Across the street from the Seattle Center is a kitschy tourist tour called the Duck Boats. Seriously, you ride around the city in what looks like a tub on wheels and then it gets driven into the lake and out again. The drivers keep up a constant patter that alternates between actual history and local legend- all accompanied by a specially chosen pop music soundtrack (straight from the 70s and 80s) while the riders occasionally wave to the people on the streets. Along with their ticket to ride, tourists can also purchase a lanyard with a yellow plastic duck call that is shaped like a duck's bill . I declined this particular accessory, but I was tempted to get one just to use it in my classroom next year.
It really was a lot of fun. I have been to other cities that have Duck Boat tours and now I wish I had gone on every single one of them. I wish our town had Duck Boats. I am not even kidding about this. We have a lake. We could do this.
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| Our driver had a variety of hats and hairpieces that fit with the stories and music. Those life vests you see on the upper racks? Yup, we had a safety lesson. It is a boat, after all. |
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| On the waterfront. Miners Landing marks the location of the start of the Klondike Gold Rush. The gold rush made entrepreneurial Seattle-ites rich- not because they went to get gold, but because they stayed home and sold expensive "must have" items to the miners. Our driver told us that of the thousands that went to Alaska, only 4 came back with any measure of gold. One of those was John W. Nordstrom, who took his money and opened up a ladies shoe store. |
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| CenturyLink Field. Go Seahawks! |
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| Building in Pioneer Place. |
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| Seattle Art Museum, or SAM. |
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Hard Rock Cafe. Apparently, this is the only Hard Rock Cafe that has the
guitar (that you can't quite see) installed upside down.
It's in remembrance of Kurt Cobain. |
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Cool waterfall- it's double-sided and you can walk between the walls of water. Nice for a hot summer day.
You don't get drenched, just pleasantly cooled. |
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| Speaking of cool... |
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| Apparently, the second-most photographed sign in Seattle. |
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| Looking at Lake Union from the Fremont Bridge. |
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| Driving in to Lake Union. |
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| The Space Needle from Lake Union- it's the side we don't see from Elliott Bay. |
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| I want one of these. |
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| The Fremont Bridge from Lake Union. |
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Recognize this floating house?
A prize goes to the first person who comments and tells me why I took 10 pictures of it... |
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| Museum of History and Industry. |
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| One of many cute houseboats on Lake Union. |
So, that's what you get when you ride the Ducks!
But what about the troll?
He's under the bridge.
