<p>Oh don’t park in the office complex next to the canal across from SPU-
I was read the riot act by a maintenance worker for parking there ( I had an appt in the complex)-But it made my day- he thought I was a college student! :)</p>
<p>EK, great suggestions! There is a Flexcar place in Fremont. Lots of folks ride their bikes and even razor scooters, and Seattle is striving to become even more bike-friendly (slowly but surely). UW is 20-30 min walking distance from Fremont, and there are neat food stops on the way (a pizza tavern and Ivar’s smokehouse).</p>
<p>I love that vintage shop! We used to stop there on our way back from our coffee break and browse the cool junk they always have in abundance!</p>
<p>EK, I used to work in that business complex. Yes, they hate when someone parks there. On weekends, they do not mind as much.</p>
<p>My friend’s D is a junior at SPU. She does not have a car. She absolutely loves the school. She is also from Ca.</p>
<p>I don’t get real excited about Mexican food- for about 12 years, the only restaurant we could go to with younger D, was Azteca, which is in the heavy cheese & sauce mode-although it is edible-however, I was able to break her out of it, when she tagged along with older D and I to India Bistro in Ballard.
I told her she didn’t have to eat anything- and it was way too much for us to finish- we were going to take it home- but younger D decided to try it and she practically licked the bowls!
<a href=“http://www.yelp.com/biz/india-bistro-seattle[/url]”>http://www.yelp.com/biz/india-bistro-seattle</a></p>
<p>Also lots of inexpensive Asian food in Seattle-
at Jai Thai in Fremont, we get the house special fried rice & Drunken noodle with prawn- many good Pho places too.</p>
<p>When you are in Ballard- check out the Ecoroof on the Ballard library
<a href=“http://www.seattle.gov/dpd/GreenBuilding/OurProgram/Resources/TechnicalBriefs/DPDS_009485.asp[/url]”>An error has occurred - Seattle Department of Planning and Development;
<p>The Central library downtown is also - * interesting* and I am ok with the exterior, but the interior is not very user friendly IMO- worth touring if you are downtown though
<a href=“http://www.spl.org/images/slideshow/NewCentralSlideshow.asp[/url]”>http://www.spl.org/images/slideshow/NewCentralSlideshow.asp</a></p>
<p>Attend some SPU sporting events. The little school with alot of support for their atheletic teams both men and women. It would be a good chance to see what she’s getting into. </p>
<p>Lots to see and do as mentioned above, but take the time to hang where the students hang…</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parent-cafe/319817-seattle-ideas.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parent-cafe/319817-seattle-ideas.html</a></p>
<p>This thread ran last spring and I got a lot of good ideas from it for my trip to Seattle last summer. Wonderful city.</p>
<p>I would be interested in hearing her feel for the political climate of SPU. The kids I know who go there won’t be supporting Obama.</p>
<p>I know that SPU is Methodist and a while ago didn’t allow students to attend dances, but Seattle in general is pretty liberal</p>
<p><a href=“http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/336729_common25.html[/url]”>http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/336729_common25.html</a></p>
<p>( note the ministers topic of the gospel of hope according to Bruce Springsteen- Bruuce as you may know- is NOT a republican)</p>
<p>Some SPU students apparently will be supporting Obama 
<a href=“http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/group/SPUstudentsfor08ama[/url]”>http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/group/SPUstudentsfor08ama</a></p>
<p>mom60, she’s very comfortable hanging out with more conservative people; most of her friends at school and church won’t be voting for Obama either. She’s not super political, unlike her older brother, but is interested in social justice issues and furthering her faith while earning her degree(s). SPU seems to welcome kids of all faiths, so I don’t think it will be stifling for her to support a different candidate than the majority. But it’s definitely something I will ask her to look for when she visits, because I could be wrong. (They do have a Young Democrats Club though). </p>
<p>thanks altmom for the link… lots of good stuff.</p>
<p>My DDs and I would visit Gparents on QAnne every year. We walked to QA Ave shops. The bus service is great to downtown.</p>
<p>It was on QA that my DDs discovered that SPU girls (basketball team?) wore pajama pants to get coffee in th AM. DDs came home and started the trend in our town for MS and HS girls.</p>
<p>Check out the 5 Spot on Queen Anne. Great food… (Trivia: the 5 Spot menu is on the fridge at Meredith’s house on “Grey’s Anatomy”)</p>
<p>from EK’s link:</p>
<p>"And an associate professor of Christian ministry, Jeff Keuss, gave a presentation called “the gospel of hope according to Bruce Springsteen,” which he admitted might have been “flying the '80s flag pretty high.”</p>
<p>:D that quote cracked me up. I was a huge Springsteen fan in high school!</p>
<p>I’ll second the idea of the ferry trip to Bremerton. It’s the essential Seattle experience. Make sure the return leg is in the evening, just after sunset, so you can see the city at night across the Sound.</p>
<p>If they want to get out of town on Saturday, try a trip to Mt. St. Helens (assuming seasonal access). Worth every mile.</p>
<p>Mt. Saint Helens visitor center closed for good this fall - not enough $$ to keep it operational and up to date :(</p>
<p>If they do get tired of the urban jungle (which I highly doubt), a trip to Snoqualmie Falls might work as a good 1/2 day adventure.</p>
<p>We kind of soured on SPU back in the day. We didn’t care for the “required” bible study groups aspects of college. While we have our beliefs and values, this clashed with ours in the sense that we don’t care for any one or group that “requires” us to study the bible. Not our bag.</p>
<p>As far as we know, there are curriculum requirements but not study group or chapel requirements. Maybe things have changed since you looked into it. At any rate, the college matches up with D’s level of faith commitment and gives her the freedom to pursue it as much or as little as she likes (and pathways to do so). And Seattle seems like a great place to go to school.</p>
<p>Absolutely do not miss this:
<a href=“http://www.spl.org/default.asp?pageID=branch_central_features&branchID=1&cid=1187027433339[/url]”>http://www.spl.org/default.asp?pageID=branch_central_features&branchID=1&cid=1187027433339</a>
perfect for your daughter’s art and granola interests the tour is a must I can’t believe others did not mention this state of the art facility what a coup for Seattle</p>
<p>“Maybe things have changed since you looked into it”</p>
<p>five years ago. Not for us, maybe they have changed a bit. Other local schools didn’t make it a requirement. Maybe SPU took note. </p>
<p>While I say this, I must also add, every person I know (and I know alot) that attended SPU are people of good character and exceptionally nice people. While that aspect turned us off when we were searching schools, it certainly doesn’t mean there aren’t great people there.</p>
<p>bengleitz I did post a link to the slide show tour of the Central library # 24 - and I agree the exterior is pretty cool, but the interior is a PITA- you really can’t get around.</p>
<p>However- with the internets- you can even order books from home ( it does take weeks to get from one library to another sometimes though)</p>
<p>There are still extremely conservative bits in this area- awhile ago as I mentioned SPU students weren’t allowed to hold dances & of course our " beloved" ( sic) minister Ken Hutcherson & the neighborhood church Mars Hill gives me the heebie jeebies.</p>
<p>I appreciate that SPU is still open to discourse however- I think that is what college should be all about.
[Gay</a> rights tour stops at Seattle Pacific University](<a href=“http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/310812_spu09.html]Gay”>http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/310812_spu09.html)</p>
<p>Update: </p>
<p>Thank you to everyone for your ideas. I compiled a big list and had H print out all the links to take with them on their trip. They landed in Seattle today around 11:30, ate a late breakfast at the iHop near the airport, drove to the hotel and then took off for some fun on foot. They went up the Space Needle and saw the beautiful view just as the grey skies and drizzle were clearing. Then they went to the Music Experience, followed by a trip to the Science Fiction museum and then followed the monorail down 5th Street to Pike’s Place, then over to Elliot’s Books and then back to Pike’s to have dinner at a French restaurant (Maximillien?). D had seen a monkfish at Pike’s and so she ordered it for dinner and loved it. H absolutely LOVED the bookstore; he was in heaven, and D couldn’t stop raving about everything she’d seen today… especially the shopping at Pike’s. </p>
<p>Tomorrow they visit SPU, but so far D is super impressed with Seattle and said the people are really friendly and there are espresso shops on every corner. They plan to explore the Fremont area after the university tomorrow. </p>
<p>:)</p>
<p>I’m glad they are enjoying their trip. Just to let you know, if they also want to visit Louvre this weekend, they have a chance to do so without leaving Seattle:</p>
<p>[Seattle</a> Art Museum: Roman Art from the Louvre](<a href=“http://www.seattleartmuseum.org/exhibit/interactives/rome/rome.asp]Seattle”>http://www.seattleartmuseum.org/exhibit/interactives/rome/rome.asp)</p>
<p>:)</p>