Seattle, day two!

Todayʼs adventures started at our hotel in Issaquah. We enjoyed a group breakfast at the Hilton Garden Inn. Then Ray Ray bused us over to the Space Needle. Fun fact: the Space Needle is 1,815 Milky Way bars tall! The Space Needle, built for the World's Fair, offers some breathtaking views of Seattle. Stella said she was in awe of the scenery. Some travelers went for an extra thrill by leaning onto the slanted glass walls that surrounded the observatory deck. Some also ventured onto the rotating glass floor. Also, shout out to Josh and Allen for conquering their fear of heights and walking onto the glass floor! We then went down to the bus where we met up with our tour guide, James, a native of NC. James took us around Seattle to see the major sights such as the salmon ladder. At the salmon ladder we saw a few salmon, blue heron, and a sea lion. We also saw and smelled some plants in the area: rose hips, lavender, and salmon berries. We then made a stop on the west side of Seattle so we could take in the views of the city from afar. While at our stop we saw some native groups arriving on their boat. Our tour guide James taught us how to greet them by putting both hands up and waving our hands back and forth. This was apparently a greeting used to signal that the parties were friendly and had no weapons. After parting ways with James we set out to explore Pike Place Market. Jane, Louise, and Sarah Frances found “the best cupcakes.” One group went to Hard Rock Cafe for lunch. Many groups visited the various ice cream shops, and many of the travelers found some shopping to do in stores such as Lululemon, Kavu, Patagonia, and the Seattle T-shirt Company. Some groups also used their time to visit the Pride Parade festivities. All in all, downtown Seattle was a great time. Later, we got all gussied up for a dinner at Ivarʼs Salmon House. At Ivarʼs we dined on some delectable salmon and Marsala chicken, along with house salads, corn muffins, lavender honey butter, green beans, and mashed potatoes. 
-Haley