I mentioned a few weeks ago that the Noah's we went to all the time is temporarily closed while the building is redone. Last weekend we decided to try Eltana based on a few recommendations. It was actually pouring down rain, which would normally be abnormal for Seattle if we hadn't been having torrential rain the past few weeks. Anyway, we walked there in about 15 minutes. It was insanely crowded with tons of people and a lot of families, which was surprising. Of course we didn't get there until after 10 and there was also an article recently published in the Seattle Times about it, which might have drawn even more people than normal. Along with Noah's being closed, everyone who wanted bagels was going to try Eltana.

So, we waited in line for 10 minutes and ordered 4 bagels to go. We got sesame, salt, everything, and wheat and carried them home in the rain since there was no way we were going to eat them in that crowded place. We could have ordered cream cheese to go with it, but the cream cheese there is twice as expensive as Noah's, so we passed.

First impressions were average at best. The bagels were smaller than Noah's, which is why we got 4. They were also a little bland, especially the wheat and sesame ones. The salt and everything tasted a little better, but couldn't hold a candle to Noah's asiago cheese or super onion.

I'd probably go back since we don't plan on driving to another Noah's location every weekend, but it's just not going to be the same...

It's been six months since my last haircut, so I figured it was time to get it cut. It had gotten really thick and heavy at the bottom and too long. I had to find a new place to go to since we've moved away from South Lake Union. I used to go to a lady right on the lake, but that's too far for me to walk now.

I searched online and quickly found a salon that was highly rated just a few blocks from our new apartment. It was very convenient and the lady spent an hour and a half on my hair. I decided to have her cut it above my shoulder, layer it, and thin it out quite a bit. She was also a lot cheaper than the other lady I was using, $30 instead of $50. Overall it was a great experience and I'll probably use them from now on. It's great that we can walk to places like the hair salon and save money at the same time.

Last weekend we started going through stuff trying to reduce what we have. We have a lot of stuff from when we were kids that we can't really get rid of, like school yearbooks and stuffed animals. We got rid of a lot of clothes we never wear in preparation for going down to 5' of closet space in our bedroom. We'll have to store more clothes in the chest of drawers, which we've been using to store random stuff. It was quite a mess in the apartment with all our boxes out in the hallway and living room.

We're planning on packing a lot more stuff this weekend, our last full weekend in our current apartment. It's kind of sad to be leaving it, after being there almost three years. We'll miss being close to Whole Foods and REI. We'll also miss the view we have of Queen Anne Hill and the sunset to the west, even though it is partially blocked by Amazon buildings.

We'll probably go out to eat at a few more places nearby before we move. I want to order take out from Laadla Indian restaurant again and we might to go Seastar this weekend. I'd also like to walk to Lake Union Park again.

It's definitely become our home, but I guess it's time to move on. Our new place will be bigger and cheaper. It's also in an area we aren't very familiar with, so we'll get to explore a whole new neighborhood and try out all the restaurants in the area.

With our lease ending in February, we're going to be deciding soon whether to renew our lease or to move elsewhere. In the years since we've moved here, this location has grown on me and overall I'm pretty satisfied with the neighborhood and the apartment building itself.

Things I like about our apartment

The positive impressions we had when we moved in were pretty spot-on and there is still a lot to like.

1. There are no major complaints - the neighbors are fine, it's pretty quiet overall, and there are no regular inconveniences or other issues.


2. Our unit was designed well and makes good use of the space. For being only 555 square feet, the kitchen and bathrooms are adequately sized.


3. The apartment building is pretty nice. People respect the public spaces and the apartment keeps things in good condition.


4. Even though we lost the best part of our view, we can still see some mountains, Queen Anne Hill, and quite a bit of sky.


5. I love the afternoon sun that comes in and brightens up the place


6. We almost never have to use our heater (which is good because we have furniture blocking it right now). It's nice that we usually get enough heat from surrounding units during the winter and can use our windows to cool things off most of the rest of the year.


7. We can compost our food scraps. Maybe this is available in all apartments, I don't know, but it's nice to be able to do it.


8. Our trash and recycling room is just down the hall.

Things I don't like about our apartment

1. The grill on the balcony below us puts smoke in our apartment if we have our window open. This is very annoying on a nice day when we want to feel the cooler outside air.


2. The balcony below us can get kind of loud if there's a party, or people at nearby clubs and bars. Also, the recording studio across the alley is really annoying.


3. It would be nice if some rooms were bigger, particularly the bedroom.


4. We face the west and it does get warm in here for about a week or two every summer.


5. We've had to add some lights to get it to be bright enough in here, as there are not enough light fixtures built into the unit.

Things I like about our neighborhood

The neighborhood has changed and improved since we moved in. Now that some workers in Amazon's headquarters have moved in this year, more restaurants have opened and there is more to walk to in the area. Check out this color-coded view of the area from the Space Needle.

1. It's nice to have some restaurants and retail within walking distance. We try to take advantage of it when we can. Also, Whole Foods is nearby.


2. We're about a 15 minute walk from downtown, which is convenient for Lesley's work and if we want to go downtown to shop or eat or run errands. This is a lot more convenient than having to drive downtown or take a bus like most people do.


3. Lake Union Park opened late this summer and is one of Seattle's great urban parks. Even though the weather got cooler and wetter right after it opened, we've been there several times already.


4. We are close to several bus routes that can take us to many parts of the city, at least in the northern part of Seattle. For going to any neighborhood north of here, we can get to a bus pretty easily and I enjoy doing that on the weekends.


5. The farmers market outside our building is a fun place to buy fruit and flowers, among many other things, though it may not continue next year.

Things I don't like about our neighborhood

1. It's a 10 minute walk to Whole Foods, which isn't that far, but the walk is across a busy street and up a hill. It would be nice to live closer to somewhere where we could regularly shop for more affordable groceries.


2. The streets that surround this area are a deterrent to walking.


3. While there is a lot to walk to in this area, there aren't as many places to walk to as I would like. Few other Seattle neighborhoods are more walkable, though.


4. Being a neglected mostly-industrial part of town for decades means that it will take some time for this area to feel have a cozy neighborhood feel that other areas have.

It will be hard to find a new place with as many positives as where we live now, but we're planning to look into our options and will see what we can find.

We spent last Saturday exploring Wallingford, one of Seattle's many historic walkable neighborhoods.

We headed out on the bus, which took us pretty much straight to Mighty-O Donuts, one of the best doughnut places in Seattle. A neat thing about their donuts is that not only are they very good, but they also don't use any animal products. I really liked my apple fritter. Lesley got an apple spice donut that was good. After doughnuts, Lesley got some tea, and we walked to a nearby park. We enjoyed our tea and time sitting in the park. Then we walked around the neighborhood some. Like many of Seattle's older residential neighborhoods, there are a lot of unique homes with beautiful landscaping.

For lunch we went to a taco truck called Rancho Bravo Tacos in the area and had some pretty good burritos - the best we've had in Seattle.

We then walked up the main drag of Wallingford, 45th St, which is lined with a mile of shops and restaurants. We stopped in a Hawaiian store with shirts and food from the islands. We also stopped in a stationery store, which had some cute cards, and a travel store with a lot of books and maps.

In the middle of Wallingford is the Wallingford Center, which used to be a school and now has a few stores inside. Outside are plenty of benches, as there were throughout the neighborhood. I enjoyed spending time sitting outside before walking around the neighborhood more, passing through a very busy kid-filled playground/soccer field, and by an old school.

There is a two-screen theater in the neighborhood, which we almost went to, but the movies weren't playing at a good time.

We went to Archee McPhee, a popular novelty store, for the first time. We didn't buy any bacon-scented air freshener, but I really enjoyed looking at the various rubber animals, listening to the Mr. T voice box, and dreaming of buying the bacon tuxedo for someone.

We also stopped at Bottleworks, a shop with a lot of different kinds of beer, where we bought a few individual bottles to take home and try, and stopped by a wine store. We then sat outside more at Wallingford Center and watching the cars, bikes, and people go by.

One of our favorite Thai places in the city, Djan's, is in Wallingford, but for dinner we decided to go somewhere different to Jhanjay. Lesley had pad see eew and I had a ginger stir-fry. After dinner, we stopped at the main grocery store in the area (with a giant "WALLINGFORD" sign) to get some food for the next day, and then we took the bus home.

We had a good time in Wallingford. Based on the types of stores and the playgrounds and children we saw, it's apparent that more families live there than in other Seattle neighborhoods we've spent time in. The neighborhood is more kid-friendly and has fewer apartments and condos than other dense neighborhoods in the city. Unlike other urban neighborhoods close to downtown (Capitol Hill, Fremont, Ballard, etc), Wallingford lacks a notable landmark. It's still one of Seattle's most walkable and pleasant neighborhoods.

Quick Wallingford facts:

• Population: 20,433


• Population density per square mile: 11,544


• 2009 Median Home Price: $411,000


• 2008 Median Condo Sales Price: $299,000


• 10th most walkable neighborhood in Seattle

Sources:
1. Seattle Metropolitan Real Estate
2. Walk Score: Seattle's Most Walkable Neighborhoods

Here are some pictures Troy took at the Lake Union Park opening last Saturday. We added to an existing gallery, so be sure to check out the second page of photos. There was a lot more people and a lot less food there than we were expecting at the park opening. We did see some guys cooking salmon on an open fire which I'd never seen before. We were sort of hungry after we'd been there a while, so we bought some cheese bread and banana bread from the farmer's market. We also bought some blueberry jam from a local farmer and it was really good. The weather was also incredible for late September, with a high around 75 and completely sunny.

More than a year ago, phase 1 of South Lake Union Park opened. Unfortunately, the park closed again after just a few months so that the other phases could be built. After a very long wait, the rest of the park opened on Saturday.

We're just over a half mile away from Lake Union, but with the park being closed, we didn't really have a good way to get to the lake. The park has some good open space and offers a plesant environment for enjoying the view across the lake.

During the opening festivities, there were kayak and stand-up paddleboard rentals, several informative booths, and a farmers market.

The park includes a model boat pond, a public fountain, which had plenty of children playing in it today, and green space for sitting, lying down, throwing a frisbee, and whatever else.

Now that the park is open, it contributes to the growing livability of this part of the city along with the new restaurants that have opened in the past few months. We're looking forward to being able to walk down to the lake and enjoy the park.

The streetcar that runs through our neighborhood and ends downtown will have a new plaza built around it at its downtown terminus over the next few months. We don't ride the streetcar often, but we walk around the area, and that part of downtown will benefit from having a plaza.

The plaza is part of an effort to create more vibrant, urban spaces for people to gather and enjoy, said Charles Bookman, SDOT's director of traffic management. The plaza surface will consist of granite pavers, illuminated at night with inlaid LED lights. The plaza will feature a kiosk for food vendors, covered parking stalls for bicyclists, new street lighting and a rain garden to drain stormwater runoff.

A second boarding platform will be installed for streetcar riders. The South Lake Union Streetcar hit 2,193 weekday boardings last month, it's highest ridership ever.

I've been wanting to go to Cafe Besalu in Ballard ever since someone brought in some of their croissants to work for breakfast a few months ago. So Troy and I took the bus to Ballard this morning and went to the small cafe, where the line was out the door. Cafe Besalu specializes in croissants and quiches.

I got the regular croissant that comes with a small container of strawberry jam and Troy got the strawberry danish and coffee. It was easily one of the biggest and best croissants I've ever had! It was perfectly flaky on the outside and nice and fresh and buttery on the inside. Troy's danish was also very good. I was still hungry though, so I decided to get a slice of the quiche Lorraine which comes with bacon, swiss, and green onions. It was fresh, hot, and delicious!

All together we spent about $11, which isn't bad for such awesome breakfast pastries. I liked the sign outside the cafe too, with a croissant hanging from it. I can't wait to go back again and get more croissants! We'll also have to try the blueberry or nectarine danishes next time. The more time I spend in Ballard, the more awesome it gets!

We spent this Saturday visiting the University District. Though farther from downtown than some of the neighborhoods we've visited previously like Capitol Hill, First Hill, and Lower Queen Anne, it's one of the oldest and densest neighborhoods in the city. The 1909 Alaska Yukon Pacific exhibition was held on the University of Washington campus.

We live a relatively short bus ride away from the University District and we started our day out with brunch at Ugly Mug Cafe. Lesley had a breakfast croissant and I had a California BLT, which was easily the best sandwich I've had in Seattle.

It was a sunny day but there was a cold morning wind. We headed north along University Way (known as "The Ave"). In addition to hosting the U District Street Fair that kicks off the summer festival season, the Ave is lined continuously with retail and restaurants. It's a mixing bowl of international foods, from Indian to Mediterranean to all types of Asian foods, mostly inexpensive enough to attract plenty of students.

We enjoyed strolling along the active street all the way through the U District, meandering through the U District Farmers Market, which is one of the best farmers markets in the city and had lots of food that we wanted to buy and take home with us. We then visited the Kirsten Gallery. This gallery was surprisingly large with a peaceful backyard garden and a variety of painted, printed, and sculpted art for sale at reasonable prices. This was one of several enjoyable places we stopped this day.

We continued on, past the towering and historic Blessed Sacrament Church to another historic building, the Seattle Public Library's Univeristy Branch, a Carnegie Library. We continued walking and realized that we were getting a bit hungry, so we stopped and shared a falafel.

We walked on the other side of the Ave for a while, stopping in several interesting shops. We stopped to look at wall posters, spooky gargoyles, some amusingly tacky crap, and some Asian imports. After this we decided to visit the University of Washington, enjoying the view of Mount Rainier and stopping to rest for a while at Drumheller Fountain.

We then grabbed some tea and stopped at a park (technically outside of the U District). The last thing we did was eat some very filling Indian food before heading back home.

The U District is a part of town that I often don't think about but is one of the more eclectic parts of the city. Despite being kind of a college neighborhood, after our visit I came away impressed and hope to spend more time there in the future.

Quick U District facts:

• Population: 16,355


• Population density per square mile: 9,844


• 2008 Median Home Price: $489,900


• 2008 Median Condo Sales Price: $400,000


• Cars per capita: 0.2


• 8th most walkable neighborhood in Seattle

Sources:
1. Seattle Metropolitan Real Estate
2. Walk Score: Seattle's Most Walkable Neighborhoods

Ever since we've moved here, I've wished for a convenient Asian food takeout place, but there just weren't any options around. Finally, a couple weeks ago, Citrus Thai opened between our apartment and downtown. It's kind of a dead, mostly-commercial area, so I was surprised to see it open for dinner. It happens to be pretty convenient for my walk home, so earlier this week when I got off the bus downtown, I called to order some red curry and pad thai with chicken. The food was ready when I got there and it was still warm when I got home. And, it was pretty good. I'm glad to have another food option nearby and am looking forward to going back.

Amazon's construction has now begun to block our view of the Space Needle. During the past week, the construction crews have continued to add more and more floors of steel beams. We think at least another 3 or 4 floors will be added to what you see in the picture. We had an awesome view the past two years. It's really too bad we can't take any more beautiful sunset pictures with the Space Needle. I'll miss it. I guess at least we still have a decent view of Queen Anne Hill...

Belltown has an interesting history. It was once the site of Denny Hill, which was flattened early on the city's history, and for several decades had car dealerships and parking lots, and was fairly underused. However, now it is a neighborhood with office buildings, condos, restaurants, and clubs. Lesley and I spent the day there Saturday, checking it out.

We started with breakfast at Bang Bang Cafe. We both had breakfast burritos, which were pretty good and relatively cheap. I also had some good coffee there. From there, we walked northwest along Western Avenue and stopped at Canlis Glass, which had some beautiful glass pieces in its gallery. We also stopped by another art gallery before walking back towards downtown along 2nd Ave and stopping for tea. We walked around a bit and explored the area.

There are a lot of old, small commercial buildings, apartment buildings, and closer to the water there are lots of new, luxury condos. There are several parallel thoroughfares through the neighborhood and each has its own character. Western Ave is a high-traffic street with lots of clean, new condos and not a lot of street-level retail. 1st Ave has the most street-level retail and is one of the more enjoyable streets to walk on. 3rd Ave seems to have the least new development and the most low'rise old buildings.

Anyway, we then went to Olympic Sculpture Park, which is one of my favorite things in the city. After all that walking, we were happy to relax in a couple comfy chairs inside to sit and enjoy the view. We walked through the park and I walked past Alexander Calder's the Eagle, which is probably my favorite sculpture of any kind.

After the park, we went to Shorty's to have a hot dog and play pinball. It had been a while since I'd played pinball and we both had a lot of fun. We needed to kill some time then until dinner, so we stopped by The Yellow Leaf Cupcake to get a couple cupcakes for later. We had some tea there and played a game of Connect 4 that they had sitting out.

We then went to dinner at Tilikum Place Cafe, which is near small Tilikum Place plaza. Dinner was good. Belltown is most popular for its bar and club scene, but we'd had a long day and went home after dinner.

Compared to other neighborhoods, Belltown has lots of art galleries, trendy restaurants, and bars. There isn't a supermarket in Belltown, but there are lots of small corner grocers. And, I thought there wasn't a whole lot of retail shopping throughout most of the neighborhood. It's different from other neighborhoods because there aren't any houses. It has also gained a bit of a reputation due to the bar scene, homeless people there, and drug problems. Still, it's a good location in the city, close to downtown, close to the water, and flat, and is probably the best place for someone looking for urban living in Seattle.

Quick Belltown facts:

• Population: 10,871


• 2008 Median Condo Price: $388,250


• Cars per capita: 0.3


• 4th most walkable neighborhood in Seattle

Sources:
1. Seattle Metropolitan Real Estate
2. Walk Score: Seattle's Most Walkable Neighborhoods

Here's a video from Komo 4 News about the first service in our new church building yesterday:



Here's the article that goes with it: Article about First Church

When we first moved here, we wanted to find a church home fairly quickly so we'd be able to make some friends. We started going to First United Methodist Church of Seattle, nicknamed "First Church," which back then was located at 5th and Marion downtown. We only went to a few services in that building before the church had to move to a temporary location while a new building was being constructed. The old, historic building at 5th and Marion had sustained over $600,000 worth of damage during the 2001 Nisqually earthquake, and was beyond any affordable repair. We temporarily worshiped at the Seattle Children's Theater for almost two years. It was a decent place, but it certainly didn't feel like a church.

It's taken a lot of time, work, and money to make everything happen. Troy and I volunteered last Saturday to help move boxes and furniture to their respective rooms in the building. The moving company had moved everything into the fellowship hall, but everything had to be moved from there to the right place. It was kind of fun, I helped open boxes of hymnals and distributed them to the pews. The church provided Top Pot donuts and sandwiches and chili for lunch. The church still had another week to prepare for the first service.

Finally today, our new church building at 2nd and Denny opened its doors and we had our first worship service there. Everyone was really excited and dressed up more than usual. I'd never seen that many people at our church before. It was emotional for lots of people too. It's nice to have an actual church to go to now, instead of the secular Children's Theater. The building itself is very nice and the sanctuary has great acoustics. Everyone's singing just filled up the room, it was really nice. We sat in the balcony, which has three rows of seats. The ceiling is made of wood on the inside and has side windows for lighting.

The outside looks nice too, with red brick and titanium in the front. We also have our own parking garage, which is nice. After the service, everyone went down to the fellowship hall underneath the sanctuary and had snacks and desserts. It's very nice to have our own church building and I'm happy for First Church.

Though the days are lengthening, there's still a lot of darkness in the evenings, so I went out a couple days ago to take a few pictures. Our neighborhood is fairly quiet at night and there's not really much to photograph, but I took a few pictures that I'll share.

Looking south towards downtown from Cascade Park. The church on the left is Immanuel Lutheran Church:


Here's a nearby Indian restaurant:


The Seattle Streetcar, or SLUT (South Lake Union Trolley), as we call it:


Whole Foods Market. I'm not sure why the trees still have their lights on them:


Local movie rental:


One of several Amazon buildings under construction:

When we moved here, I was kind of amazed by all the new building construction. We could see 12 cranes from our window at one time a year and a half ago. A lot of that construction has finished, which is nice, because now the sidewalks we use most are no longer blocked.

Still, despite the downturn in the economy, there are 8 cranes we can see from our window, and construction continues. There is a lot of underused land north of downtown in the Denny Triangle area as well as in our neighborhood. As Seattle continues to grow, these areas are prime targets for development.

We spent this Saturday in Ballard. We started the day at Golden Gardens Park, which is probably the most popular beach in Seattle. It was a warm day so it was nice to hang out there for a little while and watch the numerous sailboats in the sound. We then had lunch at Ray's Cafe, which is part of Ray's Boathouse, a popular local seafood place. After that, we visited the Locks, which are a popular tourist attraction. We'd been to the Locks several times before and never stopped in the visitor's center until this time. There were lots of exhibits inside and some of it was pretty interesting. Then, after we crossed the Locks, we could see a lot of fish in the water and every minute or so one of them would jump in the air. We also saw some sea lions in the water. We had a really good time at the Locks.

We went to Fishermen's Terminal next and looked at some of the numerous boats docked there. We then headed to downtown Ballard, which has lots of shops, restaurants, and bars, many of them in buildings that date to the early days of Ballard's history before it was annexed by Seattle. Ballard has a strong scandianavian heritage, but aside from an apartment building named Leif Erikson Hall and a few flags, with the closure of Olsen's Scandinavian Foods, that heritage was less apparent. We had dinner at La Carta de Oaxaca. We don't eat much Mexican food here but have gotten several recommendations for this place. It's food from Southern Mexico, so it's not my beloved Tex-Mex but it had been too long since I'd had chips and guacamole at a restaurant. I really enjoyed my food and La Carta de Oaxaca has become one of my favorite restaurants here. After dinner we bought a cupcake before heading home.

Ballard is a pretty neat neighborhood. There's a lot to see and do there and it has a nice neighborhood feel. While it's a very dense, walkable neighborhood, it's not as young, urban, and liberal as other neighborhoods we've been to. It's not the easiest to get to from downtown or from the freeway, but otherwise I'd be interested in living there.

Quick Ballard facts:

• Population: 29,850


• 2008 Median Home Price: $419,500


• 2008 Median Condo Sales Price: $318,000


• Cars per capita: 0.7


• 13th most walkable neighborhood in Seattle

Sources:
1. Seattle Metropolitan Real Estate
2. Walk Score: Seattle's Most Walkable Neighborhoods

Troy and I went to First Hill last Saturday. We spent a few hours walking around and ate at a couple of places. First Hill is actually one of the first places we looked for apartments when we came up here for my job interviews in January 2008. Parts of it are really quiet and peaceful and it feels more like an older city because of all the established buildings and hospitals.

First we stopped at George's Sausage and Deli, a small Polish establishment, and got two sandwiches that had a ton of meat on them, probably two inches thick. I got a pastrami sandwich on sourdough and Troy got roast beef on wheat. They were pretty good, but Troy's would have been better if it didn't have so much dressing on it. George's is also a small market that carries mostly if not all Polish food. We got a toffee candy bar called "Maciek toffi" and it was really sweet. I didn't care much for it, but it was interesting to try something different.

We continued our walk around the neighborhood and walked along Pike and Pine streets, which is actually normally considered part of Capitol Hill, but is on the border between the two neighborhoods. There are lots of interesting shops and bars around Pike/Pine, including a Value Village, which is basically like Goodwill. We also stopped to sit a few times at First Hill Park. We also had salted caramel ice cream at Molly Moon's new second location in Seattle. We didn't like it that much because it actually did taste like salt, it was weird. And like we almost expected, we ran into one of our church friends while we were in First Hill.

Around 5, we stopped to eat dinner at Saba Ethiopian. I had never had Ethiopian food before and Troy had only had it once, so we were going out on a limb here. I didn't know what most of the stuff on the menu was, but we'd heard the veggie combo was good, so that's what we got to split. The only way to eat Ethiopian food is to use Injera, a spongy like flat bread to scoop up the different stews and salads. Most of it was spicy, but tasted alright. There were a few piles of lentils and lots of other food I don't know how to describe. It basically looks like that picture on Wikipedia. It was plenty of food and Troy had some of it for leftovers.

We like First Hill because it's generally a well-established quiet neighborhood, full of older buildings, making it feel more like a part of the city. There are a lot of hospitals in the area though that break up the neighborhood and some areas are a little run down, which is why I wouldn't really want to live there that much.

Quick First Hill facts:

• Population: 17,345


• 2008 Median Home Price: $321,500


• 2008 Median Condo Sales Price: $305,000


• Cars per capita: 0.3


• 3rd most walkable neighborhood in Seattle

Sources:
1. Seattle Metropolitan Real Estate
2. Walk Score: Seattle's Most Walkable Neighborhoods

I've mentioned in the past how I really like being able to walk so many places here. However, South Lake Union is surrounded by highways and busy streets that make it discouraging to walk outside the neighborhood. Though there are some good walking areas very nearby, it's often necessary to walk a few blocks around a highway or cross a busy street. We can still walk pretty easily to a lot of things that are relatively nearby, but it's just not the ideal walkable area that I'd like to live in. For an idea of what I'm talking about, look at the map below:


The green are streets that are enjoyable to walk along.
The orange are streets that are busy and not the most fun to walk along
The red are streets that really suck to walk near
The black are roadways that we physically can't cross.

On the bright side, we are a 15 minute walk from the downtown retail district, closer to Capitol Hill and Lake Union, and from our place on the east side of South Lake Union, we can walk to Seattle Center, Lower Queen Anne, Belltown, or Pike Place Market in less that 30 minutes. So, overall we're in a pretty good location for walking, but the neighborhood just needs to be more seamlessly integrated with its surroundings.