Driving from Richland to Seattle is a half-full glass of water. For (a little more than) half of the way you see the empty part (almost complete desert), but driving through the mountains makes up for the trouble. After we had a small lunch in a small coffee shop, we walked down the Harbor Steps and headed towards the Pioneer Square, where we spent a little time listening to a percussion band. Since we already planned a dinner in the Space Needle, we agreed to go up in the Smith Tower next time we visit Seattle. I didn't notice at the time, but judging from the picture I took, the City Hall seems pretty small. The futuristic shape of the public library didn't fit entirely into the angle of my camera.

When the time came to move the car, we found free parking somewhere close to the Space Needle (on Harrison at the intersection with Broad). Then we walked along 7th street towards the convention Center, recreating the way I used to comute from the hotel during the ASMS conference. In the Pike Place Market we saw the fish sellers throwing the fish around to the delight of the people gathered around to watch the show rather than buy the seafood. After walking through the market (we saw the Athenian Restaurant where they shot a scene for Sleepless in Seattle), we relaxed in the sun on a bench in Victor Steinbrueck Park. We walked up the Pine Street, where some upset preachers were yelling that everybody would soon burn in hell. In defiance, some young people showed up with hand-written posters in support for gay marriage. We ended up sitting on the stairs staring at the crowds of people... we don't have the chance to see something like this very often.

Later we went up in the Space Needle to see the city lights. There was really only one exciting angle, looking towards the downtown. Then the elevator took us a little higher to the rotating restaurant, which shows the good viewing angle once every hour. While it may worth going up there for lunch, their dinner is incredibly overpriced (even though it includes the access to the observation deck).