Kirby and I just got back from Seattle where we went to see her brother, Matlock, for a long weekend a few days ago. Matlock is a wonderful host and always makes sure we have a great time when we visit. He made sure that we did all the "touristy" things during our stay including going up in the Space Needle and walking around Pike Place Market.
Now both those things were wonderful experiences and I'm certainly grateful that I had the opportunity to do them. That being said, they both felt "touristy." Now I knew going into these things that they would probably feel this way. Everyone knows that when you visit Seattle you're supposed to see the city from atop the needle and you've gotta go watch some random folks toss around big, frozen fish (note - we got there in the time between when they actually set up the market and when most people arrive... so we didn't see any flying fish. Thanks jet lag).
These aren't experiences that most Seattleans have on a regular basis and I was well aware I looked like a tourist - not something that I enjoy. I can't put my finger on it, but there's something about standing out as a tourist that makes my skin crawl. Maybe I'm just overly sensitive (true) and maybe I'm lacking in self confidence (also true), but I really don't enjoy the (probably made up) feeling of locals knowing and belittling the fact that I'm a visitor to their city.
That feeling changed when I saw the museum exhibit dedicated to Dale Chihuly. if you don't know who he is, I urge you to look up his work. Chihuly is an artist who works mainly with glass blowing and is inspired greatly by nature. When Kirby and I walked in I was expecting to quickly walk through a couple exhibits and hit the road. But Chihuly's work is truly breath taking. We walked slowly, stopping often to admire the many rooms dedicated to the glass sculptures (and so Kirby could Instagram, A LOT).
I know we looked like tourists. We made several back-and-forth trips through the rooms, each dedicated to a different aspect of his sculptures. I probably could have spent the better part of our day just browsing through again and again, knowing full well that I looked like a typical out-of-towner. But I stopped caring. I was a dummy to allow what others might be thinking of how I carried myself around really cool experiences affect my enjoyment of those things. Going forward I'll work on trying to not be dumb and to just enjoy the new things around me.
ALSO, I just saw a TV commercial for the Atlanta Botanical Gardens. They are currently featuring Chihuly's work from right now until the end of October. If you've never seen his work in person, or if you already have, I highly recommend going to see the exhibit. It's awesome.
Now both those things were wonderful experiences and I'm certainly grateful that I had the opportunity to do them. That being said, they both felt "touristy." Now I knew going into these things that they would probably feel this way. Everyone knows that when you visit Seattle you're supposed to see the city from atop the needle and you've gotta go watch some random folks toss around big, frozen fish (note - we got there in the time between when they actually set up the market and when most people arrive... so we didn't see any flying fish. Thanks jet lag).
These aren't experiences that most Seattleans have on a regular basis and I was well aware I looked like a tourist - not something that I enjoy. I can't put my finger on it, but there's something about standing out as a tourist that makes my skin crawl. Maybe I'm just overly sensitive (true) and maybe I'm lacking in self confidence (also true), but I really don't enjoy the (probably made up) feeling of locals knowing and belittling the fact that I'm a visitor to their city.
That feeling changed when I saw the museum exhibit dedicated to Dale Chihuly. if you don't know who he is, I urge you to look up his work. Chihuly is an artist who works mainly with glass blowing and is inspired greatly by nature. When Kirby and I walked in I was expecting to quickly walk through a couple exhibits and hit the road. But Chihuly's work is truly breath taking. We walked slowly, stopping often to admire the many rooms dedicated to the glass sculptures (and so Kirby could Instagram, A LOT).
ALSO, I just saw a TV commercial for the Atlanta Botanical Gardens. They are currently featuring Chihuly's work from right now until the end of October. If you've never seen his work in person, or if you already have, I highly recommend going to see the exhibit. It's awesome.
Love it!! Double date to the Atl Gardens? :)
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