Seattle

After we checked in to our hotel and grabbed a bite at a local deli, we headed over to the infamous Pike's Market.

There was quite a large crowd gathered around the Pike's Place Fish Co. and most of us just wanted to see them tossing fish and yelling out orders. But since there weren't many people actually ordering anything, the guys working there started giving everyone a hard time, saying, "You actually have to order fish for us to throw them people!" We were there on a Sunday, so there were probably more tourists than usual, however, they did say that they pack the fish to be fresh for us to 48 hours (i.e, taking it on a plane or driving a long distance home). We still didn't order any but I would love to get some next time we go. And they finally did get a few orders, so I took some pictures of the guys tossing the fish.

(I didn't have the setting on my camera set appropriately, but you get the idea.)

There was a bit of calamity also.

The Fish Co. is just one small part of the entire market. There was lots of fresh fruit, vegetables, flowers and, of course, fish! The original Starbucks was right here also and we did stop by to get a coffee, however, with it being Sunday, the line was out the door and winding down the road. And since the drink itself tastes the same no matter where you get it (for the most part), we opted to skip it. I should have, however, taken a picture!! But I guess the mental picture I have will have to suffice for now.

After touring the market, we went to the local watery hole to join a few Seattle Sounders fans before the game. (The Sounders are the MLS team and apparently their fans LOVE them some soccer! Rob played soccer growing up-as did I, although I am not the fan that Rob is-and he had looked into getting tickets to a game months before we went on our trip. Once he started to look in to their schedule, he saw that they would be playing the L.A. Galaxy while we were in Seattle. AND for those who don't know soccer, David Beckham plays for LA. When we started to look into buying tickets and saw how hard it was to get them, we quickly realized that this was obviously a highly sought after game and would be a fun experience for us all.)

To say this brewery was a mad-house would be a huge understatement. We got their about 2 hours before the game started and it was already packed with a wait of an hour and a half for 4 people!! Apparently Rob had found the place to be!

Rob chatting it up with a local fan

This was the view from the bar area....these huge 'garage-type' doors opened to the outside and the stadium was just to the right.

(In case you didn't pick up on it, the Sounders colors are lime green and royal blue)

Coincidentally, Rob and Matt both had t-shirts in those colors, so we fit right in!

It was packed!! I believe they said it was a sell-out, which is just over 60,000 people! I had no idea soccer was so huge in Seattle! And this year, Seattle and LA were battling each other for the top of the league, so the game had even more at stake.

(This is the stadium where the Seattle Seahawks Football team plays as well.)

A few close-up shots of David Beckham....I had asked Rob if, as a kid, he could have played any sport with any professional player, who it would have been. Since Rob also played cricket (and still does), I assumed it might be someone who plays cricket (which of course I would have never heard of). But it was actually David Beckham! And growing up in New Zealand, Rob thought he would never get to see Beckham play live. Even leading up to the game, we weren't sure he would play because it was during the Olympics. We were selfishly excited when we saw that he wasn't on England's Olympic soccer team, but since the Olympics were being held in London and he had been at so many of the events, we weren't sure he would be playing. But apparently he flew to the states the night before, so this truly was a once-in-a-lifetime experience!

And although Rob was most excited to see David Beckham play, we were still rooting for the Sounders and they ended up winning! The final score was 4-0 and it was a great game to watch for our first MLS game.