Sandra & Peter in USA

It's now been a couple of months since I wrote this post - unfortunately I was so busy back in Germany that I didn't got the chance to edit all the photos before. But now there it is! :)

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It's been a couple of weeks now since we went to Vancouver - and now I am already sitting at the airport waiting for my flight to depart. It's been a couple of awesome, fun weeks in Seattle and we got to discover the city quite a bit. There is a ton of really nice stuff to see - I will just post a couple of pictures and tell, what we experienced and discovered.

Space Needle Pt. I (25.6.)
When we first got to Seattle, it was set for us that we had to eat at least once in the restaurant on top of the Space Needle - so we decided to do that in the end of June for sunset. The view was amazing and so was the food - a great experience!

Our food: lamb for me, chicken for Peter :)

The sunset

Sailing! (26.6.)
This was one of the most awesome things. With a bunch of friends we rented a boat to sail around when the sun was setting. It was a beautiful atmosphere, we brought our own food and had a picknick on deck and enjoyed the view of Seattle's bay. We were also allowed to play captain ;)

'Murica

Pride fest & Gasworks Park (27.6.)

When gay marriage was legalized, Capitol Hill went crazy. Crosswalks were painted in Rainbows, Vodka bottles were rainbow-colored - everything was colorful and bright! They had the pride fest, a street festival where you could walk around and eat a lot of stuff :)

Afterwards we went to Gasworks Park - basically a huge green area with some interesting remainings of a gas plant. There we enjoyed the sun & the view and watched the sunset.

Seattle Skyline from Gasworks

#Pride kite

Sparkling Seattle skyline at night

Rattlesnake Hike (28.6.)

Since we hiked a LOT during the first month in the US we weren't too keen on starting to hike once we arrived in Seattle. After one month passed though we felt like a little nature would't harm and decided to go on the Rattlesnake Hike.
We departed early (around 8 am) and drove quickly to the trailhead - at least we thought we would. Google Maps led us to somwhere in the woods but most certainly not the trailhead. Of course there was no data as well - but in the end and with the help of some nice hikers we managed to find the right path. After a couple of miles straight up we were rewarded with a stunning view of mountains and Rattlesnake Ledge.

Seattle public library (3.7.)
Apparently, in Seattle a public library is not an old unfancy place where people simply go to to study and find some books (mostly students). No, here it is a super sophisticated, modern-art building with seven stories of which every single one looks totally different.

Since Seattle has (just like San Francisco) drastic elevation changes within the city, we entered the library on the third floor - the actual borrowing area. A couple of book shelves and counters to borrow the books - but still in a very modern design.

When we climbed up the stories, we found other stories: 6 to 9 hat the so-called "books spiral". It is what it sounds like: a slightly elevating walkway towards walls of books that slowly climbs up 3 stories.

Other than that there were some cozy rooms to read or study

and - we found a really nice globe with a relief surface!

Columbia Tower (3.7.)

Many people think that the Space Needle is the highest point in Seattle and the one where you'd get the best view. But then there's the Columbia Tower! With its 284m height it is 100 meters higher than the Space needle. You can take an elevator that brings you up to floor 76 in only a few seconds - and enjoy the breathtaking view from there.

The majestic tower

Let's go up 76 stories!

The small space needle ;)

Bellevue - our home town :)

Stunning Mount Rainier in the back

Seattle Waterfront (3.7)

Seattle also has a really nice port and waterfront to offer. Unfortunately, the waterfront was under construction when we visited - but we were able to get a small glimpse on what's going to be developed there during the next months! And of course what is already there - a bunch of nice peers with restaurants and other things to explore.

The docks

The Seattle Great Wheel

Keep Clam! ;)

Pike's Place (3.7.)

Of course, no Seattle visit would be complete without going to Pike's Place Market at least once! On the weekends, you'll find a lot of fresh fish, local produce and many people who enjoy themselves. It is fun watching and just having the experience of walking down the street and looking at all the market vendors that try to sell their produce.

Ancient Starbucks logos with bare breasts! When they grew they changed the logo where the woman's breasts are covered - only in the USA :)

Pig hunt @ Pike's Place

Gum wall (3.7.)

If you're at Pike's Place - you're probably gonna visit the gum wall as well. For some reason, people started to stick their gums to the wall here and now it is a colorful bunch of gums - if you go there, you're immediately remembered of the Hubba Bubba you loved so much when you were little :)

Impressions (3.7.)
Hammering Man - he is huge and yes, he is moving!

A Duck-Car :)

Gasworks Park & 4th of July

On 4th of July there is always a big party at Gasworks Park. There is music, a lot of food (of course american cuisine - burgers & hot dogs as well as lemonade!) and the park to chill, hang out and enjoy the great weather. Whoever wanted to get some booze however had to put himself into a marked area - like a zoo for drinking humans!
We spent the day at Gasworks and enjoyed the view of downtown.

Afterwards we decided to head to some friend's apartment downtown to watch the fireworks from his rooftop. As promised, the fireworks were stunning!

The Space needle at night from his rooftop

Finale!

Kerry Park (18.7.)

Whenever you see a picture of Seattle, it shows the Space needle above other buildings with iconic Mount Rainier in the background. Turns out it is pretty hard to find a spot where you can catch this view! But we finally found it at Kerry Park - and it is even more stunning when you stand there. Mount Rainier seems so close yet so far - and Seattles Skyline with the Space Needle in front is just beautiful.

Afterwards we went to explore a little bit of UW's Campus. We stubled upon this beautiful place - a fountain with Mt. Rainier in the back. I can imagine sitting there relaxing and enjoying the view the whole day :)

Impressions (throughout July)

EMP-Museum guitar artwork

Super Mario wall painting (EMP)

Star Wars exhibit (EMP)

United States Postal Service Car! It is so small and looks so cute!

Soccer in the Seahawks stunning stadium! ManU - Club América

We also got to see a stunning sunset :)

Wicked @ Paramount Theatre (9.7.)

The tour of the wicked musical just stopped in Seattle when we were there - so we went there to see the awesome show!

The theatre from inside

Hunger Games @ Microsoft!

Cozy Seattle cafes - great places to work :)

Exploring Seattle's Parks & Fountains

Sunset from the top of the Space Needle (22.7.)

On one of our last days together in Seattle we decided to go up the Space Needle again and stay there for dinner to pre-celebrate our 4 yr anniversary :) We went there during sunset time - and it was absolutely worth it. The mixture of sun and clouds was absolutely perfect and tinted the whole city in some orange-purple-ish colors. And of course - the food was great as well :) And this time we also brought a good camera to capture the view!