Sightseeing in Seattle and Adventures in Alaska Day 1

17th Sept

We woke a couple of times in the night but stayed asleep until about 0700 our first task of the day was to take our pre-cruise covid tests which were booked for 9am.

We did these through Qured and were allowed to take our tests on the same call which made it easier.

They were negative! This wasn’t exactly a surprise but after June we were slightly worried about somehow being positive again.

Feeling very relieved that we would actually be able to board the ship we went down to grab breakfast (this was included), I had coffee, toast and yogurt while Rob had some of the warm buffet. This was better than the lounge options from yesterday which was unexpected!

We got ourselves ready and headed out into the city down Pike Street towards the market, along the way we found a Target and so we had a look around.

The one thing that immediately struck us was the number of homeless people in Seattle, many of whom appeared to have mental health issues. We had passed some on the way from the airport but there were significant numbers all along Pike/Pine Streets and there was security in most shops.

Arriving at the market it was mega busy but it was Saturday morning so not unexpected, we looked around and then headed towards the waterfront.

We went on the Seattle Great Wheel (cost around $40), where we got a nice view of the waterfront, you get 3 rotations of the wheel for the cost.

We decided to have lunch at the Fisherman’s Restaurant and Bar both choosing fish and chips then dessert. Total cost including tip was $90.

We continued walking along the waterfront in both directions, we made it towards the Olympic Sculpture Park which is an outside extension of the Seattle Art Museum.

We sat for a few minutes then decided to walk towards the Space Needle.

We had a look around from the outside as our plan was to return after the cruise and buy the City Pass (which only lasts for 9 days so it wasn’t possible to use for both parts of the trip) and then took the monorail back to the Westlake Center which is not far from our hotel.

We took a little nap as we were tired until around 8 when I decided we needed to wake up for a bit. We watched tv until 10 before going back to sleep! 

We both find the 8-hour time difference much more difficult to adjust to.