Seattle, Washington: U.S. Open Swimming and more

Mrs ER & I spent the past week at the Weyerhauser Aquatic Center in Federal Way (greater Seattle) to see daughter Emily Munday swim in the U.S. Open Championships.

As all swim parents will attest, swim meets are mostly downtime--reading a good book or chatting with other parents between events. Emily's main event was the 100-meter butterfly. She was seeded 88th (out of 104 swimmers) and finished 33rd -- winning her heat -- with a time of 1:01.70:

Here's Emily (top of screen, Lane 7) approaching the flags in the first half of the race:

Olympian Elaine Breeden took gold in the event. Also swimming at this meet was Olympian Jessica Hardy, who set new world records in both the 100-meter and 50-meter breaststroke.

All that pool time demands good food. We found an excellent Elliott Bay Brew Pub nearby, with healthy food such as giant bread pretzels:

And mussels:

For the non-swimmers among us, Elliott's also has a superb selection of outstanding beers. The Hell Mouth IPA, Black IPA, Salmon Bay Bitter, and barrel aged Bourbon Stout got especially high marks (we ate at Elliott's several times, so these were not all consumed at one sitting!):

On a pleasant walking trail near the pool, Mrs ER and I found acres-and-acres of dense blackberry thickets:

Loaded with lush tasty berries:

We had one idle afternoon for a delightful walk on nearby Des Moines Beach. We combed the beach for interesting masses of kelp:

And searched the tidal pools:

Finding lots of lively little crabs:

On our trip to the city (Seattle's Pioneer Square/Pike Place Market area), we enjoyed street musicians and artists (no urban scene is complete without its Baloon Guy):

Cool public art like this statue of Christopher Columbus:

The fish market:

And a celebratory meal at Elliott's Oyster House (great food, even though the tip was higher than our bill at the brew pub!)--one of the best selections of tasty oysters we have ever experienced:

Coolest Car in greater Seattle? That award goes to Assistant Coach Jen Strasburger for her mint VW Beetle convertible--in her family since it was new:


As always, it's good to be home. Later this week, I'll go back on mountain time (without a watch)...