Day 62 – June 4
After our breakfast courtesy of Days Inn we had a quick au revoir with Sean and Carla as they headed to Victoria. Our plan for the day was a visit to the Washington State Arboretum and its included Japanse Garden. The property of the arboretum is owned by the City of Seattle but the trees are planted and maintained by Washington State University. Admission is free. However the Japanese Garden is maintained and operated by the city and there is a $6 entry fee.
We started at the Japanese Garden which was beautifully done. Seattle is a sister city to Kobe Japan and Kobe has contributed much to the design and construction of the garden. As we were there shortly after opening we pretty much had the gardens to ourselves, perfect for the contemplation that the setting urged. As we walked the paths through the garden, the large coy pond and the lovely Japanese Tea House slipped in and out of view. An array of various Japanese maples, pine trees and japanese lanterns adorned the paths. It was a lovely morning.
The Japanese Gardens
After the garden we stopped for a tea and coffee at the visitors centre and then walked the grounds of the Arboretum. Noted especially for its rhododendrons and azaleas the walk would have been spectacular one week earlier. Many of the blooming plants were just slightly beyond their prime but still provided ample photo opportunities.
We returned to our hotel to drop off the BRT before catching the bus to downtown. We wanted to seethe space needle and some of the other sights in the area. Now Seattle is a big city and in my experience, like most big cities, seems to have a disproportionate attraction for unique personalities. Some of these could be described as characters, some as eccentric and some as damaged, people who for one tragic reason or another don’t have all the wires in their personal switch board plugged in.
For some reason the 3:06 bus on route 358 seemed to be a collector for the latter category. Several of our co passengers carried out conversations with unseen companions, others entered into aggressive conversations with anyone who made eye contact, while others hid their eyes behind hoods and hats and some just twitched involuntarily in their seats. The whole sociology experiment was kept under control by a bus driver who shouted back instructions to shut up to anyone who broke her self imposed code of silence.
Thanks to one very helpful passenger who had befriended us at our bus stop we got off at the stop closest to the iconic Seattle space needle. Close to the needle was the EMP Museum. The Experience Music Project Museum was founded by Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen in 2000. The Frank Gehry designed building is a striking sculptural counterpoint to the adjacent needle.
Gehry’s EMP
Although seeing the needle was part of our plan our real goal was to visit the Chihuly Garden and Glass. To say that Dale Chihuly is a glass artist is like saying Da Vinci was a painter. Chihuly has taken the art of glass blowing far beyond anything that could have been imagined 40 years ago. His installations are breathtakingly beautiful in their unique combination of colour, shape and fragility. At the outdoor section of this gallery his work is paired with plants in a way that enhances the beauty of both. We have both long been fans of his work but this was the first time I had seen actual pieces. It was one of the highlights of our trip to date.
By the time we left the display we were ready for supper and based on recommendations from Dennis, Esther and Erin we headed for a pizza at Serious Pie, an unassuming small restaurant that would have been easy to walk by. Complete with a wood fired pizza oven and convivial staff the Serious Pie turned out two of the best pizzas we have had since Tuscany, simply fantastic. The cannoli desert was the perfect ending to the meal.
Walking off a very small portion of the calories consumed we returned to the hotel to do a laundry and post our ventures of the past two days. We are off to Vancouver and after over 60 days back to Canada tomorrow.