Blog #7: Vacation Research

All I know about Seattle is that it rains a lot, is named after Chief Seattle (thank you, Mercury Reader),  and is the home of grunge (Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and such).  This upcoming weekend, my partner and I are going out of town for our anniversary, but I have been too busy to do any vacation-related research.  So… I’ve decided to kill two birds with one stone and write this week’s blog entry on things to do/see in Seattle, Washington.  Here’s what I’ve come up with so far:

We are staying at the Pan Pacific Hotel and renting a car.  I am a tad nervous because I have only been in an airplane a couple of times before, but I'm sure I'll survive.  Here is the hotel website:
http://www.panpacific.com/en/Seattle/Overview.html

Seattle is home to the Fremont Troll.  

I had never 

heard of this art installation, but I recognize it from the fabulous film 10 Things I Hate about You.  Apparently, the troll was built in 1990, in an effort to clean up the underbelly of a bridge that had become a hangout for drug dealers and a dumping ground for trash.  

I hear it gets crowded on the weekends, 

but it might be fun to get a picture.

 

I have no idea what the Space Needle is all about; its wonder is lost on me.  I’m sure we’ll see it from afar; however, I have very little desire to stand in line and take the elevator to the top.

There seem to be a lot of parks in Seattle.  The Japanese Garden and Gas Works Park look cool.

Pioneer Square is… a square for pioneers?  (As you can see, I’m not very good at this research thing.)  The internet refers to it as “the center of Seattle's nightlife.”

 

Jimi Hendrix is buried in a cemetery 18 miles from where we are staying.

 

The Seattle Art Museum (SAM) houses 25,000 pieces.  My sister is an Art History major, so I’m sure she’d appreciate this much more than I do.  In front of the museum is a sculpture called Hammering Man, which was installed in 1992, and is part of a series of hammering men that have been erected all over the world. 

 

 

My researching did produce 

one super exciting find. 

The EMP Museum 

(Experience Music Project 

and Science Fiction 

Museum and Hall of Fame)

currently has a Battlestar 

Galactica exhibition. 

(Website) When I saw this, I literally ran screaming/jumping through the apartment—because

I am a total nerd.  They also have other 

collections on Nirvana, horror movies, 

and much more at the moment. 

If anyone has been to Seattle and has any recommendations regarding things to do/see/eat, let me know.  Other than the Battlestar exhibit, we have no definite plans.  It is supposed to be in the low 50s and be rainy while we are there, so we might just walk around, watch tv, and relax.

Ultimately, whatever we end up doing, it should be a lovely two days away :)