24 Hours in Seattle: Hotel Andra, Pike Place Fish & Double Take

Yes, am a bit behind on my entries, but better late than never!

I flew into Seattle from Jackson. I was glad to hear announcements made in English and Japanese; not many American airports are multi-lingual. It took a while for the luggage to arrive, but getting downtown was a breeze since it was Saturday afternoon and traffic was light. I checked into Hotel Andra on 4th Avenue. It was a toss-up between Hotel Monaco Seattle (it's practically next to the Seattle Public Library), but in the end, I opted for Hotel Andra purely for interior design reasons (if it's not Jacques Garcia, then I tend to go for cleaner, simpler lines). The room I had at Hotel Andra (US$199++ for an Andra studio) was not the most spacious I've been in (in was difficult to find enough space to open up my big, Burton suitcase without obstructing paths), but it was comfortable enough. The Tivoli radio and the bottle VOSS water were nice touches.

As soon as I dumped my bags, my brother (who happened to be in town for work) and I walked down to Pike Place Market.

I, of course, wanted to make my pilgrimage to the first Starbuck. My brother wanted to take me to Pike Place Fish. At first, the thought of watching fish mongers shouting and throwing fish around didn't seem quite as appealing as my usual iced, tall, double shot, no vanilla, non-fat caramel macchiato. But, as soon as I arrived, I was not disappointed. There was a crowd in front of the counter and a huge buzz. No other stall in the entire marketplace attracted to much attention, even though there were quite a few copycats, who shouted out orders. What makes Pike Place Fish special is their passion and their ability to communicate that passion to their customers. They're not just selling fish, they're selling an idea: Success is about building comraderie and friendships, believing in a dream and collectively working towards making it happen. It doesn't matter what you do, as long as you give your heart and soul, you will become a success. They've published inspirational books based on their own experiences and they give motivational talks around the world. Of course, standing there, my brother and I just wanted see fish fly. After 10 minutes or so, we finally saw it: a fish flying.

So then, it was off to Starbucks just down the street, where I ordered my drink and bought the mug. The place was packed and it was standing room only. There aren't really any seats around.

The next morning, I walked to Seattle Center, where the Space Needle and the Experience Music Project are. The Space Needle was much shorter than I imagined it to be.

Frank Gehry's building for emp reminded me of Darth Vader for some reason. But I suppose it's apt, since it does also house the Science Fiction Museum.

I had wanted to go to emp to see the Double Take show. The show was great. The premise of the show is to present unusual and thought-provoking pairings/groupings of art from Impressionist/Post-Impressionist with those from modern & contemporary periods. All the pieces are from Paul Allen's collection (who is also the founder of emp). Paul Hayes Tucker, an art historian and leading authority on the works of Claude Monet and other Impressionists, did an incredible job curating the show. This is one show where you must listen to the audio guide. The way Tucker pulls you into the paintings and prods you to think about each one from a fresh perspective is really refreshing. My favourite pairing was a Jasper Johns sulpture (made to look like a painting) and a Monet (who was trying to make his painting more three-dimensional with thick, textured applications of paint). The show runs through 24 September and is definitely worth going. It's not a big show; it took me a little over an hour to go through it all. In conjuntion with the exhibition, there are is also a lecture series. Eric Fischl talks on 24 August and Nan Goldin on 21 September.

And of course, if you have read from my previous post, you will know that I ended up spending the last 4 hours or so of my 24 hours in the truly exceptional Seattle Public Library. It's the perfect way to spend a Sunday afternoon in Seattle, and the perfect way to end my stay!

Koolhaas' Awesome Seattle Central Library

Judge not a book by its cover, nor a building by its exterior.

When we were kids, my Dad would to take us to the library every Saturday morning so that we could pick out books to read for the week to come. That was the way we earned our allowance. I think we got about 5 cents for every page we read. He would give us suggestions on books we might be interested in reading, but he never really dictated what we should read. I went through my Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys stage, Choose-Your-Own-Adventure stories, World War II, dinosaurs, biographies, even Barbara Taylor Bradford, different books at different times. I always enjoyed those Saturday mornings at the library. It not only nurtured our love of books and a curiosity to find out more about our world, both past and present, but it also gave us a sense that no matter what the problem or question was, we would always be able to find an answer at the library (these days, google is a great substitute).

Since graduating from B-school, I haven't really used a library (except for a brief visit to Erik Gunnar Asplund's beautiful Stockholm Library last August). I do love libraries though. When well-designed, they're a real sanctuary (in fact, I am writing this entry from the Vancouver Public Library, because I'm having problems getting high-speed internet service installed in the apartment). They're places from which one can learn, reflect, work, but also to relax, socialize and bond, as we did with our parents. They're wonderful, multi-purpose public buildings that bring the community together. At their best, libraries provoke, inspire and enlighten.

I first came across Rem Koolhaas' Seattle Central Library when researching for Little Cream Book: Architecture. Unfortunately, it got dropped from the list, because we wanted to include more Asian architects, so the S entry went to Toyo Ito's Sendai Mediatheque, just as worthy an entry as the Seattle Library. So when I found myself in Seattle for 24 hours, I just had to visit. It was truly an awesome experience. While the traditional libraries of universities are dimly-lit, sombre halls of learned endeavours (Dont' get me wrong, I actually have a soft spot for such libraries, the ones with the green, banker's desk lamps, long wooden desks and a fierce librarian that glares at you from over her bifocals the moment you make a noise. The old Art & Archaeology library at Bryn Mawr was like a crypt, but I loved it). Koolhaas' library, on the other hand, is a joyous occasion. The moment you walk in, you feel like the world's doors are opening up in front of your eyes. There's an incredible sense of freedom.; your eyes are drawn skyward, your soul feels lifted. There's a feeling of excitment, a buzz. And its all because he dares to inject a bit of bold, playful colours into the whole scheme of things (the 4th floor housing meeting rooms is entirely fire engine red).


This is a view of the 3rd floor entrance to the Living Room area, which houses a gift shop, cafe, teen area etc., from the 5th floor Mixing Chamber, where there are more than hundreds of computers for library users.


The 5th floor Mixing Chamber.There's a layer of mesh on the windows to reduce the glare of the sun. And notice that the frames are painted in sky blue.



The Spiral is an amazing concept for housing the stacks. The floors circle upwards, with a flourescent yellow escalator running through its core, leading up to the Reading Room.





Approaching enlightenment...


...otherwise known as the Reading Room.


And if the books don't inspire you, there's always the art...



Between the sky blue frames, the real plants and the carpet silkscreened with fake plants, it really does feel like the perfect lazy, sunny Sunday afternoon in the park with your favourite book or a copy of the Sunday New York Times.