Travel Postcard: 48 hours in Seattle
(Reuters) – Got 48 hours to explore Seattle? Hope for good weather and follow the advice of a Reuters correspondent with local knowledge to help visitors get the most from a short visit.
FRIDAY
4 p.m. – Get an introduction to Seattle with a monorail ride from downtown to the Space Needle, Seattle’s iconic landmark. Ride the elevator up to the observation deck, 520 feet above the city and enjoy the breathtaking views. On a clear day, you will see a snow-capped Mount Rainier to the south and Cascade Mountains to the east. Watch the sun set over the Puget Sound and Olympic Mountain range.
6 p.m. – Swing by the Cinerama Theater and see what’s on. The 800-seat movie theatre opened in 1963 and nearly shut down in the late 1990s when Microsoft co-founder and billionaire Paul Allen opened his wallet to save it. The movies always seem larger than life on the theatre’s screen, which is 90-feet (27-metre) wide and 30-feet (9-metre) high.
8 p.m. – Grab a bite at the Dahlia Lounge (<bit.ly/1uptpu>). Acclaimed Chef Tom Douglas packs the menu with local seafood and the restaurant’s coconut cream pie is legendary. With dim lighting and deep red walls, this Seattle institution is perfect for a romantic dinner. Its romantic credentials were solidified with a cameo appearance in romantic-comedy film “Sleepless in Seattle” starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan.
10 p.m. – Head over to The Crocodile (<thecrocodile.com>) in the hip Belltown neighbourhood for a few drinks. An eclectic mix of hipsters, fashionistas and punk rockers descend upon this classic diner/rock club on the weekends to listen to live music. It is a staple of Seattle’s music scene and was the epicentre of the grunge movement in the early 1990s. Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Alice in Chains all rocked the stage at The Crocodile before becoming chart regulars.
Five weeks: It’s an eternity in the world of politics
By Christopher Doering
Five weeks: It may not be a lot of time for many people, but with the pivotal mid-term elections looming on Nov. 2 Delaware Senator Tom Carper said five weeks is an eternity for Democrats to use to turn the tide in their favor.
“Today, five weeks a lot happens. A lot of minds change in five weeks,” Carper, a self-proclaimed “optimist”, told the Reuters Washington Summit.
“What we have to do is to be able to remind people if there is some good news here in the next five weeks of what that is and get people to focus on the future.”
Carper, a former Delaware governor, said there is a slew of economic data coming out between now and the election that Democrats could embrace. He pointed to another unemployment report next week, and several more weekly jobless claims.
“If the election were held today we’d lose seats in the House, I don’t know if we’d lose the house,” the Democrat said. “We’d lose seats in the Senate. That usually happens in the off year election.”
Carper is up for reelection in 2012.
EU Commission nominee inspired by Rumsfeld
By David Brunnstrom
EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner designate Olli Rehn drew inspiration from former U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld at a hearing in the European Parliament this week.
Each prospective commissioner has to endure a three-hour grilling to check their credentials.
During Rehn’s hearing , Sharon Bowles, the British head of parliament’s Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee, outlined three areas in which the parliament expected close cooperation with Rehn, including early delivery of documents and information.
To make life easier for Rehn , she said: “You could say yes three times.”
The Finnish EU veteran, who is known to choose his words with meticulous care, showed he was not seeking a quick rush for the exit despite the length of the hearing.
“I will keep you informed of both known knowns, unknown knowns, known unknowns, but I’m not sure if I can stretch to the unknown unknowns. Because if i don’t know what is happening on some issue how can I not reveal that? That’s going to be a major challenge,” Rehn said, prompting an outburst of laughter.
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