Sunsetting on our winter in Seattle

We say goodbye to the little family and goodbye to winter in Seattle.

And the sunset on the Puget Sound, if you fall in love with Seattle it is because of the Sound.

In the far distance, Mt Rainier from the ferry. Mostly in cloud but when clear it is a celebration in itself to see this magnificent snow-clad volcano that dominates the Seattle skyline.

Queen Mary Tea Room; Seattle

A family tradition of high tea and afternoon tea. Shawni reminded me of that her first high tea was for her 16th birthday. Since then we have enjoyed tea treats in South Africa, in the United Kingdom, in New Zealand and now at Queen Mary, a teahouse with a Victorian elegance.

A must do Seattle holiday season tradition, Shawni and I loved choosing our specialty teas and indulging in cheesecake.

A quote from our menu is that Afternoon Tea was created by the Duchess of Bedford in 1840 to fill the 'void' between lunch and dinner whereas High Tea started as a workman's supper in the 1600 and was served at high tables to not dirty the chairs and table linens. 

Not that we are experiencing a void, Chipotle for lunch and we are now huddled around a brazier with an almost full moon having a New Zealand sauvignon blanc and ribs! Oh well, it's our last weekend and we are celebrating our time together. 

From Wellington, New Zealand in 2016 to Seattle for afternoon tea.

 

We enjoyed the immersion in tea cups, teapots and teas

Dock Fouling; Bremerton, Seattle

On a calm clear day in Seattle there is nothing better than to hop on a ferry to take in the beauty of the Puget Sound and the snow peaks of the Olympic's. We choose the longest ride from the downtown ferry terminal which is an hour trip going across to Bremerton. 

Bremerton harbour in the winter sun.

With no plan other than being out on the Sound we wandered down to the small boat harbour and noticed a group of women kneeling or lying on the docks peering into the water. And then we were 'dock fouling' too, if I thought birders were rather quirky, this pastime is even more so! 

With a dock checklist in hand, kneelers, waterproof cameras the group were finding sea urchins, sea slugs, anemones, sea cucumbers (my favourites), crabs, jellyfish and looking for their own 'lifers'. Fred was soon doing the same. Another photographer was on the dock too, recording the event for Airbnb. If ever in Bremerton, Seattle - I highly recommend.

Fred and the 'dock foulers'

Underwater magic!

Fascinating Tube Worms, they retract into their tubes when lightly touched.

A world apart, just under the waterline and thriving on the wooden docks

Glorious old WW2 tugboat just waiting to it's new life.

A trip to The Centre of the Universe; Fremont, Seattle

Back in Seattle. The little ones have started their new school term, Shawni and Craig are into their working routine and we are riding the 62 bus which takes us into Downtown Seattle. 

Fremont has a signpost that says it's the Centre of the Universe. The story goes that two scientists in 1991 concluded that there was no evidence for a centre of the universe, so why not right here in Fremont. Good enough reason for us to hop off the bus and stroll around.

This Seattle neighbourhood is on Union Lake.  I had been wanting to watch seaplanes and Gas Works Park on the Lake is the perfect vantage point. The rest of our walk evolved and kept delighting us, especially the marina condos.

Gasworks Marina Condominium, sparkling in the winter sun.
A glimpse of an alternative lifestyle and a glimpse of a cold water swimmer. Both rather appealed to me in the moment.

Union Lake, Seattle

Watching the comings and goings of seaplanes on Union Lake from Gas Works Park.

On our way to our lunch venue we found this piece of the Berlin Wall in Fremont, commemorating the role of Seattle and Boeing's C-47 in the Berlin Airlift of 1948.

A day out in Fremont, easy, trendy, quirky, a perfect pretzel and yet another interesting perspective on this fabulous city.

The girls go to the Ballet, our Christmas treat

 

A Seattle tradition, The Nutcracker.

A Christmas treat indeed, a towering Christmas Tree, Clara with her beloved Nutcracker, bunny pulling the Mouse King's tail, a dozen golden angels, a Green Tea Cricket, Mother Ginger showing off her flock of dancing children and a pair of prancing reindeer that take flight. 

The ballet was enchanting, the Sugar Plum Fairy and Cavalier performed a quite sublime pas de deux and we loved it all.

It's now Christmas Eve. We all strolled around Green Lake on a mildish, sunny Seattle afternoon.  Shawni and I prepped two delicious soups, a corn and shrimp chowder and a maple roasted butternut soup.  

The evening with excited kids "one more sleep" and with Jason and Elle down from Vancouver was so happy. Our families are far away in South Africa, Australia, Ireland, Netherlands and Singapore and we all felt gratitude for being together here in Seattle in Craig and Shawni's home.

The presents are under the tree and we are quietly going to bed and I think we are last in the world to celebrate!

Christmas Eve in Seattle.

Four more sleeps; Snowflake Land Holiday Parade in Bellevue

The household is in countdown mode to Christmas. School is done for the year, wrapping is happening behind the scenes, the ham is bought, menu planning underway, and we joined the thousands of happy families in the heart of downtown Bellevue to be part of the 20th Snowflake Parade.

Navigating the traffic, the parking and the crowds, worth it for the music, 'snow', lights the festive spirit and the fun floats.

Winter walks along Lake Washington, Seattle

Almost our backyard, a quick drive down to Lake Washington to walk and bird.

Fresh air and endless vistas.

"Bench with a view"
Magnuson Park, an all year round destination for sport and leisure.
Cascade Mountains framing the view.

Tundra Swans on the Lake

Gregarious Cedar Waxwings feeding happily on the red berries.

Bucket List: Seattle Kraken Ice Hockey game at the Climate Pledge Arena

Bucket list: our first Ice Hockey game!

Walking into the Climate Pledge Arena in Downtown Seattle and seeing the hockey rink was such a thrill. 

The arena throbbed with noise and the excited fans were dressed up and ready to party. We had a birds eye view of the game and it is a true skill. The speed and agility of the players as they finesse the puck with their hockey sticks is so impressive. American live sport is certainly unique and entertaining. 

I am a fan and was shouting 'go go Kraken' right from the first shot.
 

Remarkable! Noise, music, lights, extraordinary fans, speed and skill is quite breathtaking.
Go Seattle Kraken, a 3: 2 win over the NY Islanders.
Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, 

Bird Connect Seattle

 

A Song Sparrow, a morning outing with Bird Connect Seattle.

We joined our second bird outing with Bird Connect Seattle this morning. Conditions were not ideal between the noise of the highway construction underway and a typical wet Seattle morning. We did however manage to id another new bird for my list, the Spotted Towhee, I also got more insight with the difference between the two Kinglets and Fred got this nice photo of a Song Sparrow.

Seen on our walk along Portage Bay, Seattle
It is a fine way to describe Seattle.

Big and small circles, a Monkey Puzzle hunt

Being away from home for long blocks of time requires a slightly different way of travel. And I think about my days as 'big circle' or 'small circle'. 

Big is where we boldly venture out, explore and take in the place we find ourself. Small is needed to regroup, gather myself together, do some laundry, some admin, blog, sort photos, cook, read, knit, research, spend time with the family... The small circle days we find ourselves walking around the neighbourhood, looking at the different styles of homes here in suburban Seattle, having a coffee, provisioning for a meal and these last fews days I have been on a hunt for the Monkey Puzzle.

Taha Ebrahimi's illustrated walking guide to street trees in Seattle got me going on my small circle day today. The rather amusing part is that the Monkey Puzzle tree mentioned in the book is a rather poor specimen and I then noticed them much closer to home, in fact over the road!

Now to fetch the little ones, take Kirstie to swimming and James to his soccer social, dinner, reading and then bedtime. 
 

Araucaria Araucana, an evergreen conifer from Chile with an interesting story and a rather bizarre look.
The sharp triangular leaves that shape the upturned spiny branches are fascinating as are the upright cones. The tree also has a perfectly rounded crown.

Extract from Street Trees of Seattle by Taha Ebrahimi. 

And Bryant is our neighbourhood, hence the search for a monkey puzzle.

Purple in Downtown Seattle, twinkling lights, a tower of wine and an indulgent menu.

Table for 4 please. Hadfield and Kersten party at Purple Cafe and Wine Bar in Downtown Seattle. 

The bubbles, an Italian Sparkling Contratto Alta Langa, to start the evening celebrating Shawni's 40th birthday. Our starters with the bubbles were the Dungeness Crab Cakes, Spicy Prawns, Oysters and Baked Brie. 

And the Oregon Pinot Noir from the Willamette Valley with the deep rich flavours of Duck Cassoulet, Squid Ink Linguine, Braised Short Rib Pappardelle and for Shawni, a first, Pan Seared Steelhead.

Dessert, a vast bowl of Vanilla Creme Brûlée. My only 'complaint' no Italian espresso only American drip coffee which was a pass.

 

And Shawni turns 40, looking back through photos!

Shawni has started to get happy birthday messages from New Zealand, so she is 40 already in parts of the world. Here we celebrate tomorrow.

I have been looking through photos remembering these past 40 years! Shawni was a remarkable baby, a joyful young girl, a feisty teenager, a fascinating young adult, a smart career woman, a much loved wife and a dedicated, loving mother. We have watched her grow and flourish and have participated in her life with so much love and pleasure. Fred and I  appreciate being here in Seattle to be part of this special milestone.

Happy birthday Shawni, we love you Mom and Dad.

The early years, having a brother to pest and play with, moving to France and already travelling the world, starting nursery and primary school in Norwood, lots of special times with family and friends.

And the years pass, onto St Mary's for high school and to the University of Cape Town, always a dedicated clever student, sport, skydiving, career kicks off, loads of focus on family and friends and of course, meeting Craig at EY in Johannesburg.

A career move to Nassau and a wedding in the Bahamas.
Magical on all levels.
 

And the joy of her own little family with Craig, James our first grandson in 2016 and Kirstie our only little girl in 2019.
The careers that evolve and take shape, they work hard, they live life to the full, they love to travel and care deeply about their friends and family.

 

Books and Coffee, Capital Hill, Seattle

 

 Seattle's independent bookstore.

Our Sunday morning was the wonderful combination of coffee and books. Buying coffee, drinking coffee, browsing books and buying books. For me, a completely wonderful combination. On my to do list was picking up the new Louise Penny novel, The Grey Wolf, which was launched on the 29th October.

Our next stop was Starbucks Reserve Roastery in the vibey Capital Hill neighbourhood. The space is dramatic in its scale and show cases the art, science and the theatre of roasting coffee. Heaving with Sunday brunching and lunching, we tasted the special Xmas roast, watched the coffee roasting process happening and enjoyed connecting with the myth of this coffee company. Some of our Starbucks coffee experiences in the Seattle suburbs have been below par but the Reserve is excellent.

Impressive Xmas decor at Starbucks Reserve.

I will return to pick up the Starbucks Reserve Christmas for under our tree. The beans come from their farm in Costa Rica, combined with beans from Sumatra and from Indonesia, after that intro we were sold!

Magnificent Western Red Cedar

Fall is not just about the beauty of the turning leaves, Seattle has magnificent evergreen trees and I am particularly taken with this giant conifer tree on our pavement. The Western Red Cedar is native to the Pacific Northwest and can live up to 1000 years. Also on our pavement is a rather hostile holly with its spikey leaves which are tricky to rake and pick up!

Our home for our 3 months in Seattle with the family. 

 

Seattle has a thing about crows.

American Crow

As we have flocks of Rock Pigeons in South Africa, here in Seattle it is the American Crow that dominates the skyline and the bird sounds. As winter approaches the crows gather at dusk in huge numbers to move to their resting grounds and this in itself is a Seattle attraction.

I has been watching crows from the kitchen window and the crow-filled sky is certainly Hitchcockian, a 'murder of crows' and all the other associations. This is a clever bird, well adapted to urban life and seemingly very happy in Seattle.
 

Discovery Park, a morning along the shore of the Puget Sound.

Picture perfect weather, a morning walking along rocky and sandy beaches and up flights of stairs into the mixed woodlands of Discovery Park north of Seattle. 

The pleasure of the crisp sea air, the clear views across to the Olympic Mountains and looking for the wintering birds in these diversity of habitats made a wonderful outing today. We even had Mount Rainier in our sight. 

Grebes, mergansers and scoters out the sea, ducks in the fresh water habitat and the excitement of a new bird in the woodland, a Bewick Wren!

Walking along the trail with the Puget Sound in view, almost had to pinch myself appreciating that I am in this beautiful part of the world. 

West Point Lighthouse constructed in 1881, with its stunning setting on the Puget Sound, is still an active aid to navigation on the Sound. 

 

The trail through the mixed coniferous-deciduous forest of the Pacific Northwest.

American Wigeon in the freshwater area of the park.

Detail of the ubiquitous snowberry which is a North American shrub of the honeysuckle family.

Fred managed to get this shot of the Bewick Wren, I was so impressed as it flits and moves rapidly through the scrub.
Another new bird for our USA checklist.

The Glasshouse at Chihuly Garden and Glass, Seattle

"Glasshouses come in many beautiful sizes and shapes and are some of the most incredible buildings in the world. When you walk through them, you feel peaceful and inspired" Chihuly
So true, an inspirational space and a gift to spend a few minutes reflecting on its unique shape and this installation, one of the largest of its kind in the world.
Looking out into the garden the glass tree stands proud against the city skyline.

 

Perfect fall colouring of the Chihuly glass tree, set on a raised mound of purple mondo grass.