Dennis's Blog

A Weekend in Seattle

I got the call a little while ago from a good friend: "Hey man, we're gonna be in Seattle in April, if you want to hang." You freakin bet! I called up a friend in Portland and one in Seattle and asked if they'd like to meet up too, and sure enough, this last Friday, we were all over downtown Seattle.

I'm going to write a little about my unofficial tour of Zillow, different eateries, and my first experience staying at a hostel (note the "s").

The Hostel

This was a whole new experience for me, as I've never reserved any accommodations besides hotels and AirBnBs. The process was straightforward enough. I searched online, and saw cheap rooms on Google Maps, and wanted to see what was up. The site for City Hostel Seattle seemed inviting enough on the face of it, but the reservation/payment page looked like something out of the late 90s.

That's the last and only complaint I had about my stay. You show up at this unassuming looking building, and knock on the door. The building is key-card secured, so you're relatively certain everyone who is in the building is supposed to be there.

The train got into Seattle around 10:30 am, so I ended up at the hostel a little before 11 - 3 hours before official check in. Their staff was very understanding, and not only checked me in early, but allowed for an extra roommate (my friend from Portland was staying with me, but I had only made the reservation for 1 by mistake).

For $100/night, you get a private room (no en suite bathroom/shower however), breakfast, WiFi Internet, and a theatre room. The accommodations were clean, professional, and overall, comfortable. For just needing a bed to sleep in proximate to downtown Seattle, this was perfect. If I was going back just by myself, I'd try out one of the dorm style rooms ($30/night).

The Lime Bikes

These were a kick. Unlock with the lime app, hop on, and pedal. The electric assist is a fantastic feeling, and you fly down the streets with relative ease. Seattle is also the most bicycle friendly city (sorry Portland) I've ever ridden a bike in. They have DEDICATED bike lanes.

No, you don't understand. There are bike lanes separated from the road by concrete curbs that have two lanes, and their own traffic lights! Coming from Spokane, where you might literally be chancing your life riding a bike downtown, this was amazing.

Zillow

This was a fun tour, wasn't sure what I was expecting but I was blown away anyways. Everyone has a standing desk, there are privacy booths for phone calls and quiet working, and novelties such as the lego wall and the "lite-brite"-esque peg wall are everywhere.

It seemed like every floor had a kitchen, each one stocked with something different - grocery store sized candy dispensers, sodas, teas, coffee/espresso, and more. There was a telescope set up in one corner where we got a nice view of the happenings on the Space Needle.

...more to follow...