After our marathon day, we needed something a little lower key. Which we mistakenly presumed could include a visit to Pikes Place Market.

Before we went there, we had a couple quick stops to make.

First on the list was a drive by Meredith Gray’s house from Gray’s Anatomy. Up in the Queen Anne neighborhood, the house is nestled into trees and greenery within an idyllic neighborhood. If you’re considering a trip, make sure you use the right address and not the address they use on the show.

Second, was another “Hollywood stop” to see the Edith Macefield house. That name likely doesn’t ring a bell, but if I were to say that it’s the house that inspired the beginning the movie “Up” it might make sense. Edith was a thorn in the side of developers who refused to sell her home, resulting in it being surrounded by commercial buildings. There is a certain romance about holding on to something that means so much to you, especially when others simply want to destroy it. The house isn’t much to look at today, having recently purchased it for renovation and development into something else that won’t require removing the house.

Then we had a surprise stop. One of the girls always wants to find something unique and a bit weird to visit. Most recently it has been bronze statues. Today it was a giant statue of a troll that included a VW Bug. The statue was erected to draw attention to the space and prevent the area from being a haven for the homeless. The statue definitely fit the bill of being weird.

Pikes Place is one of the oldest public markets in the United States. Opening in 1907 it can provide almost anything you need from food to flowers to off color wall tiles. We weren’t thinking that it would be chaotic due to the Fourth of July, and we were quickly overwhelmed.

But that didn’t stop us from enjoying some of the wonders. Like Apple cider slushies, fresh Yakima cherries, grilled cheese sandwiches with Washington cheeses, and freshly smoked salmon.

It was hot. And we were hungry. But we had another stop to make. Stretch has a real aversion to something that my enjoys greatly. In fact, it is likely that at any time at least one of us is participating in this activity and it drives him crazy. This stop is pretty common in Seattle, but factor in the opportunity to strike a nerve, and we had to visit the Gum Wall.

I don’t have words for this. It’s horrific. I am not someone who gets grossed out easily, but this did it. Gum was everywhere. The alley even smelled like bubble gum. If there is ever some crazy disease that spreads through humanity, this should be the first place the CDC looks.

All that said, did it prevent me from adding my gum to the wall? No, it certainly didn’t.

After leaving the Pikes Place area, we headed out to Snowqualmie to see some people and Snowqualmie Falls.

Just by pure coincidence my wife’s aunt, uncle, and cousin were in Seattle, so we made arrangements to see them for an early dinner. We don’t get to see them often, which made this unexpected opportunity even more special.

After dinner we headed to the falls. The Snowqualmie people see the falls as the birthplace of the first man and woman and where prayers were carried to the heavens on the mists from the falls.

Today the site is still sacred, but it is also a hydroelectric power plant and heavily visited tourist spot. At roughly 270 feet high, the falls are impressive and can be viewed from several different viewing locations. The falls were beautiful and a great way to wrap up the day before heading back downtown to return the rental cars, for a snack, and a walk to watch the fireworks.