The Emerald City ~ Seattle
Seattle Space Needle viewed from the Chihuly glass house.
“Seattle is for people who love culture but refuse to sacrifice their wild nature to attain it.” - Kimberly Kinrade
This quick trip to Seattle was all about Tulips and Chihuly Glass. Both completely incredible experiences that I am glad to have finally made happen.
Of course, being that I was in Seattle after almost 15 years I decided to spend my day exploring what had changed but also revisiting old memories to ensure that they’ve survived the Covid era.
A wonderful bonus was some quality family time as we enjoyed the changing weather that couldn’t decide between rain, sunshine and clouds. Fortunately, most of the weekend was mostly sunny, a fact that I am super grateful for since it made all my wandering so much more fun.
The Chihuly Glass and Garden exhibit features eight galleries, and 3 drawing walls which offer a collection of Chihuly’s amazing work, demonstrating how he pushed the boundaries of glass as an art medium in concept, execution and presentation.
This giant Ferris wheel dominates Pier 57 and the view of the port of Seattle. Not only is it the tallest Ferris wheel on the West Coast but it might even be the tallest in North America.
It dominated the narrow slice of the bay that I could see from my hotel room in between the tall buildings of downtown Seattle. I left my curtains open at night so I could watch the light display of changing colors during the night.
Early Saturday morning found me at the Pike Place market before the hordes of tourists and locals descended. I got to wander through the market, my coffee cup in hand as I admired the tulips for sale that I had watched freshly picked at the tulip fields the day before. Fish, fruit, art and other items of interest that can be found at a farmers’ market were in the process of being displayed still as I made my way through the market to find the very first Starbucks store which gave birth to a worldwide coffee culture.
Amongst the special mentions is my favorite fish seller who was featured as a testimonial to teamwork and trust in one of the most widely read business books of its time.
They were still putting their fish out, but they obliged me with a demonstration yelling Los Angeles. I missed the fish that appears alive and scares the bystanders, since I missed the refresher on what to watch for when visiting Pike Place Market.
Though I did make the time to stop and listen to these performers.
And stop at the first Starbuck store for a cup of coffee. I actually stood in line for the pleasure of this experience. While this is the first Starbucks it was actually relocated from its original location here and interestingly enough serves only coffee no eats.
Yes, I did miss out on some of the local bakeries which one must try but how much can one person eat and drink at one time?
The Seattle area was inhabited by Native Americans for at least 4000 years before the first permanent European settler arrived. This 50-foot totem pole dominates the end of the Pike Place market facing the Bay across from the first Starbucks store. This area looked like it was being used by several homeless people and seemed a bit run down. I was told to be careful wandering here after dark.
From Pike Place I took an uber to the Chihuly Glass and Garden and wandered through the exhibition halls. Imagine having these on your coffee table?
The piece de resistance and centerpiece of this exhibit is the Glass House, a 40-foot-tall glass and steel structure in the center of the space. Suspended inside is beautiful sculpture in reds, yellows, oranges and amber. This is reputed to be one of Chihuly’s largest suspended sculptures.
The Glass House brings in the incredible views of the sculpture gardens outside as well as the space needle next door. I am sure that the changes in light and shadow as the day wears on is an incredible experience.
The gardens are unlike any gardens you’ve seen before or will see again. Glass sculptures are nestled in a natural environment of leaves, flowers and wood and change with the changing seasons and blooming times of the natural elements of the garden.
With daffodils, and iridescent balls and beautiful glass shapes definitely present a beautiful picture here.
Each flower bed is different, featuring different colors, glass and natural elements. Incredible! a trip to Seattle would be worth it to just explore this and the Tacoma Glass Museum which I did not make on this trip but have promised to go back to visit.
To finish my day in downtown Seattle, a quick stop at the Amazon headquarters campus to see the three large spherical glass conservatories. I was not able to go in since it is open to the public only on certain weekends and require reservations but such an incredible display.
To finish up the trip, some wine tasting and a family lunch with my niece and her family in Woodside, Washinton. A short and sweet sojourn and now I’m kicking myself for how long it’s been between trips and a promise to come back and visit soon.