Seattle

Tuesday, April 30, 2024

After our dilly-dallying near Port Angeles the day before, the Zaandam made it to Seattle early on Tuesday morning. Two years ago Bob and I boarded the Eurodam for a week long Alaska cruise at Pier 91 in Seattle and I assumed that was where the Zaandam would dock as well. Not so. This time we were at Pier 66 right in the heart of downtown Seattle. (Why couldn't we have been as lucky in San Francisco?)

Our morning view from the back deck of the Zaandam.
Skies were gray and there were off and on sprinkles. 

The day started out cloudy with occasional light sprinkles, but the weather improved as the day went on. The first stop on my agenda was Pike Place Market. I think we could have walked from the ship, but Jon was nice enough to call an Uber to save me some steps.

It was 9 am when we reached the market and right at the entrance we encountered the stand with "fish tossing" that the market is known for. A neat gimmick, but nothing that falls in the amazing category.

Jon with Rachel the Piggy Bank

Can you see the fish being tossed through the air?

Or how about a "high five" with a fish tail? 

We began by wandering down one of the side streets by the market where we found the Beecher's  Handmade Cheese store. Our son is in the marketing department for one of the larger cheese companies in the U.S. so we had to stop and get a few photos for him!

Making cheese!

Michelle is a collector of Starbucks mugs and even with the rainy conditions she was willing to stand in line for 30 minutes to get one from the original Starbucks in Seattle. Technically I think the original coffeeshop has been torn down, but this was a close second. As she waited we watched as the shop keepers were setting up their stalls in the market across the street.

Michelle waiting patiently to get inside the Starbucks to purchase a mug.

We continued to wander throughout the market and eventually found our way to the "Gum Wall" located in an alley under the market. I couldn't help but think how many germs were plastered onto those walls!

No wonder Holland America isn't serving lobster tails on dressy nights anymore!

Bob couldn't get over that anyone would buy rhubarb for $5/pound.
It grows like crazy in our backyard!

The Seattle Gum Wall. Gross!

Our nephew, Ty, lives in Seattle and works at an office in the building right across the street from Pier 66 where the Zaandam was docked. He knew we were to be in Seattle that day so a little before noon we called him to see if he could join us for lunch. Ty walked down to Pike Place Market and suggested we eat at Old Stove Brewing Company. It was a little cool, but we opted to eat outdoors overlooking the waterfront. The food was good, but spending time with Ty was even better. We usually only see him once a year so this visit was a bonus!

So fun to spend time with nephew, Ty!
My hiking pole helped my walking a little bit but our day in Seattle pushed me to my limit!

You can see how close the restaurant was to the Zaandam!

Michelle and I both ordered the clam and bacon chowder!

My original plans were to go to the Space Needle and Chihuly Glass Museum in the afternoon, but after walking through the market all morning I wasn't sure my knee would hold out. Instead I suggested we stay on the waterfront and take a ride on the giant ferris wheel. After all...we were so close! 😏

But then again, my distance perception isn't the greatest and getting to the Seattle Great Wheel turned out to be a little more of a walk than I had anticipated and a LOT MORE stairs!

So many steps to get down from street level to the waterfront!

Tickets for the Great Wheel were $16/person for the senior rate. It was a pretty good view from the top and cheaper than the Space Needle so a good compromise I guess. Michelle is afraid of heights and almost backed out at the last minute but all four of us shared one of the gondolas. 

I have no clue. 😒

The glass canopy must be there in case objects are dropped from the wheel above.

An aerial view of "our private deck" at the back of the Zaandam!

A zoomed in view of the Space Needle from the top of the Great Wheel. 

The clouds have cleared and it was a beautiful afternoon!

When we got off of the ferris wheel we were routed through the Miners Landing complex to the exit. This added quite a few steps that weren't really necessary, but no different than rides at amusement parks dumping you out in a gift shop.

It was mid-afternoon by the time we got off of the Great Wheel. Jon tried to convince Bob that they should rent the Lime electric scooters again like they did in San Francisco, but I put my foot down. (Figuratively, not literally. 😄) All aboard time was 5:30 and I didn't want to take a chance of them missing the ship because they were fooling around on the stupid scooters. I also knew I was going to struggle walking back to the ship and I wanted Bob along...just in case. But Jon was determined enough that he took off on his own while Bob, Michelle and I started the trek back to Pier 66.

Jon spent about an hour on his scooter tour and did make it back to the ship in plenty of time. Here are a few of his photos from the little adventure:

It turns out Bob was glad he didn't go with Jon. On our way back to the ship we passed several racing yachts in the marina. Of course Bob started talking to a guy involved with the race and found out the boats were all part of the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race. The next thing I knew, Bob had gotten an invitation to tour one of the yachts and Michelle and I were on our own to get back to the Zaandam!

The yachts were getting ready to do the next leg of the race from Seattle...through the Panama Canal...to Washington, DC and had crew from all walks of life. The guy who gave Bob the tour was an emergency medical physician (which gave them something in common) and he showed Bob every nook and cranny of the boat. Getting the personal tour of the yacht was one of the high points of the whole cruise for Bob!

This is the boat that Bob toured.

Dr. Timothy Talbot gave Bob a tour of the yacht, Qingdao.

I had jokingly told Ty that when we got ready to sail we would go up by the aft pool and wave to him at work in his office. I texted him shortly before we sailed and thanked him for joining us for lunch and to my surprise, he came to the window and waved! I didn't realize it, but he also took a photo of Bob and I on the ship. (We had already turned to go back downstairs so all he got was our backsides!)

You can tell by comparing the first photo in this post to this last that the skies had cleared during the day and we had blue skies by afternoon. 

The World Stage evening entertainment was the Step One Dancers performing "Musicology". Bob and I had seen the show two or three times previously, but it was a first for Jon and Michelle. I shouldn't keep complaining, but I really would like to see the Broadway type shows return. The Step One performances are OK on the bigger stages of the Pinnacle Class ships AND the first time you experience them. But after quite a few repeats and the tiny Zaandam stage I'm ready for a change.

Tomorrow would be the official end of our 11-day coastal cruise (or for others, the end of their 4-day cruise) and the beginning of our 7-day cruise to Alaska!!