Pacific Northwest Trip 2018 Day 11 Wednesday July 25: Seattle, Everett, Lynnwood; Greenwood Parade

UPDATED: February 12, 2021 

This is the 11th of a series of posts dealing with my 2018 trip to Olympia, Seattle, and vicinity. I’ve made minor corrections to these reports (typos, bits I don’t feel like making public). Also, I’ve added additional thoughts with the hindsight of two years later or to add further clarification.  These are indicated by “NOW”.

I walked from City Hostel Seattle to Westlake Station, Downtown Transit Tunnel, where I added money to my ORCA card (probably a little too much: $20 vs $10) and put some of the money towards three more daypasses.

After a stopover at downtown’s 7-11 I visited Rachel the Pig(gy bank) at Pike Place Market and then walked to the Harbor Steps. Across the street from the Steps is Seattle Art Museum and its Hammering Man, a sculpture whose arm moves up and down except on Labor Day. As for the Steps themselves, they are very wide and are very friendly to people who like to do stairs slowly, as there are tables and chairs in sections of the steps, as well as a fountain. I headed further south through the Pioneer Square District to CenturyLink Field (aka CLink) and Safeco Field, doubling back to the former field, where one area normally blocked off was open, allowing me to go up some steps and get shots of the field through railings, plus shots of the area away from the field from the top of the steps.

I went to the International District's Hing Hay Park and then walked to International District/Chinatown Station, where I took a Link train (Sound Transit) back to Westlake Station. I took a 5 bus (King County Metro Transit) back to the hostel.

 

[NOW: The Central Link train is now Line 1.]

After breakfast I took a 62 bus (King County Metro Transit) back downtown where I got on a 512 bus (Sound Transit) and again got the front of a doubledecker bus. I took the bus to S Everett Freeway Station in Everett. There was lots of time before the next bus so I found a path that I figured would take me to my next destination. For the most part it did faster than expected and soon I was at Everett Mall. I cut through that and walked to Half Price Books across the street. I nearly paid $15 for a Pam Grier DVD set, but then noticed then had the same set in clearance for $10.

[NOW: The trail is Interurban Trail.]

I got on a 7 bus (Everett Transit, apparently celebrating its 125th anniversary) and took it to downtown Everett. I got some DVDs at Bargain CDs. I bought a $2 DVD at Sound Loan but unfortunately either forgot to pack it after buying or it dropped out somewhere between there and the parade I went to in the evening. I visited Everett Comics and then passed some school's blueberry festival en route to a bus stop.

I should have stuck to my original plan of taking a bus to Ash Way Park & Ride and transferring from there, but instead I took the 202 bus (Community Transit) to Lynnwood Transit Center) and then tried walking to Barnes & Noble, thinking I knew the area better than I did. I briefly visited a 7-11. A KFC I was interested in proved too expensive. I bought some DVDs at a Silver Platters I had planned to visit later. I accidentally found myself at Alderwood Mall, famished and dehydrated, but found their food court still too expensive even in my current state; by this point was tied of how the exchange rate affects prices. I saw some of the outdoor sculptures including a horse and got on a 196 bus (Community Transit) which took me past the Barnes & Noble I had given up visiting.

At James Village, Trader Joe's had cheap refreshments, but none cold. I found a cold drink at Safeway. I stood outside Half Price Books to drink it, and someone was confronting a driver who had apparently helped himself to music CDs outside the store; the worker brought in someone from the store to take over. I went in and when I left the second guy was still talking to the driver.

I got on a Blue Swift bus (Community Transit; buses like Rapidride where you can tap an ORCA card ahead of time and get on at any door). Realizing I needed lunch soon even if wasn't feeling too hungry due to heat, I got off the bus at a McDonald’s in Edmonds. It took a while for the next Swift bus to arrive, so I missed my connection at Aurora Transit Center in Shoreline. Instead I got on an E Rapidride bus (remaining buses today King County Metro Transit) and got off roughly close to my destination, but further away than intended.

I walked to Reckless Video and then took a 67 bus to Northgate Mall. I visited Barnes and Noble, then walked and took a 40 bus to Greenwood Ave. I walked along the near future parade route, leaving to visit Couth Buzzard Books and Phinney Books. Returning to the parade route,, I visited Dreamstrands Comics. The dealer couldn't get my Visa card to work so instead of charging me $11 Visa, he took my eight remaining one dollar bills. I got Savage Dragon Archives Volume 2. Savage Dragon is... one of those series where you know what you're getting into. I wouldn't pay too much, but cheap B&W reprints in thick editions make for okay dumb beach reading. I walked along the parade route some more, and bought a salad and flavoured water at Fred Meyer. I found a seating area for the Greenwood Parade.

The parade started a bit late. Some of the chronology below might be slightly off. I saw, after an early lull, the motorcycle police, followed by another lengthy lull. Normally this parade has only one long lull.  A guy gave me a bottled water after the parade resumed. The “Repent” Christians from last year crashed the parade again, this time without megaphone. A kid dropped a candy package on the ground for me. I saw a band from Calgary(!), the Seattle Seahawks helmet float, Lake City Western Vigilantes with their bouncy van, and a group of marchers whose music sounded like it had swearing in the rap, but admittedly I couldn't make out the words.

I was standing at a temporarily closed bus stop and one of the Seattle Seafair Clowns made a joke about it before putting a sticker on my forehead. I move it to my shirt but it fell off at some point. Then came the Keystone Kops (and prisoners) and the Barbie Dream Hearse. Finally the Seattle Seafair Pirates came. One gave me a couple stickers. As usual they had their "ship" that fires a loud cannon. I shot video, but likely like last year, it will turn out that the video muffles the sound a bit.

[NOW: It did. Ronald McDonald was absent this year unlike most previous years.]

I walked along the parade route a little ways and then walked to Aurora and got on another E Rapidride bus. Fare enforcement offices got on and a couple people were caught. One was given a warning, but when it was time to get off, one passenger got to continue his conversation with the four officers outside the bus. I got off near the hostel.