Home again

For a little while anyway.

Seattle was very nice. We lucked out and had really nice weather. Sunny and warm in the day, cool and comfortable during the evenings.

A co-worker and I took a harbor tour the first night we were there and had a beautiful view of the skyline.

It's amazing how it has changed since my first visit which was about 12 years ago. You can see how the high-tech companies like Microsoft have invested there.

Didn't bring the camera...so I don't have any pictures - sorry.

The Smith Tower was kind of a neat building to see.

Built by Lyman C. Smith (of Smith and Corona typewriters) It was one the worlds 4th largest building when it opened in 1914.

On the 35th floor of the building they have the Chinese Room which was furnished by the last Empress of China as a gift to Mr. Smith.

One of the coolest parts about it though is that the very top of the building - the pyramid shape originally housed a 10,000 gallon cast iron water tank which was later disassembled and then the whole space was turned into a penthouse apartment, complete with a Chihuly chandelier! I also learned that a local "Seattle business woman" lives there and able to climb all the way to the top which is crowned by an eight-foot wide glass dome which is illuminated by blue light, except for the month of December, when it is changed to green.

How cool is that?


This trip I finally made it up to the top of the Space Needle where we had dinner one evening in celebration of the birthday for one of my colleagues.

The restaurant spins very slowly so that you get a full panoramic view of downtown Seattle, Elliot Bay, the Puget sound, the Cascades and surrounding areas. It's a bit pricey, but the food was very good. I had prime rib that you could cut with a butter knife. If you want a slow relaxing dinner though...it ain't gonna happen. They want a high turnaround in that place so you are in there and out of there in just over 1 hour. There is actually a 2 hour maximum that you can stay.

The view...freakin' awesome! The sky was a bit too hazy to see Mt. Rainier unfortunately, but we still had a great time!

Seattle is definitely a favorite city of mine to visit: clean, friendly, diverse and small enough that you can see a lot in a short amount of time.

During my next visit I hope to take the tour of Pioneer Square and Seattle's Underground!

It's good to be back home though. Traveling for leisure is one thing...traveling for business is something else entirely. It makes you weary.

For me anyway.