Seattle, the city of grunge

Known as "The Emerald City", referring to the color of the beautiful forests that surround it, Seattle It has about seven hundred thousand inhabitants. However, its metropolitan area exceeds four million. Therefore, it is among the twenty most populated cities in United States.

It is also known for «the City of Rain» y "Alaska Gate" due to his situation. But Seattle is also famous because it music was born grunge that popularized groups like Melvins, Alice in Chains, Nirvana o Pearl Jam. We will talk about all this below, but first we are going to show you where Seattle is and what you can see there.

Where is Seattle?

Seattle is located in the extreme northwest of the United States, about one hundred and fifty kilometers from the border with Canada. It is located between the lake washington and Puget Sound Bay, which opens to the Pacific Ocean. Administratively, it is the headquarters of the king county, belonging to the state of Washington, which should not be confused with Washington DC or the District of Columbia, where the country's capital is located.

Its territory was inhabited by Native Americans until settlers from the east arrived at the beginning of the 19th century. These created the first settlements. In fact, unofficially, the group that led Seattle is considered founders of Seattle. Arthur Denny, although its name is due to another newcomer, Doc Maynard. It was he who proposed that the newborn town be named Seattle in honor of one of the Indian chiefs of the area.

As a curiosity, we will tell you that the city is famous for its coffee. In fact, the popular coffee chain Starbucks born there. Likewise, the aeronautical multinational is originally from it. Boeing, hence it has also been called "Jet City".

What to see in Seattle

The Emerald City has many attractions that you can visit. Some are impressive monuments, while in other cases they are curious places. As for the latter, we will mention Gum Wall, although it is not suitable for people with scruples.

Indeed, as you may have guessed, it is a wall covered by millions of gum next to which many tourists take photographs. It is located in the alley of Post Alley. But, apart from this, Seattle has many other places of interest, Let's show them to you.

Space needle

With this name, which we can translate as "space needle", there is a spectacular communications tower built for the Seattle General Exposition held in 1962. It has a height of 184 meters and weighs almost ten thousand tons. In addition, it was built to withstand earthquakes of up to 9,5 degrees and winds of up to 320 kilometers per hour.

In its highest part there is a plataform in which several restaurants have been installed. To get there you can use elevators that cover the distance in about forty seconds. But it is also rotating. The platform rotates 360 degrees in 47 minutes. Thanks to all this, it offers you wonderful views, not only of the city, but also of the Cascade mountain range with the Mount Rainier, Elliot Bay and the surrounding islands.

On the other hand, a kind of fair and concert venue called Seattle Centre. Likewise, this is another of the city's attractions. We refer to the monorail which serves as a means of communication between neighborhoods and was also created for the aforementioned 1962 event.

Smith Tower

Among the many skyscrapers in Seattle, this tower built in 1914 stands out. For decades, it was the tallest building in the city. West Coast, with its 148 meters high. Named after the industrial magnate Lyman Cornelius Smith, who had it built to surpass the person in charge in Tacoma by one of his rivals.

Architecturally, it responds to a neoclassical and its facades are mostly made of terracotta. In addition, at the top it had a water tank with a capacity of 38 liters that was eliminated during the restoration carried out in the nineties. Finally, the building is crowned by a glass dome more than two meters wide illuminated in blue or green.

But the most curious thing about this skyscraper was the call Chinese Room. She received that name because she was furnished by Cixi, the last empress of that nation. It stood out for its lacquered wooden ceiling and, above all, for the "wishing chair". According to tradition, whoever sat on it would get married in less than a year. And the most curious thing is that it was fulfilled in the case of Lyman Smith's daughter.

Pike Place Market

It is another of Seattle's emblematic places. It was created a hundred years ago by some farmers. They were upset by the price at which merchants were selling their products and decided to do it themselves. Currently, it occupies about 36.000 square meters spread over several floors.

It has stores selling all types of products, but continues to maintain its essence: the majority still belong to small farmers and artisans. Furthermore, it retains its caring spirit, as it has several affordable homes and organizes fundraisers to help different organizations. It is also a good place where eat something while listening to street musicians.

Pioneer Square

Among Seattle's many neighborhoods, we recommend you visit Pioneer Square, because it was the first in the city. It was created by the colonists who settled in the area. However, the elegant buildings that comprise it are later. Most of them date back to the 1890s. The previous ones burned in a terrifying fire.

But, if you want to learn more about Seattle's past, you also have the Klondike Gold Rush National Park, which transports you to the time of the gold rush. The miners passing through the city were heading to the Yukon Peninsula in Canada in search of the precious metal.

Likewise, you can know the Seattle underground. It was built at sea level, but, after the aforementioned fire, it was rebuilt at a higher level. Guided tours are still offered through areas of the primitive city.

Museums in Seattle

Along with the exhibition we just mentioned about the gold rush, you have many other museum facilities in Seattle. Among them, if you like Asian culture and martial arts, you have to visit the Wing Luke Museum, dedicated, among others, to the figure of Bruce Lee, who is buried in Lake View Cemetery.

It is also very interesting Aviation Museum. We have already told you that the Emerald City is closely linked to this means of transportation, since the Boeing company was born there. For this reason, there may be no better place to install a museum dedicated to aeronautics. The one in Seattle has, among its main attractions, a replica of the first airplane of the wright brothers, a Concorde, the first Boeing 747 or the presidential Kennedy.

Finally, other museums in the city are the Burke of Natural History and Culture, of art, Wooden Boat Center o Communications. But also the Daybreak Star, about the Native Americans of the area; he Nordic Heritage or of the Metropolitan Police. All this without forgetting facilities such as Opera, the Fifth Avenue Theater or the singular Experience Music Project, work of Frank Gehry

Seattle, birthplace of grunge

But, when talking to you about the Rain City, we must also talk about the music grunge, which was born there in the early nineties of the last century. In fact, this pioneering subgenre of alternative rock is also known as "Seattle sound".

It was an independent label of the city, sub pop, who gave the alternative to groups like Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Soundgarden o Alice in Chains. With her they recorded her first albums. But there would be two of them, specifically Nevermind from Nirvana and This of Pearl Jam who would spread the style throughout the world.

Among the characteristics of grunge there are the catchy melodies created by the voice, but also by distorted and energetic guitars and, above all, by the drums. Likewise, the lyrics are disenchanted and melancholic. Eventually, the popularity of this movement declined at the beginning of the new century, although it continues to have followers around the world. Furthermore, he had a fundamental role in the development of later musical trends such as, for example, the new alternative rock.

Weather in Seattle

As you may have deduced from the nickname Rain City, this is common in Seattle. However, it has something of a cliché, since it receives rainfall of 970mm per year. It is a high number, but, for example, New York has 1200 mm. Its fame is due more to the fact that it is scarce, but continuous, rain than to the intensity of the rainfall.

Seattle's climate is sub-oceanic and therefore presents moderate temperatures. Winters are mild, with minimums that rarely drop below –2 degrees Celsius at night. For its part, summers are not too hot, but they are pleasant and sunny, with maximum temperatures around 23 degrees. The nearby bay of Puget Sound moderates temperatures. Finally, snow is very scarce.

In conclusion, we have shown you what you can see and do in Seattle, the city of grunge. As is the case with other large cities in United States as San Francisco, Dallas y New York, has a lot to offer you. Come and meet her.