Having taken the Amtrak back up the coast I arrived in Seattle for a longer stay this time. I began my first full day with a visit to Pike Place Market. This has a vast collection of stalls and small shops, from souvenirs and crafts to fruit and fish. It is also the site of the original Starbucks coffee shop, from which the global chain was launched. (An interesting side on Starbucks - they had apparently been advertising free coffee tomorrow for anyone who voted. However, this is against the law as it is viewed as paying people to vote, so it will now be free coffee for anyone who asks for it! Guess where I am going tomorrow...)
From Pike Place I headed to the Washington Trade Centre to visit the Tourist Information Centre there. However, I also found that the Trade Centre has a large display of art, with both special exhibitions and permanent pieces on display along its many corridors. Also out the back was the Freeway park - an interesting area which you could see had aimed to be a concrete oasis but hadn't quite made it.
Later in the afternoon I headed to the central library. It seems like markets and libraries have been themes on this trip so it is good to have done both in Seattle. This library was possibly the most impressive library building I have seen. Opened just a couple of years ago it is a fantastic space inside and features many interesting features such as the fact that the floors are set on a spiral so the book shelving just goes on continuously following the dewey decimal system. It doesn't sound much but it impressed me!
From Pike Place I headed to the Washington Trade Centre to visit the Tourist Information Centre there. However, I also found that the Trade Centre has a large display of art, with both special exhibitions and permanent pieces on display along its many corridors. Also out the back was the Freeway park - an interesting area which you could see had aimed to be a concrete oasis but hadn't quite made it.
Later in the afternoon I headed to the central library. It seems like markets and libraries have been themes on this trip so it is good to have done both in Seattle. This library was possibly the most impressive library building I have seen. Opened just a couple of years ago it is a fantastic space inside and features many interesting features such as the fact that the floors are set on a spiral so the book shelving just goes on continuously following the dewey decimal system. It doesn't sound much but it impressed me!
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