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Music, business and coffee culture in Seattle

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Seattle has been on my go to list since before I started travelling internationally. Yet even after eight previous visits to the USA I had still not made it to the Pacific Northwest. So after attending TBEX in Vancouver, I finally got the chance to visit.

It’s not that Seattle has any sites in particular that I wanted to see, and it is certainly not famous for its fair weather. What made me curious about Seattle is the music, business and coffee culture.

Seattle Sound

In the early nineties most of the music I was listening to was from Seattle. The Grunge scene (AKA the Seattle Sound) featured Soundgarden, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains and the Screaming Trees, to name but a few. These bands were heavily rotated on my CD player at the time (what is CD? I hear the kiddies ask). “What are they putting in the water in Seattle?” That was a common question asked in the music media of the day. I wanted to find out for myself, but the party was over by the time I had first arrived in the US.

Business

Seattle companies have featured prominently in my working life. My experience of working overseas is bookended by Seattle companies. My first job in London was packing boxes at Amazon.com. Then in Dublin I worked for Microsoft (from Redmond, close enough), which turned out to be my last full time job working for someone else.

Good Weather For Cafes

One thing I noticed about Seattleites is they are very apologetic about the weather to visitors. If you listen to a local you would think it is a rain swept city every day of the year. I arrived on a clear sunny afternoon, which apparently gave me a false impression of the city climate. For the next three days it was business as usual – grey skies and drizzle. I was happy to have some cool grey days for a while though. I have been in the tropics most of the year, so any chance to wear clothes without sweating was a welcome change.

Does this weather incubate a good coffee culture? There are some parallels between Seattle and Melbourne’s weather, which is also mad about coffee. I love a good cafe, so naturally I have been curious about Seattle’s cafe culture. Now while we are talking about coffee and Seattle, we can’t get around not talking about Starbucks, which was founded in Seattle. If you have had the standard Starbucks brew in the USA, it is usually the Pike Place blend. Pike Place is the the home of the oldest Starbucks (the second Starbucks store, as the first one moved). Even though there was a long list of other cafes that needed to be tried out, it seemed fitting to at least have a Pike Place blend at Pike Place.

Starbucks Original Logo
[Starbucks Original Logo]

The Pike Place store has the original brown and white Mermaid logo in homage of the original store, featuring a much racier version of the mermaid than you see today. Ahh the 70′s. Too bad Starbucks didn’t revise this logo with the logo upgrade.

If you really wanted to complete the Seattle Starbucks pilgrimage, you could visit the world headquarters. While I was in Seattle my laptop power supply died, so I had to find a electronics store fast. I ended up at an office supplies store in the redeveloped docks area (SoDo). Next door happened to be the Starbucks world headquarters. Nothing to see here, unless you are visiting every Starbucks in the world.

Starbucks Center
[Starbucks Center - The Starbucks world headquarters]

Beyond Starbucks, I found a few cafes that served real coffee in a cozy environment. In the Capitol Hill neighborhood I stumbled upon Stumptown. They serve coffee sourced from individial farms. They are part of what is called the third wave coffee movement. What I didn’t know at the time is that this cafe is part of a chain. Perhaps the coolest cafe chain on the planet. Stumptown have branches in Seattle, Portland (their home base), and New York.

Stumptown Seattle
[Stumptown Seattle]

Closer to where I was staying I found Zeitgeist Cafe.

Zeitgeist Cafe
[Zeitgeist Cafe]

Finding a good cafe near my place of abode tends to make me lazy. I stopped looking for more cafes after I found Zeitgeist. I’m okay with that, as it feels like I will be back in Seattle again. Next time I visit I’m hoping I will be a guest of another business giant of Seattle to see their aircraft factory (hint hint Boeing, my contact details are can be found from the top Nav Bar).

Flight Review: go! Mokulele – Honolulu to Kahului

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Booking my Hawaiian inter-island flight from Oahu to Maui, I discovered there isn’t alot of choice. Two airlines were offering the route from Honolulu to Kahului – Hawaiian Airlines and go! Mokulele. I booked the latter purely on price.

go!Mokulele - Honolulu
[go! Mokulele - Honolulu]

Branding – Who am I flying with?
So, go! and Mokulele Airlines were once two separate airlines that were merged to form go! Mokulele. On my ticket it said the flight was operated by Mesa Airlines, which operates flights on behalf of go! Mokulele. In addition to that, there is also Mokulele Express, operated on behalf of go! Mokulele by Mokulele Airlines. Confused yet?

Baggage Fee Blues
If there is one thing that annoys me about flying on airlines from the US is paying the baggage fee at the airport. I know most airlines are charging for bags now, but it is more convenient to put it in the booking process and pay it all at once, rather than at the airport. Mokulele offer this option, so I paid my $10 bag fee when I booked. The trouble was that when I got to Honolulu airport the booking system wasn’t working properly, so the check in attendant couldn’t verify that I had paid the fee online. I then had to pay $10 on the spot so I could board. I was assured that I could simply get my money back by calling the customer service number. I assured them that this will be anything but simple, going on previous experiences with airline call centres.

I have emailed the help line a few times now, but I have not heard back yet. The time I have wasted on chasing this baggage fee has cost me more than $10 in work time, but I am chasing this on principle. It is so sloppy and I don’t want them to get away with it.

[edit - I received my refund on 11 July 2011]
Flight Time
The flight was easy enough. At 22 minutes at was possibly the shortest commercial flight I’ve ever taken. The seat belt signs are barely turned off before they are turned on again for the descent. There is not alot to review – it’s a flying bus.

as for my baggage fee refund, I’m still waiting for that. I’ll keep you posted.

Maui: Paradise lost and found

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When sticker shock and reverse culture shock kicks in

Maui and I didn’t get off to a good start. I didn’t know what was wrong at first, but after chatting online to anyone who would listen, I was diagnosed with reverse culture shock. I didn’t think this would happen to me, as I had just come from two weeks in Melbourne and a week in Oahu. While I experienced sticker shock in Australia, I was too busy with catching up with friends to stop and think about it. Same in Oahu, where the welcome mat was rolled out by a friend of a friend and a wonderful hotel.

My first day in Maui I finally had time to myself, and sticker shock and reverse culture shock finally set in. The thing with Maui is the towns are spread out and the public transport is limited to an infrequent bus system, so to really get around and see the highlights of the island you need to hire a car or buy an expensive minibus tour. It’s a rich mans paradise, and not very backpacker friendly. There are only a few hostels on the whole island, and I was staying in a place with not a whole lot to do and very few eating options. I had a terrible “Chinese” dinner on my first night, and I couldn’t help but think I’m over this. Where’s the sticky rice?

Enter Jim

I got to the point where was looking online to see if I could move my flight early a few days to Vancouver. Then a random meeting with a local got me out of my funk. I got chatting with this stranger, and after about 5 minutes he asked what I was up to tomorrow, and next thing you know he had volunteered to tour guide me around the island.

We went to Mt Haleakala, the 10,000 feet high dormant volcano which dominates the island. It wasn’t long into the drive that Maui started to reveal its beauty to me. Jim moved from California 18 years ago and has been in love with Maui ever since. Hearing his passion for the island while seeing the natural beauty away from the towns lifted my spirits immensely. It was a win-win for both of us, as Jim hadn’t been up the volcano since he first moved out here.

Jim Mt Haleakala
[Jim at Mt Haleakala]

The next day I was taken on another tour, this time to see some of the famous Maui beaches. On the way we stopped off at Jim’s humble abode for supplies…

Jim's House
[Two Aussies in Maui]

Waterfront Maui awesomeness! In the picture you see one of his dogs, an Australian Cattle Dog. It turns out Jim is an Aussiephile. He has been to Australia many times and loves all things Australian. Lucky me.

As I am now homeless, it gets complicated when I get asked where I am from. I just say I am Australian, but if I get asked where I live, lately I have been saying Thailand. In another nice piece of synergy the day ended at a Thai restaurant with a bunch of his friends. Saying Sawasdee to the Thai staff and seeing and assorted Thai paraphernalia hanging from the walls put another spring in my already bouncy steps. I was telling the table of how much the price of these meals were in Thailand, to their gobsmacked amazement. Then – as usual with new people – I tried to explain my lifestyle of how I run a business while perpetually travelling around the world.

I have really experienced over the top hospitality during my time in Hawaii, but it gets crazier. When I got dropped off at the hostel Jim said next time I’m in Maui I should stay at the spare room at his place. Wow. I didn’t think I would be back, but maybe I will. Either way, I can leave Maui happy that my relationship with the island has redeemed itself after our rocky start.

So, thanks Jim, you are awesome!

You are awesome!
[No, YOU are awsome!]

Where I Stayed: Paradise Bay Resort – Hawaii

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The last time I came to Hawaii I stayed the entire time in Waikiki, so on this trip when I was offered the chance to stay on the windward side of Oahu, I gladly took up the offer to stay somewhere different.

Paradise Bay Resort is located near Kaneohe, about a third of the way up the east coast of the island. To get to Kaneohe you pass through the Nu’uanu Pali Tunnels, and on this side of the island the pace changes considerably.

I stayed in the water front suite looking out over Kaneohe Bay. The resort is listed as a hotel, but technically it could also be a B&B as there is a free breakfast buffet. It could also be classified as a vacation rental, as the suites are self contained units with kitchens.

Paradise Bay Resort - Hawaii
[Paradise Bay Resort - Hawaii]

After seeing where Paradise Bay was on the map, my original plan was to use this as a base to explore the rest of the island. Once I arrived that plan went out the window. I’m not a sit on the beach and read a book all day kind of guy, but give me a balcony with a view and fast wi-fi and I could linger all day. That’s what I did.

Paradise Bay Resort - My Office
[My office at Paradise Bay Resort]

I had planned to get the bus to Waimea Bay, which the bus nearby runs to. There was a slight drizzle for most of my stay, so I decided to enjoy the view instead. That was my excuse anyway. From my room you can see the Ko’olau Mountains, and the only noise I could hear was the sound of water lapping at the balconies edge and the occasional chicken.

While I was chilling out, most of the other guests were here for the water sport activities. Kaneohe Bay is the largest sheltered body of water in the Hawaiian Islands which makes it a popular area for kayaking and kiteboarding.

I asked a friend of mine who has lived in Waikiki for 15 years if he had heard of this hotel. He wasn’t even aware there were hotels on the windward side. That it is out of the way, for me, made it part of its charm.

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I stayed as a guest of Paradise Bay Resort – opinions, experiences and photos are my own.
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Hawaii: On the road again

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It’s been a while since my last update – two continents ago in fact – back in Kuala Lumpur. Since then I was back in Melbourne for 2 weeks, wrapping up loose ends from my old residency and catching up with family and friends.

As I am now officially homeless in my own homeland, it appears the ideal time to expatriate for an extended period of time. I haven’t done this since my working holiday years in the UK and Ireland. This time instead of Europe, I will be based in Southeast Asia. To get back there, I am taking the long way around, which is how I find myself in Hawaii.

Waikiki - Hawaii
[Waikiki - Hawaii]

There is a methodology to my going the long way around, apart from seeing some new places. I am using Hawaii as a stepping stone to Vancouver, where I will attend the TBEX conference for travel bloggers (yep, they have conventions for everything these days). From there it is onto Seattle and Portland, and then a couple of months in Mexico. I will also be trying out living in Mexico, renting a room in an apartment for a month. More on that later.

So I will be in Oahu and Maui for the next week, then onto meet friends, old and new, in Vancouver.

Walking the length of Broadway, New York

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New York’s Broadway is a road that runs the entire length of the island of Manhattan (and continues through to the Bronx). Everyone has heard of Broadway, but before I first visited New York I just assumed it was the name of the theatre district.


View Larger Map

Ever since I discovered this geographic curiosity I have often thought about walking from top to bottom. When I was in Newport I casually told my hosts Kevin and Brigitte of my idea while we were pouring over the legendary New York Subway map. Far from thinking I was crazy, they thought is was a worthy challenge and wanted to come as well.

Being that it was summer we got started at 6am. It is already light at this time of year in New York and it was ideal walking weather.

We arrived at 210th St station to begin the walk. It turns out we should have started at 225th station as that is just next to the Broadway Bridge on the Bronx side of the river.

James at 225th St
At 225th St on the Bronx side of the Broadway Bridge.

On the subway there was a man with a bum bag in walking shoes who didn’t look like he had any business getting the train to the Bronx at 5.45 in the morning. He got out with us and started walking down Broadway as well, so I am not alone in wanting to walk Broadway. A quick search on google shows plenty of other Broadway walkers out there. I wonder how many people a day do this walk?

The walk took 6 hours and 45 minutes, which included breakfast, lunch and coffee breaks along the way. We had no time limit on our walk so we could stop as often as we wanted. Our only rule was that we had to stay on Broadway, so any enticing shop off Broadway would have to be noted and visited some other time.

Before this walk I had never been higher than 130th St. Seeing the grand parks and buildings in the 200′s was unexpected for me and it was interesting to see such a varied cross section of neighborhoods across the island. Walking Broadway is a great way to experience Manhattan.

Walking Broadway Photo Gallery

Isham Park
Montmartre or Manhattan? Isham Park in Inwood.

Broadway and Thayer
Fort Tryon Park.

125th St Station
125th St Station.

Tom's Restaurant
Tom’s Restaurant (as seen on Seinfeld)

Ansonia Building
Grand apartment blocks of the Upper West Side (Ansonia Building).

Street Piano at Times Square
Street piano project at Times Square.

Broadway and Flatiron
The Flatiron building looks even flatter when you look straight down Broadway.

Broadway and Broome
Broadway and Broome in SoHo.

James at Number 1 Broadway
Finishing up at Number 1 Broadway.

TBEX'10 Review – New York City

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I was in New York on Jun 26/27 to attend the annual TBEX (Travel Blog Exchange) conference. I had heard much about the first one held in Chicago in 2009, so I knew I had to attend this one.

The event was attended by 300 travel bloggers and PR representatives. The friday night was a dedicated opening night party hosted by Weber Shandwick Travel & Lifestyle at the Omni Berkshire Place. The saturday and sunday were the conference days with a wide range of speakers and panel topics represented.

Gary Arndt - TBEX'10
Gary Arndt of Everything Everywhere.

The highlight of TBEX

Reflecting on my notes I would have to say that I didn’t really learn anything I didn’t already know, or that I could have found out online, from the talks. That is beside the point. The greatest highlight for me was good old fashioned networking.

I got to meet so many people that I know from my online world. It was great to be part of such an interesting community of people, especially seeing that most of us don’t get to mingle with our work peers all that often.

I knew some people just from their online avatar. I have chatted with many people who were there online. I had met a few people previously, such as Jodi Ettenberg and Gary Arndt, who I met in Bangkok earlier this year. The blogger I have known the longest online is Johnny Jet, who was as friendly and likeable as he comes across in his newsletter. I first stumbled upon his site way back in the year 2000, which is an eternity in the online world.

James Clark and Johnny Jet - TBEX'10
Yours truly and Johnny Jet.

Tacos!

I love Mexican food, so I was happy to see that a taco truck was hired by Diamond PR. It actually turned out to be an inspired move, as it was the fastest way to clear out the convention room.

Diamond PR Taco Truck
Taco Truck.

Best Networking Tool

I thought it was ironic that in a room full of tech savvy digital nomads, the most popular networking tool wasn’t an iPhone app but the humble paper business card. I recently had some made in Bangkok, not thinking I would ever be able to give them all away. I ended up getting through half of them.

TBEX'10 Business Cards
Good old fashioned business cards.

TBEX’11

At the end of the event the location for TBEX’11 was announced. And the winner is…Vancouver. I am very happy about that as I have never been there, so this will be a good excuse to go.

Thoughts on TBEX

The old adage is true that time flies when you are having fun. Everyone I spoke to agreed that the weekend wasn’t long enough. I know it is usually most practical to have conferences on weekends so you can’t really make it any longer. I would though like to see some smaller panels on specific topics, as well as places to chat.

If you are a travel blogger/travel writer and are looking to improve your game and join a great community, then you should consider coming to Vancouver in 2011. Bring plenty of business cards.