A Visit to Seattle

Jeanne came to visit and, of course, we had to take her downtown for a bit of the city. Second stop was Pike Place Market. On the way into town we had to make a stop at the REI mother ship. That's a place we'll have to visit regularly.

This time at the market we explored a bit further than the places we went earlier and found the infamous gum wall.

There is an alley, somewhat hidden from view, where people have decided to cover the brick walls on either side of the walkway with used chewing gum. Oh yeah, that's a thing.

And people being people and all, we can't just have oodles of wads of gum stuck to the walls, we get to have "art" created out of this stuff.

Naturally, what better way to say I love you than by smearing gum into a heart shape over the top of everyone else's chewed remains.

Doesn't that just make your heart go pitter-pat?

Back out in the real world, there is a lone piper playing for money. He's on this little knoll near the waterfront, playing and slowing circling, while his female companion is asking for donations over on the sidewalk.

After a bit of sightseeing and wandering, we headed over to Capitol Hill to Elliott Bay Bookstore. We discovered that this neighborhood is the meaty part of ground zero for diversity. Several of the crosswalks are painted in rainbow colors. The Comet Tavern has a great sign painted on the wall.

We slipped into Capitol Cider for a bite of lunch and had some really great fish and chips to go with our tasty cider. The decor is simple, but the food and drink are excellent.