We stayed at the Marriott Downtown Waterfront as we had some points and certificates to use for a stay. It is a very nice hotel right on the main drag of Seattle’s waterfront. It is almost kitty corner from the famous Edgewater Hotel. The Edgewater Hotel has been there for decades. It juts out into the bay with its rooms all over the water.
The Marriott hotel is a U shaped building with the inside of the U a courtyard facing out to the waterfront. We had a room facing into the court yard. If we could see past the other side of the U, we would have seen the newest addition to the Seattle waterfront. The Seattle Ferris Wheel is pictured below.
We were really surprised in the morning! We took the elevator down and walked towards the front of the hotel where the restaurant was located. There was a HUGE cruise ship docked right on the other side of the road! That I did not expect to see! I guess there is a new cruise ship terminal in Seattle now at Pier 61! That is where Norwegian Cruise lines docks their HUGE ships. Today it was Norwegian Bliss that was in port. There were thousands of people on the streets – both out front and in the lobby of the Marriott. This is a pretty popular hotel for cruise ship passengers to stay at pre and post cruise. We later found out the passenger terminal is just across the street.
Breakfast in the restaurant, Hook and Plow, was very delicious! I had an omelette with gluten free toast. I chose the substituted fruit and yogurt because the potatoes were not gluten free. Andrew had the corn beef hash. It looked more like corn beef hunks and potatoes to me. There also were eggs on top! It was a very satisfying breakfast to start the day. This was courtesy of Marriott and their Elite program for loyal customers.
Next we were off to visit my aunt Linda (yes that is why my name is spelled with a Y so not to be confusing) and Phil in Puyallup. Andrew was driving and I was the navigator. As I know Seattle pretty well I did NOT consult Google Maps to get us to Puyallup as I know the highway system very well and have driven it many, many times previously. That was a BIG mistake!
We drove from downtown Seattle across I90 east to get to I405 which I use to get to 167 down to Puyallup. However the signs were saying that I405 was CLOSED south of I90 and we could see all the traffic lined up along I90 going west to get to I5 instead. OOPS! No issues – I know another way where my friend Karen had taken me previously to get to a meat store that she liked down the Coal Creek Parkway south which then meets up with Sunset near the Renton Boeing Plant and then I405 at that point was open (and empty) and we popped on and drove 1 exit down to 167 and proceeded to Puyallup to visit my aunt and uncle.
We had a great visit with first my aunt who is recovering from a small stroke and then with my uncle where we had dinner where my aunt and uncle are moving into a new residence in Puyallup. We had a lovely lady join Andrew, Phil and I for dinner, who my uncle Phil and aunt Linda know and she was 92 years old and really entertaining! For me, what was a pleasure was I had not make ANY arrangements to eat at the bistro in the Independent Living facility where my aunt and uncle were moving. I was just hoping to get something gluten free suitable for someone with Celiac Disease and then once back at the Marriott Hotel I thought I could get something safe to eat. Well, the bistro at Westley really surprised me! Not only did they have gluten free items listed on their menu, the chef, once the waiter told him that there was a person dining with Celiac Disease, suggested I have a lettuce wrapped chicken “burger” as that was the safest he could prepare! I had it with steamed broccoli as the fries were not safe – all this was told TO ME – I did not have to ask the standard questions which quite impressed me! They even had no sugar gluten free ice cream for desert! I am ready to move in! Andrew might have a few opinions on that though…
Getting back to Seattle, finding a gas station and then dropping the car off ended up being quite the procedure that we did not expect! It seems there are not a lot of gas stations in downtown Seattle – at least that I could find! So we eventually found on in Queen Anne area I think and then drove back into Seattle downtown which was VERY busy on a Saturday night. We soon found out why – it was Homecoming weekend – which for the Canadians reading this message – is the first big dance that US High Schools have in their year. The Hyatt Hotel where we needed to drop off the car was VERY busy…. We made it out and into a taxi back to the Marriott in time for Andrew to get a beer and relax prior to calling it a night!
As an aside, the Seattle waterfront is very pretty a night – here are some pictures of the waterfront and the 2 stadiums.
Tomorrow is a BIG DAY! We FINALLY board the Noordam ship taking us to Australia! I cannot wait!