Fremont Neighborhood

I ended up in the Fremont neighborhood. My original destination was the store Archie McPhee's, which is famous (infamous?) for having a very eclectic mix of gag gifts and tchotchkes of all kinds. It was fun to wander around there for a while, but fortunately, I was able to resist their extensive offerings of rubber chickens.

I found a cat cafe, but I decided not to pay $16 to play with the cats for an hour. I really didn't want to explain to our own cats why my coat smells like strange cats (as well as mac and cheese). I did enjoy their cuteness through the window and a cup of tea while I got my second wind.

Eventually, I headed down the hill to meet up with Russell at one of the Google buildings. On the way, I passed the Fremont Troll sculpture under this huge bridge. I also encountered a statue of Lenin that had an interesting story of how it traveled from Poland (where it had been toppled in 1989) to Seattle.

The Google building where Russell was working this afternoon is right on the canal that leads from Lake Union to Puget Sound. It's a canal I hope to cruise through some day (I do enjoy going through locks).Read more