Pike Place Market = West Side Market on Crack

Honestly, you could spend the entire day down at Pike Place Market, and we practically did. Neither one of us had ever been there, so on the way down (it's about a 6-block walk from our hotel) we were talking about how similar it had to be to the West Side Market in Cleveland, with its small food stands and competitive prices, a place where you can pick up a shark steak and some exotic fruit within 15 feet of one another. And it was...sort of, but it had so much more. When we first walked in, we were enamored with flowers; tulips, roses, strange hybrids that were fantastic in color, but we also immediately noticed the array of wares vendors surrounding us. All up and down the corridor, the vendors and artists were displaying anything from personal photography, to leather wrist bands, to woodworking and candle sculptures. Honestly, you can wander through there for an entire morning and find the most unique things, all of which have their own story. It was a really cool way to experience the people here.



Upon visiting a few of the vendors that we told ourselves we'd return to after exploring the piers below the market, we ran into the very first Starbucks. I know...there's a running theme here, but honestly I can't tell you how many of these places there are around here. It really is a phenomenon. For the Cleveland people, you know how you walk around down and there are the magazine booths with Scene Magazine and the Free Times on practically every corner? That's how it is here, only with Starbucks. It's almost to the point of being ridiculous, but it's all part of the culture.

We wandered around a bit more and Steph got a chance to get a "Free Hug" from a group of people literally handing out free hugs, just another cool look into the attitude out here. All over the market exists a large hippy and american indian influence. The array of people here are so different from what we're used to, but it was amazingly genuine, especially the street musicians (one guy rolled an upright piano down there and played all afternoon). We could both spend every weekend at the market, sorting through the various wares or just people watching if for nothing else. We want to make it a point to go again next Saturday when we're back in town. Maybe Steph'll get another free hug if she's lucky.