In the shadow of the Pointy End*

*couldn't resist the Song of Ice & Fire reference 

We didn't take the time (or shell out the bucks) to go up top in the Seattle Space Needle. But, boy, there sure are lots of wonderful things to see (and play on) around its foot. And they're mostly free!

The first big sculpture we encountered was this cool collection of tubes...

visitors from the other coast

...here's what they look like from directly below...

note that blue sky again!

Then what do we see but some fabulous Chihuly flowers peering over a hedge...

This is another paid attraction that's probably worth the price of admission. But we had limited time as well as a little one with us. And a playground beckoned. Believe me, you don't want to get in my granddaughter's way if she sees a playground!

Admittedly, this enormous play structure is a bit beyond her at present...

...but there were smaller slides more her size, and she always enjoys watching the bigger kids anyway.

For me, I spent a good bit of time in the playground area snapping pictures of this amazing structure:

Isn't this the most amazing building?! The last time I was in this park (in 1992, on our way to Alaska; you can see some photos here) I doubt if this museum was even a gleam in its architect's eye. I guess I should have heard about it in the interim, but hadn't, so it was a super-awesome surprise to discover. It looks, from the website, like it's a pretty neat place on the inside, too. We'll have to take that in sometime on an adults- or older-kids-only excursion.

For now, though, I just couldn't get enough of the exterior...

my first look at it

around the other side

to complete the futuristic look, there's a monorail!

Next up, I'll take you down to the southern end of Puget Sound for some different looks at this varied, exciting, and super-scenic area.