Friends visiting Seattle/ Seattle touristy things

This past Summer was a bit of a whirlwind! I took a job at the Museum of Flight, 1.5 hour commute each way.  I also went to Zurich and Paris! Of course I went to many museums and ate copious amounts of delicious bread and cheese.  Two of my friends came to visit me in Seattle and though I only had about a day and a half with each of them, we had really memorable visits. I got to go up the Space Needle, (see fancy dessert), I got to be a tourist at Pike's Place Market, as well as visit the amazing downtown library with spiral floors for it's Dewy Decimal System sorting, chocolate cafe, and gift shop.

I also tried to find entertainment in frustrating situations. Below you can see I had the joy of seeing the UW alumni band perform while I waited over an hour for my bus during a crowded game.

I also got hooked on a new show, Outlander, and spent most of my free time recovering from long hours and the tiring job of engaging the public at MOF. 

I had the pleasure of checking out the Magic: The Gathering fair next to the Paramount during PAX.  We saw glass blowing, metal smithing, amazing cosplay, and a giant creature prop from the new batch of cards- you can see me standing next to it's card below. 

 I tried to get out and walk around local parks as well. This place is not too far away from where I live, though it is down a very steep hill. 

This guy is on an exterior wall of Cafe Mox. I spent many hours at Cafe Mox, Card Kingdom, and Greenlake Games participating in Magic : the Gathering draft games.

My awesome friend Megumi suggested going to the Cat Cafe, definitely worth it! These macarons were super tasty too!

One of the benefits of taking a ridiculous commute to the museum 6 days out of the week was that I started to stare at the buildings down town while I waited for a long, often late transfer. This building has Walrus busts. Which is pretty cool. 

Overall a well-packed summer. Almost didn't feel like I had a summer at all. But my belt size proves I had more fun and pampering than stress and boredom. ;D

Western Museum Association Conference

Here are some images from the wonderful Heard museum and the center for Latino arts and culture ( across the street from the Hyatt!)

Red Cross Museum

The Red Cross Museum in Geneva, Switzerland was a strange experience. It certainly didn't match my expectations. I expected some dusty history of the red cross in charming cases with oil portraits of important people I'd never heard of. Instead it was ultra modern. Lots of dark rooms with spot lights, and projections on the floor or a high tech (if a bit dysfunctional) save your town from a hurricane table game. The closest to the charming history of Red Cross I could find was a red hallway with glass cases. Once through there, your audio tour guide auto-connected ( or sometimes not) to the area you entered. There were chains in entrances, multiple HD video interviews (all sound through your audio guide) and some you activated by sitting in a chair opposite the screen of a sitting person, others you activated by pressing your palm against an outstretched palm in creaky photo-booth husks. Thinking as I do, about access, the museum seemed to pass most of the tests, except for the hick-ups in technology and some areas where wheelchair access would be a bit tricky. The low lighting and multitude of screens would also be difficult for someone with low vision or sensory overload issues. Some of the exhibits were baffling, as in I had no idea what purpose they served in the museum, some were a bit tedious (that audio guide got heavy), and some were very intense, if not well explained ( the archives interactive and the prisoner's upcycle artworks gallery).
 This museums had a big focus on what the Red Cross currently does, and there were many calls to action and warnings against intolerance, but I wasn't personally moved to join the movement or donate my money. I support the Red Cross already, so perhaps this is why the museum didn't move me in this way. It seemed to save money on a café by having coin up coffee.