Stadium tours and sock hunts

After all, the first alarm went off at 7:30 a.m. Which was definitely too soon after this short night. The snorers, yes they found their way back to the hotel, no movement. So I set the alarm for 7:45 a.m. and nodded off again. Then, shower and get ready. The march to Lumen Field was scheduled for 9:15 a.m. Jörg wasn't that fit, Andi and I set off and actually wanted to have some breakfast beforehand. After looking at the clock, 8:40 a.m., we decided to test The Bookstore Bar in our hotel. There was coffee, but no Kaba for me😭 Somehow time ran out so I skipped breakfast and settled for an orange juice. Andi ordered Egg Benedict, which the nice man from an Asian country forgot about for the time being. Oh, solly... Then I canceled everything, but less than a minute later he came around the corner with two plates, of which Andi got one. Surely someone else had to wait for their breakfast🤭 Andi then emptied his plate in unison, because the SportFanReisen travel group was ready to leave. Jörg had also come downstairs in the meantime, so let's go. Lumen Field is just 10 minutes from our hotel. Lumen Field is a multi-purpose arena and the home stadium of the Seattle Seahawks. It is said to be the 2nd loudest arena in the NFL. It was specially designed so that the sound works its way up and is emitted like a megaphone. We were a small group of 30 people, but even our echo was heard well😅 36,000 spectators fit in the upper tier alone. For comparison, the Seattle Mariners baseball stadium right next door can accommodate a total of 47,000. 72,000 people can watch a Seahawks NFL game in the stadium. Cool. The tour itself was entertaining and interesting. We were allowed to go to the highest point of the arena, into the press room and locker room. Unfortunately there was no grass left. They're already busy converting down there for the 2026 World Cup. 3 games for sure, maybe even 4 games should take place here in Lumen Field.
After the tour, we slowly but surely headed towards the Space Needle. The next stadium tour was in the Climate Pledge Arena at 1:30 p.m. Our tour guides gave them to us for Christmas. Another cool action. We walked the route to see a bit of Seattle and because we wanted to see where we could catch up on breakfast. Then we went to Taco del Mar for lunch. A Mexican subway, you could say. It was quite okay. Then continue towards the stadium. However, we arrived at the arena about three quarters of an hour early. To pass the time we went to the Krakenshop in the Armory. A food & event hall. Just had a quick drink and time was up. In the arena we were divided into 3 groups and off we went. As already mentioned, the arena is mega. Everything about what they do and how sustainability is the focus is really good. For example, they have their own huge cistern, collect rainwater and are therefore the only stadium in the world (or so they claimed, the NHL in any case) that makes their ice from natural water. Or our tickets for the tour. Recycled paper into which flower seeds have been planted. That means I can plant them at home and get some nice wildflowers or the drug dog will take my suitcase out of circulation when I re-enter the country🤣
Regarding the question of why they have 2 video cubes instead of one large one, when converting the hall, the old hall roof, which is a listed building, should be retained. For this purpose, one large cube was not structurally feasible, so two “small” ones. The large window fronts are also from the 1960s. The windows were carefully restored and reinserted. In short, the arena is really great and fun.
Here, too, as at Lumen Field, we were allowed to go to the press bridge, the room where the press conference takes place after the game, to a few suites (unfortunately we weren't allowed to take pictures in most of them), to the Kraken area and to have a look throw the cabin (photos, strictly forbidden. I stole the ones I have here from Jürgen. He just acted stupid, he didn't understand English and the cheese was eaten🤣 Jürgen, I hope you don't take away the photo theft from me bad😅) and into the Storms' dressing room (WMBA team). A suite was amazing. There was a complete recording studio in there. Beyonce, Ed Sheeran and many more have already "played" there, which was then broadcast on a special thing from Amazon. Of course, unfortunately no photos here either. We were allowed to go through the tunnel that takes the players from the locker room to the ice and a lot more. If you are interested in ice hockey and are in the area, take a tour. Recently there has also been a VIP tour, where you can see even more areas. I liked it and thanks again to our tour guides, really a great gift.
After the tour I kept mentioning that the view from the Space Needle was absolutely amazing😇 I think after the 3rd or 4th time the gentlemen said: that's good, we're going up. Quickly booked tickets at GetyourGuide and off we went. The elevator to the top is outside the tower with nice large windows. I felt a bit uneasy for a moment, but I had to get through it. Once at the top, go straight around. What's cool is you walk around the outside of the tower. The sun still came through and the visibility was once again wow. There is a small snack bar and a slightly larger drinks bar. I got a muffin, the gentlemen treated themselves to something to drink and unwinded and enjoyed the view. A while later I ventured down one floor. Continuous rotating glass base. Phew😅 But I was up for it and walked a few steps too. I don't want to know what it looked like at the beginning, but I did it💪🏼 There is also a restaurant similar to the one in the Berlin TV tower. However, it wasn't interesting to us at the moment. We took the monorail back down to the last stop. This one was downtown in a department store. Here I took the opportunity to look for socks again. For better understanding, I was prepared for cold weather on this trip. At least -10 °. For this reason, I bought thermal socks in advance and packed them all. Well, I needed it for 3 days. Banff, for example. I explained to the gentlemen non-stop how nice and warm they were and what a good investment it was. The only difference is that they are way too warm here at +10° and all the thin socks have been used up by now🙄 At least Andi was kind enough to lend me a pair of his for today, but we still have 2 days ahead of us. Unfortunately the sock search wasn't successful 🙄 Next attempt at Target, but no success here either. Since everyone was slowly but surely feeling slightly hungry, Andi googled for a location. The choice is much on Buckley's Pub in Belltown. We got there at 5:50 p.m. and the nice cellar immediately said: it's happy hour until 6 p.m. Perfect timing I would say, drinks and food for half the price, what more could you want. Plus, the food was really tasty. Buckley's is a sports bar, but a really pleasant one. It was full, but not as loud as it was/is everywhere else here. We were able to have a normal conversation without yelling at each other. Almost every table had its own TV and upon request we could watch the Oilers game. Since it was a long day with a few steps and the night before was far too short, we found our way back to the hotel before 11 p.m. today. I actually wanted to write the blog straight away, but after less than 4 sentences it was over. Just tired. Well, you just had to wait a little longer 😉 I also have to say, writing the blog here on a “normal” trip, no problem, but with 2 over-motivated gentlemen who still want to go on tour every evening (I could stay in the room, but I don't want to either😅), a bit difficult.

Annotation:
1. Andi is now a famous influencer. Philipp Grubauer reposted his story. With the picture that I made sure that it was created😉 So I am now Andi's manager. For autographs or other requests, please write to me.

2. see the last picture, this is what it looks like if you still have to wash for the next few days because you only packed nice warm thermal socks🙄