. Needless to say, I walked and ate my way around that shop several times.

chocolate dinosaurs - of course

 At the end of our Seattle visit, we took the ferry to Bainbridge Island to start our way to the Oregon coast. Because there are so many islands and peninsulas around there, ferries are a normal mode of transportation. More relaxing than driving!

Turk on ferry

View of islands on way to Bainbridge Island