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12/29/2005, Seattle trip day 6: Sightseeing with Mom

We spent the day with my mom, seeing fun places around Seattle. Originally, it was to be a day of my mom's discretion, but my mom gave us quite a bit of say in where we went. Essentially, we were showing my mom around. Sara was with us for most of the day.

Panama Hotel

First, we went to the Panama Hotel in the International District. The hotel was built by a Japanese architect in 1910 and has been home to generations of Japanese immigrants. You can look through the floor and see the living quarters of some Japanese people who lived there a long time ago. I don't remember the history exactly, unfortunately.

I took a picture of my Sencha tea that I had there, but somehow I neglected to take pictures of the cool historic stuff. Silly me.

Anyway, it was surely a good idea.

International District, squirrels

We took a walk through a P-Patch (public garden space) in the International District. We saw some squirrels. Akemi doesn't see squirrels in Japan much, so I took a bunch of pictures of squirrels for her sake.

Squirrels

... and more squirrels ...

... and even more squirrels.

Not surprisingly, Akemi wasn't too interested in the Japanese businesses in the International District. There are plenty of those back home.

Safeco Field

We also made a stop at Safeco Field, a big attraction for Japanese people.

Over half of the patrons in the gift shop were Japanese.

Akemi and me posing outside the stadium.

Seattle Underground Tour

One of the highlights of the day was a tour of the old streets under parts of downtown. After downtown Seattle burned down in a big fire, parts of it were rebuilt at an elevated level with elevated streets and shop fronts. You can go under the city and see what's there, while hearing a lecture by some people who know Seattle's history well. Interestingly enough, many of the tour guides are primarily actors, and learned the history later. They know the history very well. The guides are all excellent. Clearly serious about what they do.

Sara suggested this and provided a coupon for free admission for some of us. I really like this picture of Sara.

Underground Seattle.

Under the sidewalk.

And above the sidewalk in the same place.

The Smith Tower, once the tallest building west of the Mississippi River.

Pike Place Market

After the tour, the four of us went to the Pike Place Market for lunch.

We stopped to see these famous fish sellers.

This is a "monk fish". Not sure what that is.

We had lunch at Lowell's, a fixture in the market. These are fish and chips.

Akemi got this salmon burger.

Here's an action shot of the salmon burger.

Scratching my persistent itch for Mexican food, I opted for Baja-style fish tacos.

Seattle Center

After lunch, Sara had to go see some friends.

With lights all over, it was very pretty at night at the Seattle Center.

We rode a carousel. This is my mom.

.. and Akemi. (I was riding between them. It was hard to take the pictures.)

Here, I tried to take my own picture. About the same as the others. Not very good, but I tried. I wanted to enjoy the carousel, so I didn't bother to try very hard. I just wanted to snap a couple pictures just to remember. It really was fun riding.

Inside the Center House, there was a big toy train set with a nice landscape.

It was perhaps the nicest setup I've ever seen.

Acrobats and music at the Seattle Center

In the Center House, they had a band called Circus Contraption playing circus music. After a set of music only, they were joined by an all-girl acrobatics group. They were really impressive. I guess acrobats are supposed to be impressive. Skillful, graceful, and artful. I snapped a bunch of pictures. I won't bother to explain each one. Many of their routines involved climing up on a rope, gracefully wrapping the rope around their bodies, and then suddenly letting go. When they let go, the rope would become tied around their legs and it would catch them. If you've got a fast connection, try a couple of the movies.

The Aerialistas, "Captured By Ferries".

The Aerialistas, "Captured By Ferries". A daring routine on a rope. (MOV video file 3.1 MB, 12 seconds)

The Aerialistas, "Captured By Ferries". Swinging on ropes. (MOV video file 5.7 MB, 22 seconds)

The Aerialistas, "Captured By Ferries". Formations on bars. (MOV video file 10 MB, 40 seconds)

The Aerialistas, "Captured By Ferries". Formations on bars. (MOV video file 6.5 MB, 25 seconds)

The Aerialistas, "Captured By Ferries". Swinging in hoops. (MOV video file 10 MB, 40 seconds)

The Aerialistas, "Captured By Ferries". Swinging in hoppes. (MOV video file 10 MB, 40 seconds)

The Aerialistas, "Captured By Ferries". Walking around at the end. (MOV video file 5.0 MB, 19 seconds)

The Aerialistas, "Captured By Ferries". Walking around at the end. (MOV video file 3.7 MB, 14 seconds)