Trippin': Seattle - Seattle Central Library

1000 4th Ave
Seattle, Washington 98104
Architect: Rem Koolhaas

Before you go off and think that the bf and I are some kinda nerds for going to the library while we're on vacation, lemme just let you know that we had a reason for stopping by. We wanted to check-in online and print out our boarding passes. Did you know that you can do that 24 whole hours prior to your flight departure? OK, we are losers. Maybe we do belong at the library. Hah! In any case, this is no ordinary library. It's actually the KOOLest (play on architect) library that you will EVER see. The elevators are neon yellow! NEON! That can't be! Library's are supposed to be dull and boring. Not visually stimulating and dare I say: a kool hangout place?!? But that's what it is in every possible way. The exterior of the building looks like a pile of blocks or books thrown right on top of each other resulting in protrusions and slants in every which direction with a diamond pattern that covers the entire surface area. Diamonds on my chain ... Upon entering, you are welcomed by wide open spaces and it's almost as if you've entered a futuristic library. The 2nd floor I believe is called the "Mixing Chamber". There you will find rows and rows of computers with internet access available to the public for FREE. Printing is 10 cents a page. The area is surrounded in black, bright yellow and bright orange. It seriously resembles some kool clothing store that you might find in New York or Cali but without the clothes. A waitress who we chatted with the day before told us that the architect behind this building actually won the Pritzker Prize, which is one of the highest honors that an architect can receive. This is mos def a must stop! I took approximately 65 pictures while at the library. You think the folks there knew I was a tourist?





I think it started to feel even more futuristic as we were on the elevators. As we were chatting about how impressive the library was, we were interrupted by multiple female robotic voices that were all speaking out of sync. It was coming from these 3-dimensional blob like screens that showed the faces of the talking girls. It was CREEPY!




How much did I j'adore this library? THIS MUCH!

Trippin': Seattle - Wall of Gum

I was incredibly excited about my trip to Seattle because there were so many things that I wanted to see and take photos of. On the itinerary was a stop at a sticky situation that Seattle has been dealing with: the Wall of Gum. Let's take a little history lesson shall we? Back in the early 90's, while waiting in line at the Pike Place Market Theatre, tradition had people sticking their ABC gum onto the wall. It's really gross if you think about it so I suggest that you just not do that. Be like me and appreciate it as a bright and colorful mural. The city originally cleaned the walls of the gum a couple of times before they realized how futile their attempts were and simply gave up. So now you have gum that has been layered so thick that you won't be able to see the brick beneath in some areas. We came prepared with our own wad of gum to add to the wall. Paul made teeth imprints in his gum while I stuck a cough drop in the middle of mine. I arrived in Seattle a bit under the weather and pretty much depended on them. I had cough drops everywhere!

Placenter: The Domain

11410 Century Oaks Terrace, Suite 210
Austin, TX 78758

Austin has this gorgeous new outdoor shopping center that has some of the more traditional mall stores as well as some uncommon ones. There are condiminiums that are located right above most of the stores which I'm sure cost a fortune. But they're sooooo NIIIIIIICE! There are also many beautiful art-like details to look at along the way such as a colorful playground for the kiddies and metal chairs in the shape of butterflies.

Restaurant: Dacapo's Pastry Cafe

1141 E. 11th St @ Studewood
Houston, Texas 77009

I wish I lived in a quaint little neighborhood with quaint little cafe's and family friendly restaurants that I could conveniently hop onto the bike that I don't own and ride over to the cafe and enjoy a sandwich and some soup. That's one of the things I liked the best about Seattle. But the place I'm talking about is Dacapo's which is right here in Houston. Dacapo's is located in the Heights and although the area isn't completely Pleasantville, it still has that somewhat safety net where folks can freely walk to and from their homes to this block with no insecurities. The dining companion and I split their House Salad ($7.95). It had chicken and avocadoes and tomatoes and romaine lettuce and the best part was their very own sundried tomato vinaigrette. How many "and's" did I just use?!? Another great thing about this place is that they make special occassion cakes that look super YUMMERS and super nice! So if you have something special coming up that requires an elegant cake of some sort, you should consider inquiring about their cake services.