Salmon in Seattle!

We left Vancouver and were searched by customs. Apparently two cross country travelers with no jobs are suspicious, and we were interrogated. The whole way to Seattle, Mike was nervous because in his words "I dont really like Salmon" and we were heading to the Martin's where John is a "big mahoff" in the fishing industry and so he knew Salmon was surely going to be on the menu and he was stressed. I told him not to worry and that he had never had salmon like John's Salmon...but he was worried.

So we arrived to Seattle around 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, July 2, 2005 and were greeted at the door by John Martin, ready to pour us a glass of wine and help us to chill our heels. It was a great arrival! We caught up on all the Martin goings-on, got a tour of their lovely house right off Lake Washington, and had a few glasses of very nice red wine. Then came the King Salmon! John threw the Salmon on the grill and took some time to explain to Mike the different varieties. He told us that it was likely that Mike had never had King Salmon, especially really fresh King Salmon because it was a California and Alaska variety mostly, and most of the Salmon we have had on the east is a more oily variety. Anyhow, Mike took on taste of the Salmon and said "well that isn't like any other Salmon I have had". Through the course of dinner, he went back for seconds, and then thirds. John was happy that he had added another Salmon eater to the planet, and Mike was happy to finally taste for himself and understand how good Salmon can be. I am happy because now I know that Mike will be attempting to recreate that delicious salmon someday soon.

The next day, we went to see the neighborhood of Fremont and the fish ladders and locks and ran into so many farmers markets and little festivals. We had a ball. We finished the visit with a gorgeous dinner at John's Country Club and then departed on Monday (the 4th) for the Olympic National Park. This is a photo of Mike and John Martin after dinner, at John and Robin's home in Seattle.