Thursday, January 03, 2008

Seattle

We spent Christmas in Seattle with hubby's brother and sister-in-law. The damp climate was unbelievable. Moss was growing everywhere. Though the temperature was in the 30s, I was freezing the whole time. Something about the wetness sinking into your bones. Brrrrr!

And yet, roses, geraniums and yarrow and other plants were still in bloom!

It was so exciting to see flowers in December!

It rained for much of our stay, but the sun did shine. Or at least the pale, soft light that passes for sun in the Northwest. (Notice the lamps are on during the middle of the afternoon.) My brother-in-law is a landscape architect. These trees are part of a pear-tree hedge around their front yard. My in-laws also grow plums, cherries, blueberries and lots of other fruits and veggies.

The view on another "sunny" day.

On this trip, we didn't make it to the Pike Place Market (we drove by). But we did go to Chinook's for lunch. It's on a real fishermen's wharf.

More fishing boats.

The sun beginning to set around 4 pm.

This was along Magnolia Drive at sunset. I can't recall which body of water this is, Lake Union, maybe? The picture is a little fuzzy because I took it from the car as we were driving, but I love the colors.

I also saw The Panama Hotel, inspiration for Jamie Ford's upcoming novel, Hotel at the Corner of Bitter and Sweet.

7 comments:

Lisa said...

These photos are stunning. Scott's niece moved to Seattle earlier this year and we're hoping to pay her a visit -- during the week that summer happens :)

Anonymous said...

Beautiful pics. Hubby keeps bringing up moving to Seattle but I love Colorado too much. Not to mention I'm not sure I'd be such a great candidate for all the overcast days.

Did you know Colorado has more sunny days annually than San Diego?

Shauna Roberts said...

Great pictures. I think the dreary days would make me depressed. I wonder how the plants get enough sunshine to grow.

Julie Kibler said...

We went to Spokane to visit my dad two of the last three Christmases, and I, too, was surprised even there by the dampness and the resulting cold ZING to the bones! Of course, here in Texas it was *only* about 40 today (and semi-sunny and dry) and we were freeeeeezing. I have become a wimp since my high school days of standing coatless in the snow at Denver bus stops. :-)

Ello - Ellen Oh said...

Great pictures! And what a pretty place to stay. I've always wanted to visit Seattle. Sheesh, there are alot of places I want to visit. But nice to see it through other people's lens.

Sherry said...

Those colours are beautiful...and how warming to see sunlight on the water and flowers in January...spring is on it's way..in it's time...

Jamie Ford said...

Great photos. The cold there really is different, huh? I lived in Anchorage for a couple of winters and it never seemed as chilling to the bone as Seattle gets. That whole dry cold versus wet cold thing.

I'm stoked that you happened upon the hotel. It's not much from the outside, but the tea house is lovely and they're restoring the rooms to the way they were in the 30s. And of course, there are suitcases and boxes of artifacts in the basement...