Saturday morning, Nathan was still sleeping, and Inday called saying she had Overtime at work. So what was a guy to do?
Go ride the new Link Rail!
"The early bird gets the worm", even on weekend days when there's a Sounders soccer game at Qwest Field at noon, and they're getting set up for the Seafair Parade downtown tonight. At 9:15am, I parked in the free main Park n'Ride lot near the entrance to Tukwila Station. There were only 20-30 cars. When my return train pulled back in at 11:15am, the lot was full, and the second lot across the street was filling up fast. The first platform, where I had walked right up and purchased my ticket 2 hours earlier, was filled with curling lines of people. The line was just then reaching back to the top of the escalators and stairs.
My infatuation with our new LRT reminds me of my first airplane ride. 17 years old, and I flew down to Portland, a 30 minute flight, to buy clothes for my first year of college. It was a very big deal for me. And I took 24 photos of the airplane wing in clouds!
At the Tukwila Station, I didn't get to use my nifty ORCA card because the computer system hadn't updated the money upload I did online just before leaving. What was cool though, was that I could add money to the card at the machine, so I tacked on another $5. This way I could still use the card for the day's trip. I put in a $20 bill, and I got a whole bunch of gold colored Sacagawea coins back. I felt like I was in Vegas!
My plan was to get some breakfast at Lowell's (Pike Place Market), where Tom Hanks and Rob Reiner had coffee together in "Sleepless in Seattle", but I didn't count on the gazillion tourists and early Seafair parade? people. Busy busy, so I just got a few things, and I stopped to listen to this wonderful old Asian guy playing this chinese sounding string instrument. I got some video, and put in some money. I'll try to upload it later.
The ride itself was wonderful. It's amazing to me how much one's perspective is changed by moving along a storey or two above the ground and looking down at the houses, streets, people, cars... And I wonder at our future view in Cebu, 16 floors up. Wow!
More later, in future posts.
That is a good copy of the picture. Better than I remember the original being. Haven't read your posting just yet, but I wanted to comment on the picture.
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