July 3, 2009
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“In heaven there is no beer, that’s why we drink it here. . . . “
And drink it you can, this weekend at the Seattle Center, with over 150 world class beers, from over 15 countries, at the 2009 Seattle International Beerfest.
This impressive selection of beers will be available for 4-ounce tastings all weekend long. And if you can’t taste enough on one day, plan on coming back the next. Your wrist band and glass are all that you need for FREE re-entry all weekend long.
 If you’re not into all the tasting, and just want to relax with a cold pint, you can try the Grande Beer Garden, where full pints of Peroni (from Italy) and Pilsner Urquell (from the Czech Republic) are available for only $4. You don’t have to sit in the beer garden with your pint either, you’re free to walk about with friends and do a little people watching.
Food will be available onsite, provided by local Seattle’s Hot Dog Joe, with gourmet sausages, hotdogs, burgers, chicken, and brisket, along with some vegetarian options. In other words, perfect food to go with the beer!
Location: Seattle Center Mural Amphitheater (map)
Dates & Times: July 3rd – 5th, Friday & Saturday noon – 10 pm, Sunday noon – 7 pm.
Admission: $20 includes glass and 10 beer tickets. Additional beer tickets are $1. Each beer will cost 1-4 tickets, depending on price factor, and around half will be available for only 1 ticket. $5 admission for non-drinkers and designated drivers includes free non-alcoholic beverages. Cash only.
This is a 21 and over only event, and proper ID is required. Please drink with care, and remember that some of these beers have a high alcohol content and may be stronger than they look. Bring a designated driver, use public transportation, walk, or get a hotel room in the city.
Photo credit: SXC
July 2, 2009
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The Seattle Center (map) is a vital part of the Seattle community, and is always a prime spot for summer activities. Take a look to see if these July activities catch your eye:
 July 2nd – Othello opens at Intiman Theater- July 3rd – Green Day performs at Key Arena
- July 3rd – 5th – 2009 Seattle International Beerfest
- July 4th – 25th Annual Naturalization Ceremony, the ultimate celebration of independence, welcoming new US citizens
- July 7th, 9th, 12th, 15th, 19th, 22nd – Seattle Storm home games at Key Arena
- July 11 – 12th – Bastille Day, celebrating this important French celebration
- July 11 – 12th – Young Shakespeare performances
- July 11th – Seattle Center Skatepark opens
- July 13th – 23rd – 43rd Annual Seattle League of Artists Art Show & Sale
- July 16 – 18th – Summer Dance by Arc Dance Company
- July 17 – 19th – Bite of Seattle, a food and community experience
- July 18th – Family Day with Sid the Science Kid from PBS
- July 18th – Rat City Rollergirls vs. Caroline Rollergirls at Key Arena
- July 21st – US Army band performs at the Center House
- July 25th – Mashup the Fountain, music at the International Fountain
- July 26th – Free Shakespeare in the Parks on the Fisher Pavilion lawn
- July 26th – Hispanic Seafair Festival
- July 31st – KEXP Concerts at the Mural
It’s going to be a great summer of fun and entertainment, so get these dates on your schedule!
Photo credit: personal collection
July 1, 2009
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Summer is underway, and for many people that means baseball! Visiting baseball parks around the country is a popular summer vacation – for family vacations, guys getaways, or father-son road trips.
 Here in Seattle, you can take a tour of Safeco Field, lovingly called “The Safe” by locals, the home of our Seattle Mariners. Safeco Field covers over 19 and a half acres, and features stunning views of the city and the Olympics Mountains, real grass on the field and a retractable roof.
The tour will give you a look at some of the behind-the-scenes spots, including the press box, luxury suites, visitor’s clubhouse, and the field and dugout. The exact locations you’ll visit are dependent on the activities within the ballpark on the day of your tour.
Photos are permitted, so be sure to bring your camera.
Location: Tours start at the Team Store, on the 1st Avenue South side of Safeco Field (map)
Date & Time: Daily on non-home game days, at 10:30 am, 12:30 pm, and 2:30 pm. No tours on game days. Winter schedule goes into effect on November 1st.
Tickets: $9 adults, $7 seniors (65+) and children (ages 3-12), and children 2 and under are FREE. Tickets can be purchased online, by phone through Ticketmaster at (206) 622-HITS. or at the Mariner’s Team Stores: Safeco Field, Alderwood Mall (map), Bellevue Square (map), Downtown Seattle at 4th & Stewart, and Southcenter Mall (map).
The tour takes about an hour and covers about a mile of walking. Accessible tours are also available.
Photo credit: dherrera_96 @flickr
June 30, 2009
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The Nature Consortium brings the community its 11th Annual Arts in Nature Festival this summer, featuring numerous artists from around the local area. You’ll see wandering performers, string quartets, dance troupes, fire performers, and an outdoor Museum of Sound, as we all have the opportunity to enjoy a variety of art forms in a beautiful outdoor setting.
This offbeat festival will showcase a number of local artists, including: Lelavision, Musicians’ Emeritus Symphony Orchestra, The Early Music Guild, The Beaver Deceivers, Nyamuziwa Marimba Ensemble, Heimish Klezmer, The Asterisk Project, The Cabiri, Dass Dance, and more.
 If you’re not familiar with these artists, its a great opportunity to listen and learn about both modern and traditional music, sometimes improvised and experimental, other times classic and traditional. There are four primary venues in the park: the Lodge, a forested grove by the Pond, the Climbing Glacier, and a Geodesic Sound Dome in the Meadow. As you wander throughout the park, you’ll find dance troupes and other performers to greet you and entertain your senses.
You’ll find lots of hands-on activities, too. From EcoRhythm instrument building to species mask making to Nature Printmaking, there will be something to entertain and engage all family members.
Food and drink will be offered by Taco Flair and reusable plates and cups will be used along with cloth napkins.
Location: Camp Long, 5200 35th Avenue SW (at SW Dawson Street), West Seattle (map)
Dates & Times: August 22nd – 23rd, 2009, Saturday, 11 am – 9 pm, and Sunday 11 am – 6 pm.
Admission: Suggested $5 donation per person. The event is also a fundraiser for Nature Consortium, which works to teach environmental lessons through the creative arts and hands-on conservation projects.
If you’re looking for a summer music event, and want to avoid the throngs of people and crush of bodies, Arts in Nature will give you a beautiful nature setting and a diverse, leisurely experience.
Photo credit: stevevoght @flickr
June 23, 2009
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The Round, an intimate evening of music, art, and poetry, sponsored by the Fremont Abbey Art Center celebrates its 50th month with a celbration at Seattle’s The Triple Door.
 The Round was founded in 2005, and has evolved into a volunteer arts experience held every month. Since its inception in Seattle, the Round has expanded to Tacoma, Portland, Austin, and Lebanon (Pennsylvania). An evening will feature performances from three musicians, painters, and slam poets in a multimedia experience of the arts. Many young artists have made their debut at the Round, launching them to broad careers.
For its 50th month anniversary, the round will feature musicians Jesse Sykes, Damien Jurado, and the Seattle Rock Orchestra, poetry from Buddy Wakefield and Christabel, and painter Glenn Case (an Easy Street muralist).
The eclectic performance is suitable for all ages.
Location: The Triple Door, 216 Union Street, Downtown (map)
Date & Time: July 7th. Doors open a 6 pm, show starts at 8 pm.
Admission: Tickets are $12 in advance, available through The Triple Door.
The Fremont Abbey Arts Center is a non-religious non-profit venue that’s located in a 1914 brick church at 43rd & Fremont Avenue North (map). Its goal is to provide a center where people of all ages can learn and develop their artistic skills through education and performances in different medium. The center offers workshops, classes, and private instructions for people of all ages and backgrounds, and are an integral part of the vibrant Fremont community.
Proceeds from the evening benefit the Fremont Abbey Arts Center youth programs.
Photo credit:A Girl and her Camera @flickr
June 22, 2009
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With a deceptively naive title, The Puppet Show exhibit at the Frye explores the very adult side of puppetry and its imagery in contemporary art. In western culture, the puppet fills a role as a psychological surrogate and social and political commentator, as well as the traditional role of entertaining performer. The exhibit includes sculpture, video, and photography in exploring the key themes associated with puppetry.
 Thinking back on puppet shows that I saw as a child, I remember laughter at child-like humor, but also some underlying themes and humor that appealed to the adults in the audience as well. While the exhibit doesn’t answer those questions, it does give you something more to think about.
Among the 29 artists represented in the exhibit are: Guy Ben-Ner, Nayland Blake, Louise Bourgeois, Maurizio Cattelan, Anne Chu, Nathalie Djurberg, Pierre Huyghe, Christian Jankowski, Mike Kelley, William Kentridge, Paul McCarthy, Dennis Oppenheim, Kiki Smith, Survival Research Laboratories, and Kara Walker.
Location: 704 Terry Avenue, Capitol Hill (map it)
Date & Time: May 16th – September 13th, 2009, 0 am – 5 pm, Tuesday-Saturday (open till 8 pm on Thursday); noon – 5 pm, Sunday.
Admission: Admission to the Frye is always FREE
Photo credit: SXC
June 21, 2009
I’m traveling in Europe right now, and thoroughly enjoying the sites, sounds, and tastes of Italy.
It’s also nice, though, to share glimpses of home with the wonderful new friends that I’m meeting. As much as I LOVE to travel and explore new places, there still is no place like home.
When you travel, do you take thoughts of home with you? Do you share Seattle with fellow travelers or people you meet?
June 17, 2009
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A beautiful piece of jewelry is a work of art, and two exhibits at the Tacoma Art Museum aim to show you some spectacular works of art.
 Ornament as Art: Avant-Garde Jewelry from the Helen Williams Drutt Collection – Four decades of contemporary jewelry by leading artists from 15 countries appear in this nationally traveling exhibit. The exhibit explores three themes: jewelry as a means of telling a story, the influence of 20th century art movements on jewelry artists, and the relationship between jewelry and the body as performance. Northwest artist featured in the exhibition include: Ken Cory, Laurie Hall, Ron Ho, Mary Lee Hu, Keith Lewis, Kiff Slemmons, Ramona Solberg, Don Tompkins, Merrily Tompkins, and Nancy Worden.
Loud Bones: The Jewelry of Nancy Worden - Seattle-based artist Nancy Worden presents sculptured works of wearable art made not out of precious metals and gemstones, but out of odd bits and pieces of. . . stuff. Stuff like PVC, acrylic, pencils, steel wire, books pages, and other found and recycled objects. Worden’s works are found in major private and public collections around the world.
Location: 1701 Pacific Avenue in downtown Tacoma (map)
Dates & Times: Tuesday – Saturday, 10 am – 5 pm; Third Thursday 10 am – 8 pm; Sunday noon – 5 pm Ornament as Art runs June 6th through September 12th, 2009. Loud Bones runs June 26th through September 20th, 2009.
Admission: $7.50 Adults; $6.50 Students, Miliatary, and Seniors (65+): $6.50, FREE for children 5 and under. $25 for a family admission (two adults and up to four children under 18). Admission is FREE on the Third Thursdays of the month.
Photo credit: Logo courtesy of Tacoma Art Museum
June 16, 2009
Who would have thought that the sleepy little peninsula town of Forks would become a hot tourist attraction? The once vibrant timber community has been in a bit of a slump, relying on nearby prisons, fishermen, and visitors to the Olympic National Park to infuse the community with visitors and an economic boost.
 With the 2005 released of Stephenie Meyer’s young-adult vampire romance novel Twilight, a lot more people started reading and learning about Forks. The first bestselling book was followed by three additional bestsellers, New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn. Now it seems like everyone knows about Forks.
With the popularity of the series of books, and subsequent movie, an entire industry has cropped up– all focused on the storylines, characters, actors, locations and themes that have become so popular. As a result, Twilight tourism is generating a lot of visitors for Seattle, Forks, and places in between.
The Alaska Twilight Cruise & Convention at Sea sets sail from Seattle, onboard Holland America’s Oosterdam, on August 8th, 2010. The itinerary includes cruising Glacier Bay (map), with stops at Juneau, Sitka, Ketchikan, and Victoria, before returning to Seattle. While onboard, in addition to all the usual cruise activities, Twilight participants will enjoy a variety of activities, including an opportunity to meet the actors, a group photo shoot, an autograph session, costume ball, private movie showings, prizes, parties, and more!
An optional 4 day/3 nights add on pre-cruise package covering time in Seattle and Forks is also available.
Pricing for the cruise starts at $1,040/person for an inside cabin, with a lowest price available guarantee. An additional $150 will cover the Twilight convention registration. The ground tour starts at $340 (quad).
With a second movie soon to be released this is going to be a very popular event, so if you’re interested, you’ll want to make reservations right away.
Photo credit: Amazon
June 14, 2009
The sunny Seattle weather has meant a lot less time spent in front of the computer – for me, and for all of you, too, apparently. Still, here are a few good reads from the week.
 The Carey Adventures – Seattle photographer and blogger, Peter Carey, always has some great photos. I love this one from Grand Teton National Park. - Richard P. Carpenter’s Travel & Trivia – A list of the most romantic bed and breakfasts around the country. Carson Ridge Private Luxury Cabins in Carson makes the list.
- West Seattle Blog – Playing Possum. I discovered one of these little guys on my deck a few months ago. They’re so ugly, they’re cute.
- Travel Views – A good discussion of why we dine out, what we’re willing to pay, and what are our expectations. With so many new restaurants cropping up around the Seattle area, it’s good food for thought.
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If you’re not into all the tasting, and just want to relax with a cold pint, you can try the Grande Beer Garden, where full pints of Peroni (from Italy) and Pilsner Urquell (from the Czech Republic) are available for only $4. You don’t have to sit in the beer garden with your pint either, you’re free to walk about with friends and do a little people watching.
Boeing Field, WA