Seattle

Lisa and I lived in Seattle from August 2015 until May 2018, just shy of 3 years. We accomplished a lot in that time - the following is our recommendations when visiting the Emerald City. Enjoy!

Places in Seattle: Must See/Do

Space Needle: Overrated/Expensive at the time we went, though it’s being renovated to include a glass floor in the restaurant. Once that’s ready, may be worth it. The Sky View Observatory has a better view than the Needle.

Chihuly Garden and Glass: Intricate, beautiful glass designs from Dale Chihuly. Good, but a bit short of an experience for the money.

Museum of Pop Culture (moPOP): Very fun cultural museum with exhibits on music (Nirvana/grunge, Hendrix, Pearl Jam), video games, horror movies, fantasy, and science fiction. Right next to the Space Needle and Chihuly, so consider doing all three! Good for families.

Pike Place Market: The most famous spot in Seattle and one of our favorites. We never got tired of visiting here. Be sure to grab a drink, then take a stroll through the maze of hallways and floors of the market; you never know what kind of weird shops you’ll find! Note: The “original” Starbucks (it’s not really the original, actually!) is here. Long lines for the same coffee as any Starbucks. We never went! Go to a smaller roaster instead or to the Starbucks Roastery in Capitol Hill or SoDo. Pike Place Chowder has the best chowders, but be prepared for a long wait! Worth it.

Living Computer Museum: If you love computers/technology, this is a must. See vintage computers, the majority of which you can interact with! Limited business hours. Good for families.

Woodland Park Zoo: Seattle’s only zoo, worth a trip if you’re a zoo fan. Great design/exhibits that flow well and are engaging.

Seattle aquarium: Small but very fun acquarium! Very knowledgable staff answers any and all questions. Open tide pools allow you to “pet” various sea creatures like urchins, etc. Short walk from Pike Place.

Fremont Troll Fremont farmer’s market Discovery park Golden Gardens Park/Beach

Seattle Great Wheel: Ferris wheel with good views of the city and surrounding ocean.

Winery tour day trip–TONS in the burbs (Woodinville) Levenworth, WA–visit around early december, xmas lights, (2.5 hours–3 hours):By car: Take State Highway 520 east; exit onto I-405 north; take exit 23 toward U.S. 2 east/Wenatchee; exit Leavenworth.By train: Amtrak service is available from Seattle. Bainbridge Island (day trip) Orca Islands–Getting there (45 minutes–3 hours)By boat: Washington State Ferries leave from Anacortes (90 miles north of Seattle: drive north on I-5 or take a Bellair Charters shuttle), with frequent departures to the ferry terminals on Lopez, Orcas, Shaw and San Juan islands. Kerry park Seattle public library (downtown) Brewery tours Washington park arboretum Picnic at the beach Movie in the park Trolloween Bike along burke-gilman trail []Try paddleboarding Play scrabble in the park Consignment/thrift store shopping []Seattle art museum

Seattle underground tour Seattle ghost tour Gasworks park Fremont oktoberfest Mt Rainier + Mt Saint Helen–(3 hours):By car: Drive south on I-5; south on State Route 512 (exit 127); east on State Route 512; south on State Route 7; east on State Route 706 through Ashford to the park’s Nisqually entrance. Snoqualmie Falls–Getting there (45 minutes):By car: Take I-5 south; I-90 east; exit 27 toward Snoqualmie Walla walla

Beyond Seattle

Portland

Hiking

Beer!

Restaurants: Favorites

Restaurants: Also Good

The Whale and the Carpenter-restaurant Annapurna Cafe - indian High Dive–music joint []Nectar–music joint Hotel Hotel pizza (low key) Backdoor Roxy’s-bar Agrodolce–italian/pasta []No Anchor - beer bar + cool food []Copine Pel Meni Russian dumplings–late night or snack? good reviews []Canlis (special occasion restaurant) Le Caviste (French wine): http://lecavisteseattle.com Can can kitchen [] Art of the table - fixed dinner, nice occasion [] Marmite [] The nest-rooftop bar overlooking puget sound Go poke- for poke bowl []Song Phang Kong- hole in the wall thai/vietnamese w/ $9 options in ID Blue Stone Bistro- Korean []Mamnoon-middle eastern []Flint creek - steaks and such Westward- seafood, great patio, drinks []The Wandering Goose [] Saltys []Ciudad Junebaby []Pintxo []Le Pinchet []Sushi Kashiba Salere - tapas [] Mbar - pnw food with great outdoor patio []Sitka and Spruce Tango 9 Million in Unmarked Bills (bar) Roux (French creole) Staple and fancy []Ba Bar - Vietnamese The sixgill []Jack’s BBQ Din thai fung Harvest vine Poppy Rays boathouse-fancy seafood and patio Eve [] Queen Anne beer hall Uneeda burger (gourmet burgers) Kedai Makan- Malaysian Paseo Fremont brewing Vif Drunky’s BBQ Hale’s ales Marination Mai Kai []Skillet diner-comfort food Unicorn bar–really random bar w/ video games in Cap hill Green leaf–great Vietnamese Pho bac-pho Rhein Haus-German beer hall []Tilth- New American Brick horse tavern Manolin - seafood and patio Damn the weather -funky bar []The pink door-romantic Italian also rooftop patio overlooks pike place []Matts in the market–seafood Local 360 []Palace kitchen-pacific nw Joule -Korean Revel Brimmer and Heeltap (patio)- korean fusion Marjorie restaurant Cafe munier Delancey-pizza La isla