Day 9: Seattle's Best

Getting up on Sunday wasn’t hard. We’d had a good night’s rest at Nic’s apartment and we were ready for a day tooling around in Seattle and the neighboring suburbs. We only had two major goals/points of interest for the day, and we were able to accommodate them both.

First up was the Seattle Space Needle. Constructed for the 1962 space themed World’s Fair, it stands 650’ tall, with a viewing deck around 520’. The forecast was calling for a chance of rain so we were eager to get there early to beat the clouds and the people. After a 10mph elevator ride we got to the top in about 45sec and stepped out onto the observation deck. While the needle is no longer the tallest building, it still grants you the best view of the city, Puget sound, and the surrounding countryside.

From the top you can see all the activities going on in the harbor. This includes the commercial shipping docks, cruise lines, and ferries heading out from Seattle to other points in the sound.

Turning to the other side, the skyscrapers of Seattle come into view. While we were up there, we were also able to watch small seaplanes take off and land in one of the bays.

One novelty that we discovered (I think Nic was the first to point it out), was that you could get a photo of yourselves, along with the skyline in the background, using the reflections in the glass on the interior portion of the observation deck. This, however, had two major drawbacks. First, the cleanliness of the windows seem to be a low priority to the Needle’s managers and custodial staff, as runs and drips are clearly seen in the reflective photos. Secondly, we started a major trend. All around us people were oo-ing and ah-ing at the concept, and one must have been so awed, that she was compelled to both get in the majority of our pictures, as well as getting a picture of all of us together for herself…..

After making our way 360 degrees around and taking in the sights and sounds, enough was enough and we hopped back on the elevator. Back on terra firma we strolled around the grounds for a while, snapped some photos of the needle looking up, and made our way over to the nearby science fiction museum; not because we are star trek fanatics or anything like that, but because the side of the building was clad with polished and tinted stainless steel panels that made for a good deal of entertainment.

We finished up, grabbed a bite to eat, and moved onto our second stop for the day, the Boeing factory tour. Unfortunately, no cameras are allowed, and we didn’t have the foresight to think about taking pictures from the roadside and observation deck, so our camera was safely back at the apartment for this segment of the trip. If you’re ever in Seattle, I’d strongly recommend this tour. A bus takes you from the visitor center over to the main factory building, which is an impressive sight all on its own. The initial three bays were built in the 60’s for production of the new 747. It has since been added onto for production of the 767, 777, and the new 787, and has grown to be the largest building in the world by volume, according to the Guinness Book of World Records. It’s so large that a full size football field could fit on the doors to each bay, and it even began accumulating its own clouds inside prior to the installation of a climate control system.

Once you get over the shear size of the building, you can really get a grasp on the scope of just what it takes to assemble a modern jet airliner. It’s a Systems Engineer’s nightmare, but the results are nothing short of amazing. Separate processes have been tailored to each plane based on size, complexity, and demand. We were able to catch a glimpse of each plane in various stages of assembly, as well as completed examples on the tarmac ready for the new owners to take delivery. One unexpected bonus was that we were able to catch the first 4 production 787 “Dreamliners” on their way down the assembly line.

It also seems that the Boeing complex is home to a variety of wildlife. As we were cruising around the night before getting the behind the backroads tour from Nic, a lone Coyote found it’s way into the road in front of us, before being caught in the glare of the headlights and swiftly making its way back into the woods.

Back at the apartment Lindy fixed a delicious dinner of pork chops and Pasta Roni, and we settled in for a showing of the new Rambo movie before calling it a night. It was nice to have a full kitchen to cook in for once, and we took our time to comb through the photos and post our previous day’s blog entry.