But, we didn't count on the interruptions and distractions.
Distraction One - the Gay Pride Parade. Started at 11am on 4th Avenue, which is right where our hotel is. Peter was listening to the yelling and hooting as we got ready to head out and grab our bikes and suggested we leave the bikes where they were until after breakfast/lunch. Great decision! The street outside the hotel was jam packed.
The parade went until 2pm, we couldn't believe how many participants there were. All the major and minor Washington State corporates appear to have been represented. Amazon had special T-Shirts made talking about what is 'normal', Starbucks had many participants, Whole Foods had T-Shirts saying 'label food, not people'. It was pretty impressive. The group that got to me was 'Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbian and Gays' ( I got the name wrong on Facebook - but the gist was there.) There was a huge group of them.
It was well worth spending time watching. We found out afterwards that this is Gay Pride week and there were huge parades in most of the major cities, really celebrating the fact that the Supreme Court last week found that banning same sex marriage is unconstitutional.
Diversion Two - The Cheesecake Factory and finally some of the cheesecake. Nice, but huge and sweet (of course)
Talking to the 'server' - they have over 250 items on the menu and the servers are required to memorise the orders, and understand each item on the menu. They attend a week long class upstairs (it is a huge restaurant) from 8am to 3pm before they are allowed loose in the restaurant. Pretty impressive.
Diversion Three Banana Republic - a little impromptu shopping for me. Then
Diversion Four - darn google and trying to find Florsheim Shoes in Seattle for Peter. Every time we travel to the US, we try to purchase some work/dress shoes for Peter. Generally we have purchased Florsheim shoes as they are good fit and good quality.
So, that was the plan this time. Usually there is a Florsheim shop that is easy to find in the central city. So, we googled it - as you do. 15 of the first 20 entries on Google told us that Florsheim had a shop at 409 Pike Street. So we spent a long long time trying to find the address. We found 405 1/2 Pike Street, but for the life of us we couldn't find this Florsheim shop. So back to the hotel to check the information. On the way we stopped at a Mephisto shop (nice but expensive mens shoes out of our price range $300 - $400 a pair) and asked about Florsheim. He had never heard of a shop here and mentioned that people still came into his shop looking for Continental Airlines that had not been there for 10 years.
So next stop - find a retailer that sells Florsheim shoes. Wrote down the address, walked blocks and blocks in the heat to find the next one was a cobbler, not a retailer. In the end, after going to the other end of town to look in the department stores, we ended up buying a nice pair of Rockport shoes.
So, lots of walking and no ride - probably good for my stiff and sore legs though!
Today, the last bike ride. only 22km, but very enjoyable around Seattle.
First stop the Chilhuly (as in the glass artist) gardens under the Seattle Space Needle. What a stunning tourist attraction. This guy (who has lost an eye) is such a talent. Here are some photos:
Today the bike ride went through Fremont. Weird place! Here are two photos that are quite representative of the place
A statue of Lenin from Slovakia (in the late 1980''s) that was toppled, then purchased by an American who brought it back. It is so heavy that the first installation sunk. It has a long history and inflames opinions (which appears to be exactly what they want to do in Fremantle), and is now part of their tourist attraction circuit.
The Aurora Bridge Troll. The story is that while he was munching on a Fahrvergnugen.... (which is an advertising slogan for VW in german which means 'driving enjoyment'). It is another tourist attraction for this quirky city, and there were lots of tourists there, but also homeless people up the hill under the dry bridge.
I have been reading a book about psychiatrist that worked in the emergency unit at Bellevue Hospital in New York for 9 years. It explains about schizophrenia, bipolar and other mental illnesses. It talks about the treatment, but the thing that has got me thinking is the constant discussion about how all these people are homeless, how some come to fake their symptoms to get warmth and shelter in the winter and bad weather. It talks about how it is often too exhausting and too difficult for families to continue to look after their family members, and that they often give up. That many people with these extreme mental illnesses choose not to take their medication when they are feeling good, that they turn to drugs and alcohol to 'escape'. It has made me think a little more about the many homeless people here on the streets panhandling.. I know there are homeless people in NZ, but it doesn't seem as widespread as here.
This ties in with reading about the health system and health insurance changes coming in the US. There was a big article in the New York Times today about how in the last 5 years in particular, the cost for having a baby has gone through the roof. It costs between $4,000 and $45,000 to have your baby delivered. If your health insurance doesn't cover it, the parents can end up with a huge debt, before the child even arrives. The article pointed out that just about every other country provides funding for the arrival of a baby, but in the US it is such a profit driven business that mothers to be often end up with a lot of tests that may not be totally necessary.
Well, all packed, Bikes all wrapped up. Heading home tomorrow...
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