It's Holiday Time in Seattle

It's that time of year again. Thanksgiving is only a week away and, with it, the beginning of the winter holiday season. There are so many things to do in the Seattle and surrounding areas for the holidays that just about everyone should find something(s) that will tickle their fancy and assuage their need(s) for entertainment.

Here, you will find a link to our Seattle Events Calendar, which is updated (usually) on a daily basis, as notifications of events come in.

And , just to get you started being in a festive mood, here is a slideshow of the Pike Place Public Market, which will have their Magic in the Market seasonal kickoff on 28 November 2009 from noon to 5 pm.

I look forward to seeing you all out at these events, enjoying the ambience of the Seattle holiday season.

SUMMER IN SEATTLE

If it is 2 June, it means that 20 June cannot be far behind and, with that, the People's Republic of Fremont will undertake to put on the 2009 version of the Summer Solstice Parade. Last year's edition (well edited, and NOT shot by me) can be seen above. For those of you looking for the famous naked bike riders and such won't find them in this cut.

It is 85 degrees F outside today, way too warm for my tastes, and way too early in the season. We're supposed to only have "summer weather" for about two weeks a year, and generally not until late July or early August. Here's hoping this is not an ominous sign for this summer.

For those of you coming into town to head north to Alaska, I envy you. I still have three months and 10 days before I get to leave. Enjoy our many summer festivals, sightseeing in the sun, and let me know if there is anything I can fill you in on.

Last Weekend of Seafair

I certainly can't take can't take credit for this video, but it is a good representation of what you can expect if you go to the airshow and/or the hydro races this weekend.

Seems hard to believe that the first of August is upon us already and Bumbershoot will be opening in just a few weeks (but, then again, I will be happy when the first of September gets here, because it means only 12 days left til I get to leave for Alaska on vacation).

Enjoy!

Olympic Sculpture Park Walking Tour Part I

Begin your walking tour of the Olympic Sculpture Park at the PACCAR Pavilion at Elliott and Broad Streets, about one block from the waterfront, and very near a stop for the Waterfront Streetcar. Inside the Pavilion you can obtain a copy of the Sculpture Park Map and Guide for a suggested $1.00 donation. Having obtained that, step outdoors and let us begin our tour. (Note, too, that if you are so inclined, you can download 20 MP3 guide audios in a zip file here as well as a copy of a park map.

Let us begin our walk at Curve XXIV, just outside the main entrance of the PACCAR Pavilion. This sculpture appears to be nothing more than a rusted fan shape piece of metal, so make sure that you don't overlook or miss it.

After viewing this piece, go back through the Pavilion, past the TASTE Cafe and the gift shop area, to Capula XVI, Capula XVII and the Evolving City Wall Mural. These are indoor sculptures, which you are permitted to touch and interact with, unlike the other sculptures in the park.

After interacting with the above sculptures, head outdoors once again, towards the sculpture named Riviera, which is outside the front door toward the main park proper. The open design permits walking through and around the sculpture without touching it, in order to observe all of the angles and textures.

From here, go down the steps through the Gates Ampitheatre to the bottom, to reach Wake. Wake is the largest sculpture in the OSP complex, consisting of five sets of waves, each with two curved steel constructs. The interior is hollow, and the sculpture was constructed with the aid of computers.

From here, follow the path uphill in the direction of the water, until you reach Sky Landscape. This a black, vertical, totemic sculpture of aluminum, which is three dimensional in nature with abstract curves. The piece looks different from each angle of view.

Upon leaving Sky Landscape, follow the path slightly southward until you reach Perre's Ventaglia III. This is a very shiny stainless and enamel piece, in the shape of four cubes. Its gloss and paint scheme cause it to reflect its surroundings in a very unique way.

From here we will go on to the final piece in part I of our walking tour, Persephone Unbound. This cast bronze sculpture looks very much like a wooden totem pole, and symbolizes the Greek myth of Ceres and Persephone, particularly her annual freedom from the underworld.

This concludes Part I of the Olympic Sculpture Park walking tour. Part II to follow soon.

A Little "Hello" From Someone Else.

Hello Everyone,
I am Erin. I am the youngest daughter of the owner of this blog. My significant other and I are always looking for something to do, so we go on plenty of "Adventures" in Seattle. I like to call them "Adventures in Erin-Land". Anyway, as such an adventure craving person, I have been asked to contribute to My Mother's Seattle Blog. I figured, why not, so once in a while (though not nearly as often as I'd probably like) I will write about the above-listed adventures to give you, the readers and fans, a good perspective of Seattle.

Until Next Time,
Erin

Volunteer Park, Seattle WA

One of many parks and greenbelt areas in municipal Seattle, Volunteer Park is noteworthy for its large conservatory and the Seattle Asian Art Musuem (part of the Seattle Art Museum). The image above is the conservatory.

The park itself is 40+ acres of mixed use facilities, including: the Conservatory, the Seattle Asian Art Museum, the Water Tower, water reservoir, playgrounds and picnic areas, as well as groves of trees.

The Conservatory has five separate "houses" or growing areas, each with its own distinctive mix of flora, based on climatological zones. The building was constructed in 1912, and has an extensive orchid collection (more than 600 varieties) that was donated in 1919.

Nearby stands a statue of Richard Seward, of Seward's Folly (AKA the purchase of Alaska from Russia) fame.

The Asian Art Museum is a unit of the downtown based Seattle Art Museum, and actually functioned as a backup SAM during the reconstruction/expansion of the main structure until its reopening last year. The museum has extensive and impressive collections of Asian art, currently with an exhibition of Chinese art in residence.

The Water Tower marks the highest point on Capitol Hill, at 520 feet above sea level (as opposed to the Space Needle's 725 feet above sea level), and was constructed in 1906. You can climb 106 steps to reach the observation area near the top of the structure.

The park also boasts a bandstand, circa 1909, and which continues to feature concerts in the park to this day.

Bring a picnic and spend a worthwhile day at the park in the near future. A slide show of some of the park's notable features may be found here

South Lake Union Sunday Ice Cream Cruise

If you are in Seattle over a weekend, and are looking for something interesting to do, try out the South Lake Union Sunday Ice Cream Cruise, so named because of the availability of some wonderful ice cream treats to enjoy while cruising Lake Union aboard the "Fremont Avenue". In particular, the root beer float made with chocolate ice cream should not be missed.

This 45-50 minute cruise across the waters of Seattle's Lake Union takes in sights such as the floating communities of houseboats, including the one famous for its inclusion in the movie "Sleepless in Seattle," starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan; fishing vessels, Dale Chihuly's glass arts studio, Husky Stadium, Gasworks Park, and multiple marinas full of beautiful small craft.

The tour departs from South Lake Union near the armory and Center for Wooden Boats. Winter hours are hourly from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and summer hours are from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.,, departing at the top of the hour.

A slide show of some of the sights from this tour is available here

For more information on the boat and the tour, see the website linked into the title of this post.