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Tuesday, September 26
I was up a little after 6 and watched our docking in Seattle from our balcony.
I grabbed a couple of cell phone shots of the city on my way to breakfast at the Oceanview Cafe. The photo on the left is the only one I kind of liked. I've still got to learn how to use the blasted thing. I prefer my big camera...
I got my courage up and had a Mimosa with mine! That's something I'd repeat every morning. Carl and Kelly soon joined me.
Quote of the day (from the cruise director): Welcome to (I never thought I'd say this), sunny Seattle!
However, the rain started later in the morning and would continue off and on for the rest of the day.
We disembarked about 9:30. Everyone had to go through customs and immigration control. We didn't have any problems, but, evidently, those coming behind us wound up in very long slow lines. I would hear stories the next day about people whose tours were cut short and some weren't about to enjoy the city at all! By the time they got off, it was time to reboard the ship!
We got a ride to Pioneer Square with some Aussies. We thought we were getting an Uber, but this was a hustler who only took cash. Fortunately, we were able to come up with it. When we were letting the Aussies out at Pike Place, I over bent my right knee. That would give me problems off and on for the next couple of days. We had the driver drop us off at Pioneer Square.
We got tickets to Underground Seattle - for the next tour, which started about 45 minutes later. So we roamed the area for those 45 minutes until time for the tour. It was a decent tour - highly recommended. We had a funny guide.
The photo on the left shows the sign for the Underground Tour and the park in front of the building the tour is based in. The center photo shows me shooting some of the buildings in the area. The photo on the right shows some of the buildings near Pioneer Square (and shows some of the steep roads of downtown Seattle - almost as hilly as San Francisco).
The photo on the left shows some imaginative brickwork on the side of a building (and Snoopy in the window).
The photo on the right shows a quiet set of flats near a small park near Pioneer Square.
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The photo on the left shows a portion of Underground Seattle. This wall, when the building was originally built, was at street level. The arches deliniate what once was store windows that customers could look into as they strolled by. Now, it serves as part of the basement of this particular building.
The photo on the right shows one of the skylights that were installed to help provide light to the new basements. If you happened to walk by on the sidewalk directly above this, you'd see shiny purple bits of glass in the sidewalk. As the glass aged, it turned purple. While we were standing here, our guide turned off the lights and we had plenty of light to see by!
Then we got an Uber to the Museum of Pop Culture (MoPop) for the remainder of our stay ashore. They had a nice exhibit on stop motion film making, featuring the company that produced Coraline. I really liked the Sci Fi section and Fantasy section. But I could have done without the Horror section... Another highly recommended stop.
The photo on the left shows Leonard Nimoy's tunic from the original pilot for Star Trek. This was originally blue, but has faded weirdly to this orangey color. Since the original pilot failed, this shirt was reworked for a later episode, so the styling has changed, but it's the same tunic. The center photo shows the coat James Mason wore for the Disney version of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. The photo on the right shows a chandelier made from old fashioned light bulbs.
The photo on the left shows a large pillar of guitars and other stringed instruments. This was in the center of the main lobby. Off to one side was the room with mementos from various movie and television series (like the Star Trek tunic and Nemo's coat). To the other side was a display of famous guitars that had been donated. To the third side was a dizzying display of pop and rock musicians - most of whom I'd never heard of. The fourth side had displays to Horror, Science Fiction, and Fantasy. According to the plaque that appeared with this pillar, when it was built, some of the instruments would autoplay. That feature no longer works.
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These three photos are from the Science Fiction section of the museum. The photo on the left shows one of the Terminators (second one, I think). The center photo shows Skaro, one of the Daleks from the Dr. Who series. The photo on the right shows a model of the ship from 2001: A Space Odyssey.
The photo on the left shows a tunnel of lights. There were two of these in the Science Fiction section of the museum. We never did figure out what they were supposed to be from, if anything, but I thought they were kind of cool.
The photo on the right shows the costume worn by Bert Lahr as the Cowardly Lion in the Wizard of Oz. This was in the Fantasy section of the museum. This section included several other notables, like several costumes from the Harry Potter series, Dark Crystal, and Dungeons and Dragons. However, the museum decided to get creative and used wavy glass for most of the exhibits, which affects any attempts to take photos of them.
This museum is located at the base of the Space Needle, so I got my obligatory shot of that.
We had originally planned to continue from there to the Chihuly Gardens, but had decided against it with the rain coming in bands across the city. It's just as well. There really wasn't time to see all three items during our time in port.
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We got an Uber back to the ship an hour before the gangway went up. We grabbed drinks, then returned to our stateroom, where we dropped stuff, then hurried to the bow of the ship to the helipad for sail away with champagne and mimosas. It was one of the perks for Concierge Class customers.
The photo on the left shows the Space Needle and Science Center and that end of the skyline. The center photo shows the southern part of the skyline, including two ferry boats. The photo on the right shows the central portion of the skyline and the darkening skies overhead.
Then back to our stateroom for quick showers and to get ready for dinner in the main dining room. I actually wore a skirt and top! Kelly loaned me a small pocketbook for room key and cell phone.
It was a good dinner - Kelly had a steak, C had a sea bass dish, me - tomato seafood orzo pasta (the one that looks like rice).
We watched some passengers make fools of themselves at name the celebrity. Then gelato and sorbet for the two of us. Kelly went on to a show.
We went back to the stateroom to crash. The seas were even rougher (for me) overnight. I took a dramamine chewy as a precaution, but wound up not needing it.