Kicking Up My Heels in Downtown Seattle

If I had to pick just five cities to explore for the rest of my life, Seattle would definitely be on it. Even considering all of the chances that I’ve had to walk around this place, I was still excited to visit the beautiful city today from Bremerton.

Here is a ferry arriving from Seattle…what a great view from my room!

Since there was a fun festival going on tomorrow, it was my hope to head over to Seattle on Friday and just enjoy a nice day in Bremerton today. However, after a quick check of the weather online, I knew immediately that today was the day to head over to explore on foot.

Last time that I took the ferry over to Seattle in inclement weather, I got the weirdest looks from people for not possessing an umbrella. I had a feeling that I would enjoy a sunshiny day a teensy bit more, so it was all decided. Today was it!

So I headed to the ferry station to catch my ride. The ferry is free in this direction, so I got in line with all of the others and waited to board the boat.

In case you’re wondering, there are tons of seats on board. Lots of people live in Bremerton and commute daily to Seattle using the ferries. And maybe I was just imagining it, but these seats look newly-renovated since the last trip over the “pond.”

I picked a window seat, of course, so I could maximize the beautiful views as we sailed on our hour-long journey through the Puget Sound to downtown Seattle.

Butterflies even fluttered in my stomach as I thought about the fun day ahead! Man, I’m lucky!

Since I hadn’t eaten yet, I grabbed a quick bite at Subway for the trip over. I must have been hungry, because I usually avoid Subway at all costs. In the case of today, it provided a light lunch until I could find a neat place to eat later on in the day.

And we’re off! So long, Bremerton bridge to Manette! I will see you tonight!

Adios, downtown Bremerton the the Naval Shipyard! Look at those gorgeous mountains in the distance!

As we putted along, we passed a tugboat doing it’s job on a crane boat. These are official names for everything, by the way, so I hope that you’re taking notes. I’m practically a sailor now.

There are two viewing decks towards the front of the ferry. I went out to take a few pictures, but it was still pretty early and, thus, chilly. Add about forty knots of wind from the speed of the boat as we glided along, and this Arizona girl didn’t stay outside for long.

But it was pretty.

We passed gorgeous homes along the way, and I found myself imagining what it would be like to own one of these beach-front properties in the Pacific northwest.

Can you imagine living so close to so much action, yet having a private oasis from it all, too? Well, I imagined it…

There are two ferries that travel between Seattle and Bremerton, each making the trip about every hour and twenty minutes. Today, I was lucky to be riding on the Walla Walla. Everything is named using the local Native American languages.

And it’s just fun to say. Go ahead, try it a few times! Walla Walla!

From the nippy observation deck, I can see below to the open area where cars, bikes, and motorcycles are also making the trip over to Seattle. Everything is chocked to prevent something coming off the brakes and making a run for it into the ocean.

And about half-way through our journey, we passed the other Bremerton ferry, the Kitsap, on its way to drop people off at the same dock from which we just left. They run these ferries like clockwork!

Oh boy. Here was my first glance of the downtown Seattle area. I can hardly wait to get ashore and explore!

That rhymed, for those keeping track.

And another ferry heading out! I love the shot of it in front of all those beautiful buildings!

Can you believe this gorgeous weather present for my day of running around town?!

You’re on the list today, Space Needle. I will definitely see you up-close-and-personal this afternoon!

This is the part of the ferry ride where I pick out which giant skyscraper I would like to live. This one? No, I like that one better. How about this one over there?

Honestly, I would take any of them if I could just live here for a few years.

This is CenturyLink Field, which is home to the NFL team, the Seahawks. I love that that everything is so close to the main downtown action.

Not that I would ever want to do it, but if I wanted to see an Arizona Cardinals football game, our commute would be over an hour to arrive at their stadium on the west side of The Valley.

I don’t know about you, but I just want to get on that Ferris Wheel right now. And I hate Ferris Wheels.

Seattle just does weird things to me, you know?

We were soon arriving at the dock to disembark.

This is a guide to help the ships get to the proper location for the unloading dock. See how it has all of those big wooden pads to help cushion the boat into the right spot?

Again, technical ship terms here, folks.

I love this view towards the rear of the ferry. You can see that the reverse motors are being used to slow us down and align us properly.

And then, when the ship is docked within range, this fancy little hydraulic stair comes down to the deck of the boat. This is what me and dozens of other ferry riders will use to cross from the boat to the dry land of Seattle.

As you can see from this ferry worker, it is a pretty laid-back procedure.

Once I was off the ferry and walking past the terminal, I turned around to grab a shot of the awaiting cars heading back to Bremerton. Wait until you see how many cars ride back with me later today!

But for now, I am just giddy at the chance to spend an entire day in one of my favorite places. How better to start things off than with a beautiful American flag using downtown Seattle as a backdrop?

Man, I love my job.