Secret?! i think not. ;) Although it can appear rather secretive if you consider walking through it…read morethe first time (w/o knowing it's a tunnel) and ask yourself upon exiting "I was in an underground tunnel?" Yup. And a super COOL one at that, too. :) Fine shops, great lunch options, and a jackpot of historic Seattle photos - everything from the early days of dumping Pill Hill fill into Elliot Bay to the early Boeing airplanes. Downtown? Take a stroll down this tunnel. It begins/ends in Rainier Square and ends/begins in One/Two Union Square. Happy strolling. :)

I haven't visited enough underground tunnels to know if this one deserves 5 stars or not, so let's…read morework this out, arithmetic-style! 1 star for keeping me out of the rain, cold, and wind and away from motor traffic and waiting for crosswalk signals. 1 star for neat photos of old-time Seattle 1 star for a display of upcoming shows from the 5th Ave 1 star for the convenience store selling cards and snacks. There are also some little deli type eateries, a salon, and an art gallery, though I haven't taken advantage of any of them yet. All in all, this is a pretty spiffy way to get from 7th and Union to 4th and University without having to set foot outside - always a plus when it comes to dealing with Seattle's variable weather.

Cool Landmark in Seattle, Washington…read more.. I've had "The Center of the Universe" bookmarked for a while. It's a good thing to look at the bookmarked items on the Yelp app once in a while. I totally forgot about this novel and unique piece of Public Art! I should have visited it when I saw the Troll and the blue Fremont Bridge yesterday... darn! Anyway... I parked across the street and got a good shot of this directional sign! As I drew closer, I saw places on the sign that I would like to see - such as Machu Piccu and Rio de Janeiro. Other interesting places include The North Pole and The Milky Way. What a fun tourist stop! Check it out when you have time! It's free, quick, and a good break from daily routine!

One of the few photo ops (like the Rocket, dinosaurs, the Troll, etc) in Fremont…read more I saw the sign. It opened up my eyes. Life is demanding without understanding. To reiterate, I saw the sign and it opened up my eyes I saw the sign. No one's gonna drag you up To get into the light where you belong But where do you belong? Now if you excuse me, all that she wants is another baby, and she's gone tomorrow, boy.

Bruun Idun is an awesome troll to see looking out to the Puget Sound. Located in Lincoln Park…read more The parking lot was packed when I arrived, and I parked in a nearby neighborhood. I walked about 25 minutes along the shoreline and saw several bunnies and squirrels along the way to Bruun Idun. Under a canopy of trees, peacefully playing an instrument or smoking a pipe. Use your imagination.

Inside Lincoln Park is this random troll named Bruun Idum. It is a little bit of a walk but you get…read moreto see the trees and everything so it wasn't bad. It might be about a 20-minute walk from the parking lot. But I believe it is well worth it! This troll has a wonderful background of trees and nature. Also, it looks kike it is blowing maybe a musical instrument. It states that the artist is making the trolls out of recycled products and his unique way to see and make something so awesome is great!

I mean, what can be said about this strange abandoned art installation that hasn't been said…read morealready. It's not a great area, there's currently a homeless encampment right behind it. It has a chain link fence surrounding it giving it a 'We haven't torn this down yet' vibe. Being from the Bay Area and having seen pieces created at The Crucible I personally would call it exceptionally lazy art - if you're generous with the word 'art'. It's a sign, with some pointed cylinders around it. In my opinion the painted pieces at Gas Works are more interesting. I personally think it's only a matter of time before they tear it out and make it into another park so all in all, it's an easy skip.

At one point, I'm sure The Wall of Death was a very cool public art installation in Seattle. It's a…read morepermanently sited installation located along the Burke-Gilman Trail under the University Bridge along NE 40th Street. It was designed and built by Mowry Baden and his son Colin in 1993. While the exhibit sounds ominous, it's neither a memorial or some gothic art piece. Instead, it's a tribute to the structure used to perform "the wall of death," a motorcycle and miniature automobile stunt. While it looks like it was initially quite amazing, The Wall of Death has largely fallen victim to time and graffiti and it's really that graffiti that negatively impacts the appeal of the exhibit. The exhibit includes the cylinder itself on the south side of the Burke-Gilman Trail, as well as a concrete ramp to the north of the trail, which includes a "series of stylized metal chairs mounted to the existing concrete bridge columns and serves as the stands from which the stunts were viewed. The exhibit was originally intended as interactive with skateboarders intended to use it. However, after several skateboarding accidents including one involving a head-on collision between a skateboarder and a cyclist the exhibit was adapted, by Baden himself, to include 25 concrete parking stops. At this point, the exhibit is somewhat fenced in and much more difficult to access. However, it remains one of the more intriguing public art exhibits in Seattle and is still free to see. It's listed in Atlas Obscura. The exhibit was also reportedly damaged on 11/15/20 when a homeless camp tent caught fire. The exhibit is made of concrete, steel, and aluminum and measures 16' x 65' x 30'. It's easy to access the exhibit from the Burke Gilman Trail in the University District. It's near University of Washington housing and only a few blocks from Lake Union. The trail itself is wheelchair friendly and accessible quite easily.

Went to Bainbridge Island recently, we thought to come check out one of the troll statues around…read morethe Seattle area. We haven't seen this one so it was on our list while in the area. We took the ferry to come over from Seattle, we did not bring our car. It's about a 1.5 +/- mile walk from the ferry terminal, with some internet searching we were able to find one of the trailhead entrances, follow the loop trail then find Pia. It's just beyond one of the main parking lots. If you end up by the tennis courts, you've gone too far. Walking back to the main downtown strip area is about another 1.5 miles. When we got there, luckily no one was there, we had the place to ourselves for a while to get some photos, and check it out at our own pace. It's pretty cool to see, worth coming by when on Bainbridge Island. I believe this is my 4th troll statue I've seen in the Seattle area.

Pia the Peacekeeper, the 18-foot giant troll sculpture on Bainbridge Island by Danish artist Thomas…read moreDambo, took approximately seven days to two weeks to make. She was so cool to see, this is our second troll to visit while being in this beautiful state! We decided to spend our last day experiencing the ferry ride and go across to Bainbridge and enjoy the afternoon and grab lunch and visit Pea. Such a went quaint little town look forward to visiting again.

Juan used to come into Bartell's at 5th and Olive when I worked there. We became "buddies". He was…read morealways really nice. Although I never really got the whole story figured out, it had something to do with his son and the Frye apartments. I moved away from Seattle a few years back now and Juan is one of those quirky things I miss about downtown. Does anyone know if he's still around doing his thing?

I forget where I heard this, but I'm pretty sure he's from Cuba…read more In the eighties there was an (unsurprising) blusterfuck between U.S. President Carter and Castro. There was a famine in Cuba, thousands of people were trying to leave. Carter tried to make the States look like some sort of magnanimous good guy and said that of course the US would take any refugees from Cuba. Castro didn't want to lose face and agreed to let anyone who wanted to go leave. Thousands of people showed up to the docks and were taken over to Florida. Castro took this opportunity to empty the jails and mental hospitals onto the boats as well. More negotiating and blusterfucking, and Cuba took back some of the repeat offenders and patients, and now the US only gives automatic citizenship to Cubans who set foot on land. All refugees caught or rescued at sea are sent back to Cuba via Guantanamo. I don't remember where I heard he was from Cuba, but what he says starts to make some sort of weird sense when you put him into that context. He has also pointed to my friend's nose and claimed he saw the devil hanging off the end of it.

The garden is beautiful and it's a nice activity to do end of fall/early winter. It used to be free…read morethen they started tickets and now they've increased the price just like anything else. But it's worth going around the holiday time each year. I suggest going on a week day of you can to avoid lines and parking craziness. The first slot 4:30 is less busy also.

Wonderful, festive and pretty affordable for the holidays. Ticket cost $10 per person over 11 years…read moreold. Kids 10 and your gets in for free. The lights were fun to look at and had many floral and crops themed ones. It was also larger than I thought cause from the outside you can see a portion of it. The cafe was also open and I wish I can try all their drinks. Their white hot chocolate with whip cream was so good for the cool weather. Also very glad it did not rain on that day.

I first learned about the existence of this place when I saw some really cool photography at an art…read morewalk, and the person representing the photographer mentioned the photos were taken at the Georgetown Steam Plant. They mentioned it was a National Historic Landmark in Seattle, with free tours on second Saturdays. Whoa! I knew I had to check it out. Fast forward a few years later and I finally remembered it on a second Saturday, and set to go there. It's an open house from 10am-2pm, with tours at 10:30am, 11:30am, and 12:30am. We walked in and a kind gentleman at the entrance greeted us and let us know that admission was free, we could walk around and explore the main parts of the plant on our own, read some info displayed along the walls, view art scattered around for an art event they had, and if we like, they accept donations. He also mentioned their next tour was happening in about ten minutes. While waiting for the tour, we explored the main floor a bit, skimming the timeline on the walls, and passing by huge structures; a couple which we later found out are the last remaining operable vertical turbine generators of their kind in the world! The tour was led by a docent who did a wonderful job explaining everything we saw with its historic significance, especially relating to the city of Seattle. I never thought I'd be so engaged in learning about a Steam Plant, but somehow, he made it happen! This tour was awesome. It made me so glad the Georgetown Steam Plant still exists, and hope it continues to for years to come.

What an amazing space! This is a jewel on the south end of Georgetown and the steampunk rating is…read moreoff the chart. I came here to watch an innovative concert and the acoustics and overall experience made for a feast for the senses. The lighting work made for a truly ethereal moment but the permanent hardware is a sight to behold - tanks and pipes and valves galor. Reading the other reviews, I would love to come check out a tour and understand its history more, but it was a huge privilege being able to take in and enjoy the space for a few hours.

Weird to have a check-in spot for a street corner/neighborhood but what the hey. Admiral is the…read morecoolest area in West Seattle...even including the Junction and Alki. If we had our choice, we'd move down here in a heart beat.