Seattle Walking Tour

July 8, 2009

The weather couldn’t be more perfect heading out for our 3-day weekend. I live in a suburb of Portland metro where rain is as customary to the locals as sunshine is to oranges in Florida. So, the sunrise was a beautiful beginning of what promised to be a great trip on the horizon. Seattle is about 2.5 hours north of Portland if you drive up the 5 Interstate, so timing on the road was important to avoid getting stuck in traffic on the 4th of July weekend. We hit the road in mid-afternoon after a trip to the mall to buy some last minute ‘walking’ necessities. I’m still not sure why I bought the extremely over-sized floppy hat (protection from UV rays??) but it seemed fashionable at the time (that eventually just became part of a hilarious walking pain in the a** to carry).

Arriving in Seattle we checked into the Monaco Hotel. The hotel was dubbed 4-star online, so our expectations were high. One of the intriguing marketing features of the hotel is that the manager actually goes on morning fitness runs and invites the guests to run along. This is a total advantage to folks who don’t want to run in unfamiliar territory since locals know the best trails and shortcuts in town. We pulled up to the valet at about 3′ish and from that moment on — little was I to know that Seattle was soon to became one of my fav spots to visit.

After checking in we had to freshen up and of course walk the town. Because of our exemplary surroundings I fell into the terrible trap of wearing my high heel fashion shoes to walk. You see, I had to match my new halter dress and floppy hat so I chose 4″ high, hemp, strappy sandle shoes. Please know that I should have known better – but the ‘woman’ in me sometimes refuses to be practical over glamorous. I am a pedorthist, I have been working in the heart of the footwear industry for over ten years and 8 of those years directly in foot comfort products. I KNEW BETTER.

As we headed out on our first afternoon stroll to find a location for an early dinner, my walking companion Al (who thoroughly does his research) informed me that Seattle was much like San Francisco. Well, I have never been to San Francisco so I didn’t realize he was referring to rolling hills and upgrades that may have been Mt. Everest when you’re wearing fashion high heels. It was actually a hell of a workout as we walked up hill, him at ease in his comfort Johnston and Murphy walking loafers – do you sense jealousy at this point? During that trek up the hill, I found myself repeating things like, “this is good for you, your butt will get firm”, “no pain, no gain”, “wow, I can feel my calves”, and of course, “I hope I don’t fall and sprain my ankle.” I realized that after all of my years of research and sharing advice with people around the world on the type of shoes one should wear to walk, that as practical as I can be, I have a very impractical, impulsive side. The side that just wants to have fun, look sexy and feel good. I guess killer fashion shoes will never go out of season despite warnings from pedorthists!

Al chose a Northern Italian restaurant named Tulio. The menu offered a variety of local seafood (Seattle is well-known for having some of the best catch of the day) and gourmet pasta dishes. The service was as superb as the cuisine. For a couple of hours, I was able to kick my shoes off (under the table of course) and forget about my throbbing feet and truly enjoy the rich succulent flavors of Seattle — the presentation, textures, aromas and service will be remembered for a lifetime.

The walk downhill wasn’t nearly as bad. It may have been the cocktails (-: But nevertheless, the sun was setting, a cool breeze was blowing and our first ‘walk’ in Seattle could not be spoiled by my killer shoes. That first night I fell in love with Seattle.

Day two of the tour will be posted tomorrow night. Thanks for reading.