First Cape Town, then Beirut and now Seattle: I seem to fall in love with cities instead of falling in love with men. Well, at least they are more reliable than  most men (Won’t leave you, won’t cheat on you, won’t let you down).  Oh, and another good thing is that you can basically be in love with more than one without having to choose.

Well, at the moment Seattle is the one I am having a serious crush on. It hit me out of nowhere. Love at first sight. Apparently, Seattle having more rainy days than sunny days, it must have been love at first sight the other way around too. How else must I interpret 3 sunny and unusually mild days in a row – beginning of February??? So, my introduction to this city could have not been any better.

Seattle and I are basically a match made in heaven: I love coffee – Seattle is based on coffee! I mean, I have never seen so many coffee shops in a city than in Seattle. Starbucks first coffee shop was opened at Pike Place Market! Still keeping the original look from 1972 and even the logo is still the old one. At least I can say, that I have been in any coffee addict’s heaven!

Second match point: Pike Place Market. I love markets. Cherries in chocolate, fresh fish (can be packed freshly to survive up to 48 hours of travelling), all sorts of fruits and of course gifts in all varieties. There is nothing more relaxing for me than walking over a market with my take away coffee in my hand. Perfect to do so in Seattle.

Third match point: Walking. At least on sunny days, walking through town is just delightful. I never thought I’d say that, but living in Jo’burg where no one who owns a car ever walks (not even to go to the shop around the corner), I really appreciate the freedom of walking through town. And so we walked… from the Waterfront all the way to Lake Union (and back). At Lake Union I had the pleasure of going onboard a seaplane and take a flight over the city – which was just amazing (so a big THANK YOU goes out to my pilot).

Fourth match point: Delicious food. Since Seattle is a coastal town fresh seafood of all sorts can be found anywhere. Not to miss the vast variety of oysters (all cultivated around Seattle of course).

I only spent 48 hours in Seattle.. just enough to give me a glimpse into the character of this city and enough to give me appetite for more. I enjoyed the laid-back atmosphere, the coffee-culture, the architecture of downtown and the sneak-preview I had into Capitol Hill…

My verdict: I’ve spent the best 48 hours in a very long time in a city that needs to be explored more (maybe I should look for a job at Microsoft or Boeing). I have enjoyed great company and got spoilt rotten.  33 hours in the plane to spend 48 in Seattle were more than worth it!