Holy crap, Seattle is much bigger than I was expecting. I’m not sure why I had this idea in my head that Seattle was small… I mean, I understood that it was a big city on a logical level. That was a big reason for picking it in the first place. But there was a moment driving up here, as the highway turned a corner and the city was visible for the first time after hours of seeing nothing but trees, farms, and other cars. I looked out across the water at the lighted buildings all clustered together on the city skyline and felt the bottom fall out of my soul for a moment.
It was only a brief moment of being overwhelmed, but a bit of it stayed with me throughout the day as I wandered around the city with my dad. The idea was that since he drove all the way up here he might as well do some sightseeing and it would also give me a chance to get used to the city and do some of the more expensive activities while I had someone around who was willing to pay for them.
We explored the city, starting with riding the ferry over to Bainbridge Island. The ferry was much less expensive than I thought it was going to be (only $6.70 for a roundtrip ticket) and the weather was perfect for it. It was sunny and clear with a constant cool wind and the trip over the water gave us a great view of the entirety of the city. Bainbridge itself was cute, full of lots of little shops. We stopped by the Eagle Harbor Bookstore, where my dad was nice enough to buy me a book that I was eyeing and I picked up a copy of Watchmen, since I don’t own one. That’s got to be one of my last frivolous purchases though, from here on out I’m going to be bringing in a lot less money than I’m used to and I need to keep my savings for paying my loans. I am going to have to get into a different mindset than I’ve been in for the last two years.
It really is a shame though, since there are so many wonderful places to buy interesting things here in Seattle. Once we got back to the mainland we walked over to Pike Place and explored… there is so much local fresh food here! And it’s not just the normal crops; I spotted heirloom crops like purple carrots and tried jams from berries I’ve never heard of.
There are also tons of used bookstores everywhere I go as well. Actually, now that I think of it I don’t think I’ve seen a single new bookstore the entire time that I’ve been here. It’s a bit strange, but it seems to be in keeping with the general vibe that I get from Seattle although I’m not sure that I can explain why. Used bookstores are collections of oddities, stories that other people have held and read and dreamed and they give you a sense of connection with someone else. Seattle, as big and strange as it is, feels like that to me too. It’s a place to make connections with a new community. Under its urban surface flows a collection of dreams, of thoughts, of weird places to go and stories to explore. Rushing by me, begging to be waded into.