I see food, I eat it

The old joke, of course, is about a seafood diet.  You see food, you eat it.  If you look at this trip so far just in terms of what we’ve eaten, everything came from the water.  Hey, when you’re from someplace that is nearly 300 miles from the gulf coast, you go get seafood when you’re sitting at a table, overlooking the Puget Sound. Yesterday began with a mission to have a the crab omelet at Lowell’s.  They pride themselves in fresh crab, folded into fluffy eggs with some tomato and parmesan to round out the party.  We arrived at the Pike Place Market on a mission to find this delicacy, and on the way, we saw the vendors  and booths, all set up to sell fresh seafood, flowers, produce and other items.  It had the charm of a permanent farmers market, set up by the water.  It was very cool.  We also took a few steps down from there to see the famed gum wall, which was quite disgusting.  We actually didn’t enter the alley space that was coated in chewed bubblegum, but we paused at the entrance to take a photo.  That was plenty, thanks,

We also stopped for a moment back up at the main level of the marketplace to watch the famous fish throwing, but unfortunately, there were too many people in the way for me to get good photos.  Maybe we return today.  

From there, we made our way to the ferry departure point, heading to Bainbridge Island.  It was a very efficient way to get to the island, and when we arrived, we found it charming and welcoming.  We checked out a local winery, walked to a cute bar and grill and shared a salmon burger unlike anything I have ever eaten before, then headed to their art museum for a quick stroll through a few exhibits before hopping the ferry back to Seattle proper.  From there, we started our city bus journey.

Using public transportation in a place you’re visiting gives you a different lay of the land.  When you ride a city bus, you see regular folks, just trying to get to and from work or school or wherever they’re headed.  These are the locals who use this mode of transport every day, and it gives you a different feel for the place.  It’s a juxtaposition- in one moment, you’re craning and standing on your tippy-toes to see a man throwing a fish for the benefit of tourists, and in your next act, you find yourself watching commuters, heads buried in their phones, just trying to get home.  And if you’re lucky enough to travel with Cas, you have someone on your side who is good at planning these things and somehow manages to be in the right place at just the right time.  

When our bus odyssey concluded, we were steps away from Ivar’s. Ivar apparently has many locations in the area, and we were at the one most geographically favorable to Jerone and Sara.  We got there a little early- mostly because that’s when the bus showed up- and we asked for a table for four.  We determined we’d wait at the bar until the rest of our party arrived, and when they did, we apparently miscalculated.  Jerone’s son Alex joined us for dinner.  He got tall when Cas and I weren’t paying attention.  Aside from Alex’s dramatic height change, Jerone and Sara looked exactly the same.  Time has been kind to them- or maybe it’s the Pacific Northwest.  

Again, because of course we did, Cas and I had seafood.  I got a seafood sauté with a little bit of everything in it while Cas had a salmon that was probably swimming near the restaurant that morning.  It was a great meal and a great time to catch up with my old colleagues from my high school teaching days.  They’re both still teaching, working at two different private schools in the area, and still pretty happy to work with kids.  I get it.  

Here’s how the crew looks now- Alex is the obviously super-tall one in the middle…

But that was our Tuesday and the see-food diet we enjoyed.  I think today we are planning a cuppa coffee at the original Starbucks in the morning, and we have our timed entry tickets for the space needle at sunset.  There’s also a few things we have planned in between, but more on that later.  Time to get out of this hotel room and see about some food.  

And once again, here are the photos: tinyurl.com/DunlapSeattle