We were once again on our own for the morning of day 2 in Seattle. We spent our time at the REI store. This isn’t just any old REI store. We’re talking about the mother store. The place is huge. They even have outside bike trails to test out mountain bikes. Alas, I didn’t find a pair of Prana pants that were marked down enough. So I bought a new bag that will also hold my yoga mat.

After spending almost four hours in REI, we met Kimberly for lunch at the Public Market. We had piroshkies. Chris has been lamenting the loss of piroshkies ever since our return to Oklahoma. They are Russian pastries filled with meat or veggies. They even have dessert ones. They’re perfect on a crisp fall day. After filling up on yummy piroshkies (and buying more produce), Kimberly took us on a walking tour of downtown Seattle. She could do this for a living. Kimberly knows her architecture. She took us to all the really great buildings, but our favorite by far was the Library.

The Seattle Public Library was not only built green, but also built for the people. It is the most accessible library I have ever seen. The first floor contains all the foreign language books and the children’s section. The floor of foreign language section has passages from books written backwards in different languages running across the planks. The next level reminds you of a giant living room. In fact I think that’s what that floor is called. It contains all the magazines and movies and a coffee shop. They have one whole level of computers. Then there’s the never ending escalator that takes up through all the stacks which are also laid out in a circular pattern. So if you’re in wheel chair you don’t have to worry about elevators. It really is the most innovative building.

Later that evening I was asking Chris what his favorite part of the day was. He said it had to be the library. I agreed. I would be there all the time. I’d be there so often, I’d have to become a volunteer.