I ♥ Seattle

I had a conference today in Seattle.  I've been excited for several days now at the chance to get back up to the city.  I don't make it up there nearly enough.  We were just up there recently at Gas Works Park - here's some photos.  It was kinda cool.  I had planned a different route into town and right after we got on the freeway, we passed my mom and dad who had left an hour earlier.  So they followed us and got the scenic route.  Of course, they lived there for a number of years, so they already knew where we were going... Viaduct, Southlake, Westlake.  It will be a shame when they tear that down, it's such a treat from the car crowd to see the city and the water from such a great vantage point.

But anyhow, it was my first chance in a really long time to go up on my own.  The last time I went up nearly on my own was one night when Ben wouldn't stop crying.  I put him in the car, turned on the GPS and drove all over West Seattle.  Of course, it was in the dark, so I couldn't appreciate as much, but he slept and I got some nice views.

But today, headed up with the commute traffic.  It wasn't bad.  Possibly even better than Saturday afternoon traffic.  Up the 5 to the 520 to the Montlake Cut, across the bridge, past the link station contruction, University Village Starbucks and then pop over to the University of Washington Center for Urban Horticulture.  Conference had nothing to do with Horticulture, but it's a place they hold conferences, I guess.

Afterwards, I headed across campus, across the University Bridge, under the 5, Eastlake, Southlake, past the Amazon construction, over to Seattle Center, duck into the Battery Street Tunnel and then soar out onto the Alaskan Way Viaduct.  And then stop.  5-10 miles an hour above Alaskan Way looking at the sights, the ferries, the water.  Down to Marginal, the 1st. Ave. Bridge, then the 99 to the 599 to the 5.  And then straight home at 60 miles an hour.  I definitely love driving in King County rush hour versus L.A. County rush hour.  (Not sure they can call that rush hour.  At least not ironically.)

I love the city.  Beautiful buildings of glass, lots of people running, walking, jogging, lots of cars, lots of motion.  Motion.  Interest.  Beauty.  Water.  Trees.  Activity.

I hope we can move there someday when public schooling is no longer a factor.  (My parents wistfully mentioned last week that they'd consider moving back if they could find a pocket of conservatives.)

One more day tomorrow and then back to the gray concrete one-story sprawl of Federal Way.