Things I learned while in Seattle

I know that by choosing to live in Provo, Utah I have also chosen to partially isolate myself from the reality of the real world. I recently took a trip to Washington state for the first time to visit a friend of mine and I quickly realized how isolated I really was. My first day in Seattle was spent opening up my eyes to things that I'd never imagined.

1. There are pay by the hour motels. Now being from Provo I have to ask this question, What in the heck is a pay by the hour motel good for? I can't even imagine staying at one of these. I would get a horrible night sleep if the whole time I was thinking, "Oh man, I really should just get up even if it is 4 am because if I sleep another hour I'm going to have to pay for it". That just doesn't seem like fun to me. At this point my friend would point out that this hotel is located in the heart of the "seamstress district" (I will explain what this is also.) I then turn a little red and begin to understand the meaning of a pay by the hour motel. Dirty!

2. The seamstress district got its name from all the "women of the night" claiming to be seamstresses on their taxes. After the government saw how many seamstresses there were they decided to tax everyone owning a sewing machine. When they went out to find sewing machines to apply the tax to they only found ONE sewing machine in the whole area. Hmmm ... go figure!

3. The Summer Solstice Parade is something you want to avoid if at all possible. I would include a picture of this event, however, I think many of you would find it extremely inappropriate. The Summer Solstice Parade is an event that allows people to ride their bikes around town completely naked. Many of these people choose to paint their bodies to make it look like they are wearing clothes but some choose just to let it all hang out while they make their way around the streets of the Fremont area of Seattle, Washington. When I first heard someone mention the Summer Solstice Parade I thought it sounded like a good way to enjoy the longest day of the year, I'm glad I got "The facts" before I actually went to the event.

4. If you toss fish to eachother hundreds of people WILL crowd around you with their cameras to get a glimpse of the action. I think that anyone who has ever been to the Seattle area knows exactly what I am talking about. If you visit Pike Place Market the first stand you come to is a giant fish stand where literally hundreds of people are crowded around just waiting for someone to order a fish so that the employees can throw it around and wrap it up to go! I will admit that I stood there for a minute and then I realized that people throwing fish just wasn't that entertaining to me so we continued on our way.

5. There are actually vehicles that transform from road vehicle to boat in a matter of seconds; it's like a dehydrated meal ... just add water! These vehicles were designed to be a tour of seattle. They are rather inexpensive and yet they do a great job of telling you some of the great and not so great facts about Seattle and the surrounding area. This tour is great for people who live in Seattle, live by Seattle, or live all the way across the country. They tell you lots of facts and make the tour fun and exciting. I would suggest doing this just so that you can experience the vehicles, but the rest of it makes it fun as well.

6. Taking pictures of road signs is always more fun when you are in a different state. I don't know why, but it seems as though every time I leave the state of Utah I "waste" half my pictures on road signs. One way, Wrong Way, Do Not Turn On Red, I am not quite sure why these signs are so much more appealing when I am out of my State, but they are. I was also able to take pictures of about 15 different state license plates. Someday I am going to look back and wonder what the heck I was thinking taking all these pictures, but until then I love it!