April 28  Seattle
Another overcast day but warm, as we start at 60 degrees at 8:30.  Unfortunately, it drops during the day to around 50.

We join the heavy flow of traffic into Seattle and find a good parking lot for $10/day near Seattle Center, just a block from the Space Needle.

 We walk to the Needle and purchase tickets but several busloads of school kids arrive and we decide to come back in a little while.  Instead we go across the street to the EMP Museum (Experimental Music Project), which was originally music only but now includes popular music, and sections about Horror films (and music),  Fantasy,  Science Fiction and gaming.

The Horror Hall has a Scream Booth where you can go in and let loose (ahh felt good). Lots of chronicles of Horror films and interesting info on the difference that music and sound effects make. One director comments that instead of hiding your eyes at horror films you should cover your ears, because without the sound things aren't very scary.

angel of death from Hellboy

Thriller zombie outfit

Various props from movies are displayed like the Angel of Death mask from Hellboy II and a Zombie costume from Michael Jackson's Thriller.

Next area is Science Fiction, with things like the T800 Endoskeleton from Terminator 2, star wars light sabers  and this gross guy.

  Next is an area on Fantasy with artifacts from the Wizard of Oz and others.

 Then we move onto the Guitar Gallery which features this sculpture of guitars, some of which are wired to create music, though we don't hear anything.

There is a gallery showing the evolution of the guitar and another area that shows well-known guitarists like Clapton and Curt Cobain - a local who gets lots of coverage.  There are photos, films and listening areas.  Lots of info about Punk music too and the Seattle music scene.

The next area is about gaming, featuring independent creators.  Many screens with various games - quite popular with the kids.

There is also an area called Sound Labs which is a labyrinth of small labs where you can play guitar, drums or other instruments, as well as areas for recording, mixing, sound effects, etc.  Lots of fun if this is your thing!

   And just for fun, they throw in a "We are 12" section about the Seattle Sea Hawks - rah rah!

Back to the Space Needle, but first we do the Chihuly Glass Exhibit and Gardens located at the base.  Very impressive and spectacular art by Dale Chihuly, like this Glass forest:

And the Sea Life Tower.

 And more. Spectacular color and lighting.

 Outside there is a combination of plants and glass items.

Finally we go up the elevator to the observation deck of the Needle, built for the 1962 World's Fair. At 520' you can walk around and see most of the city of Seattle.  Unfortunately the weather is still grey and visibility limited.  There is a restaurant and quite a few interactive displays.

From here we take the nearby Monorail, also a remnant of the World's Fair, down to Pike's Place Market, about a mile away.

Walking to the market, we see these gentlemen involved in a game of chess.

 We see the obligatory gum wall outside a theatre that had posted a sign asking patrons not to bring in gum. We made no additions but did see others doing it.

We see the welcoming pig, original Starbucks coffee shop, and lots of flowers, fish, crabs and other items for sale. The fish guys weren't too busy though, so we didn't see them throwing fish.

We stop at Emmett Watson's Oyster Bar for an Oyster Roll and a bowl of Northwestern Gumbo, which includes mussels, clams, salmon, shrimp, and fish.  Yum.

Someone told us not to miss the Hammer Man at the Art museum, so we detour a few blocks to see this moving artwork (as in he moves the hammer, not so much the other).

 We think we are getting out of town a little early for rush hour, but it is crazy busy.  At least we are able to use the high occupancy lane which was a little faster.  We head south to Bonney Lake - an area of beautiful big homes around what is supposed to be a lake but is largely mud.  Whole lot of unhappy homeowners here, I'll bet!

We stop at a Discount Tire here and replace the tires on the Trek, which we knew we were going to have to do.  Then it is rotisserie chicken and carrots for dinner, and good-night!