Another look at Seattle - March, 2010...

I like Seattle. A seaport city situated on an hilly isthmus between Elliot Bay in Puget Sound and two bodies of freshwater, Lake Union, and Lake Washington. The largest city of the United States Pacific Northwest, named after Chief Seattle, of the Duwamish and Suquamish tribes. I like Seattle sitting on the toes of the Cascade Mountains, the view of Mount Rainer on a clear day and especially watching the sunrise on or set behind the Olympic Mountain Range of the Olympic Peninsula. What a fantastic setting for the emerald city!

Here are a few rather unique views from a few days Catherine, Clementine and I recently ‘Emerald City’.

Image #1: Post Alley; most folks are familiar with Pike’s Place Market or the Public Market at the end of Pike Street. Post Alley is a somewhat hidden route under the market.

In the second image the girls are walking down the beginning of Post Alley just before it turns and goes under the market place. Cobbled roadway with moss growing between the brick cracks; posters of events, art shows, performances, political statements and other flotsam of human expression line the concrete wall.

Photograph number three; No visit to the Public Market is complete without a stroll past the fish hawkers and fresh vegetable stands. This early morning shot is possible as the daily crowds are not yet thick and bustling. I like the lighting and repetitive patterns within this image.

With image number 4 we’ll stay in the Public Market area just a bit longer. The nearby Market Park is where this totem pole is found. It’s a small park with a great view out over Elliot Bay and some of the ship yards.

Believe it or not, this clean and sparsely used (at least in March) beach, image 5, is downtown Seattle. The Seattle Art Museum sculpture park is just a hundred feet up from this driftwood, gravel beach.

Photo #6 is from a mid-day stroll through the waterfront park. The Seattle Post Intelligence building makes a distinctive subject with its cloud reflecting glass front and unusual symbol globe perched atop. I like the temporary orange construction fencing contrasting with the rest of the image. The whole image just struck me as pleasantly unique.

Image #7 is from a visit to the tropical butterfly house at the Seattle Science Center where I caught this ‘morpho peleides’ hanging off a leaf of this angels trumpet tree. With the temperatures are in the low 80s, humidity between 60 to 70 percent, combined with full-spectrum lighting to keep the plants and butterflies healthy, this is an enjoyable way to pass a rainy, late winter day.

In closing; photograph #8 is from our temporary abode above Alaskan Way across the street from the Seattle waterfront. Sunrise on the Olympic on a clear morning is a fine sight to behold.