The Times of Seattle

Seattle, Washington
September 17, 2009
Day one of the Pacific Northwest Journey

What color is that? Red? a burnt red gone terribly bad? Whatever color it would be considered its making me laugh. It’s making me laugh ridiculously. Of course, the laughter may be a result of being awake since 4am this morning, flying across the country, conquering a busy airport and going through the tedious car rental process. And now the requested SUV doesn’t look very SUV like. In fact, I’m not sure what you would consider a Ford Flex. Box like and awkward are the adjectives that come to my mind instantaneously. My travel companions for this trip are having their fits of laughter too. Dearest mother doesn’t know what to make of this Ford Flex. She is tempted to run back and tell Hertz she wants a proper SUV, but I dissuade her. Penny Martin is bent over laughing, and Travis, her husband, and our designated driver for our Pacific Northwest road trip is just trying to get all of luggage loaded properly. I jump in the front seat being I am the designated navigator and pull out my road map and dearest Amelia - the GPS. This is a serious undertaking, we are going to traverse across two countries, two states, and an island! And no such undertaking should be taken without the proper equipment.But first things first.All journeys must begin with a base, and our base is Bellevue, Washington just east of Seattle. It’s quieter there, and there aren’t as many crazy homeless people running around as there are in Seattle.
!!!!!!Did I just say that?
Yes, and you’ll see why.
We deposit our bags at the Silver Cloud downtown Bellevue and head towards Seattle for some food. Yes!!! Food. Our stomachs are growling. It’s been a while since any of us have eaten. So Seattle what do you have for us in the food department? We choose Salumi for our first meal located between the train station and Pioneer Square. It’s a tiny little place only big enough for one wooden table that seats about eight. None of the chairs match. Herbs and clusters of multi-colored peppers hang from the ceiling next to what I am assuming is a pig that will most likely be eaten in a few days. The place boasts fresh cured meats, artisan breads, soups, and all kinds of homemade herbed sauces. Oh, did I mention that Mario Batali’s sister is running the place?
Yeah, that’s a huge plus.I order a roasted lamb sandwich topped off with red peppers on ciabatta with herbed mayonnaise. Need I say more? I will. Just one word.Delicious.Travis get the same thing, but mom and Penny opt for a mixed bean soup with kale, carrots, onions, garlic and herbs all mixed in. I swipe a few spoonfuls of it causing my eyes to flutter. Two older Italian men are sharing the table with my group, and from the looks of it, they know Miss Batali. She seems like she makes friends with her regulars. There is no pretension present despite her brother being one of the lords of the Food Network and boasting Gwyneth Paltrow as one of his best friends. The only kind of snobbery found here is one for the quality of food. But can you blame her? It’s certainly paid off. Bourdain featured Salumi on his show, No Reservations. And if anybody knows the real deal, he does. And obviously I do...With full stomachs, we venture to the center of Pioneer Square and take in the totem poles. Each pole depicts a story of the India tribe it represents, but more about those later. Right now, it’s time for the most important activity that someone can possibly do while in Seattle, Washington.
Drink Coffee.
Starbucks coffee that is. After all, this is the birth place of the world famous coffee chain, and what trip would be complete if we didn’t sit down and have a moment of silence while we indulged in the nectar of life? Caramel machiatto in hand, we start people watching. One thing that comes to attention is the variety of people here. Artsy, sophisticated, preppy, grungy, classic - all can be found by just sitting, pausing for a moment, and watching. Seattle is synonymous with melting pot. The variety of people is evident with one sweeping glance. Body piercings, crazy tattoos everywhere, clothing used in unimaginable ways - people here are very EXPRESSIVE.

Across the square is the starting point for the underground tour, a behind the scenes look into the underbelly of Seattle. However, while making it across the square, we are accosted by a homeless woman.
“Ma’am, ma’am, ma’am,” She hustles up to my mother. “Ma’am you look like Farah Fawcett.”
I must admit, great technique. Butter them up and then -
“Ma’am, can I have some money to buy me a subway. I would really really like a subway.”
My mother hands her a dollar, much to her dissatisfaction.
“This won’t buy me a footlong!” She exclaims and stalks away.
My mother looks at us, and we watch the woman as she heads from bench to bench, table to table around the square asking everyone to support her subway craving. She runs into homeless man and suddenly they start yelling at each other. A breach of territories perhaps?
We enter Doc Maynard’s Saloon, the start of the underground tour, fleeing the scene before anything ugly happens.
We are ushered underground to a forgotten world of saloons and bank vaults of the late 1800’s to the early 1900’s. Underneath Seattle, lies another full level of the city unknown to the walkers above. Inside, we get a brief history of the start of Seattle. Because of the location of Seattle, we learn that the city struggled with the incoming tide causing there to be terrible problems with the sewer system. People actually drowned in some of the “mud pits” because they were so vast. In 1889, a fire started causing twenty-nine city blocks to burn down. The city was rebuilt using money from the gold rush and prostitution. Yes, the great city of Seattle was built on prostitution! The mayor of the day, realizing how much money was being spent on prostitution by the miners, imposed a tax on all the ladies of the night, causing the cities income to skyrocket!We are shown old bathtubs, wallpaper, and pictures dating from over a century ago. It’s an unforgettable, entertaining, and enjoyable history lesson.

Back on ground level, we head to Elliot Bay Bookstore, the largest independent bookstore in Seattle. And indeed it is massive. There are three stories of books of every different topic imaginable. The store has an old home library - like feel, giving it a more unique experience than your average massive bookseller chain.

Sleepiness is beginning to hit us, but we decide to have one more meal before turning in. We go to Ivars down on the bay for $.75 clam chowder. Yes, a cup of chowder is $.75! It’s on special while we are here. (It isn’t always this cheap, so don’t get your hopes up that you can come to Seattle and eat cheaply, we were blessed with this treat.) A trip to Seattle wouldn’t be complete without indulging into the seafood side of things. After all we are surrounded by the Elliott Bay and the Pugent Sound, and the Pacific Ocean is only just over the Olympic Peninsula. So it goes without saying that fish abound in this area making it a perfect way to end the evening. The moon is shining out on the bay. Again we were blessed and got a table facing the water in the packed restaurant. God is truly looking after us! We talk about our day: Salumi, our encounter with the homeless lady, the underground tour. We are all looking forward to what tomorrow will bring, but as of right now we are all thankful to God that we made it in safely and that we have a super comfy bed to crash in very very soon.

Tomorrow, we’ll see what Seattle will bring...
ZZZZzzzzzz