Seattle

Route 90 heading towards Seattle winds through more mountains. Then it goes down a big mountain, through a tunnel, and comes out on a bridge. The traffic changes from interstate traffic to full rush hour city traffic, but the speed doesn't drop. On the other side of the bridge is what looks like an enormous village in a forest - little houses in the midst of many trees, spanning a huge distance horizontally along a hill by the water. Only one or two skyscrapers are visible, so I thought Seattle was a pretty funny city...until you go through another tunnel under that village and come out on a huge city. The first word that entered my mind when I saw it was "grungy," which is interesting because I think grunge music originated in Seattle. Then the traffic goes crazy - still 70 mph but with exits left and right and express lanes merging and everyone obviously knowing where they're going but me. I had Dream Theater playing in my ears which was perfect for the tempo. I was looking for downtown, so I got off at the "city center" exit after some harrowing lane changes. The traffic then changed from interstate to inner-city. You gotta love the bicyclists in the city - they go as fast as the cars but don't signal and don't stop at red lights, yet they don't wear helmets and never seem to get hit. Past the Space Needle, past the Science Center, through a big intersection where the word "Cafe" caught my eye...so I doubled back and parked across from Minnie's Cafe, where I now sit eating salmon chowder out of a bread bowl. It wasn't the kind of cafe I was expecting, with a red traffic light in the entrance saying "stop and wait to be seated," but the chowder is very good. I got 56 minutes of parking with the handful of coins I put in the meter, so I'll have to leave or refill that soon. Then I'll get some more miles south, because motels are too expensive in the city.