The Penn Cove Mussel Festival always makes me feel as if I'm back in small-town America, celebrating a proud tradition that manages to be authentic rather than cheesy -- even if organizers do refer to their local mussels as "blue fruits of the sea."
February 29, 2008
At first pass through the Woodland Park Zoo, the grotto is empty.
Minutes later, though, two rare Sumatran tiger cubs pad by for an unscripted show. One furry tiger, grown halfway between adorable and ferocious, stalks an unsuspecting log. He hunts. He pounces and wrestles, tearing off a branch and prancing away with his prey.
"He reminds me of when my cat was little!" says a visitor. "Look, he's like a puppy!" says another.
Soon after, though, both cubs retreat out of view and the grotto is empty again.
April 14, 2005
VANCOUVER ISLAND -- It's common wisdom that you can never guarantee having good weather on vacation. How about bad weather, though?
We were prepared for tradeoffs when we signed up for an off-season vacation in Tofino, B.C., expecting shuttered storefronts and crashing waves that would restrict us to our hotel room. We even splurged on lodgings at the luxe Wickaninnish Inn, in part, because we wanted to feel we were someplace special even if we were trapped indoors.
March 10, 2005
It has been several years since we could call Ballard a "sleepy burg" and keep a straight face. And sometime over the past year or two, the neighborhood northwest of downtown has gone beyond standard Seattle gentrification and reached a new level: destination.
The once working-class neighborhood is still a community unto itself. But it's also a bona-fide district of good shopping and great eating, with new and hip businesses opening up regularly on Ballard Avenue and Market Street, where parking places can be tough to find even on a weekday night.
February 24, 2005
For young children, any journey through Carkeek Park is a treasure hunt: They might unearth starfish and geoducks while walking on the beach at low tide; or find salmon fry in the river as they hike on a forested trail; or shriek with excitement as trains roar under the overpass where they cross from beach to playground.
Imagine, though, how much more they could discover with a guide.
That's the role naturalist Brian Gay is taking on for his "tyke hikes" at 1:30 p.m. Tuesdays, when he leads young children through outdoor activities at the North Seattle park.
February 3, 2005
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