Seattle Holidays

The view up 5th Avenue with the Monorail on the left.

The "Bon Marche" Star and the Tree Lighting at Westlake Center.

The Paperboys at Triple Door

It’s official: we’re in The Holidays.

The Day After Thanksgiving is always a holiday in itself. That’s when the Tree Lighting happens downtown, and it seems like the whole city is celebrating. I like meeting for cocktails at the Fairmont Olympic in the afternoon. Built in 1924, this venerable old hotel used to host bear hunters visiting the northwest. Its splendid Italian Renaissance-style colonnade and vast high-ceiling lobby make it the perfect festive meeting place. The 25-foot Noble Fir, centered in the grand living-room like lobby, is probably one of the most beautifully decorated trees in the world. You can purchase one of the other, smaller contenders, artfully decorated trees up for auction, placed around the lobby.

Amidst the busy shoppers coming and going, friends meet for signature cocktails and honor the tradition. I like the Olympic Gold martini with a little infused ginger. The Glacier Blue Martini is festive and icy. Or the “Absoluley” which gets harder and harder to say.

A half hour before show time, we bundle up and walk the few blocks over to Westlake Center. There we join thousands of revelers to watch local newscasters MC the old-style variety show of musicians and carolers, and we sing along as they perform favorites like “Silver Bells” and “Here Comes Santa Claus…Vixen and Blitzen and all his reindeer, pulling on the reins...”

And then the star on the top of the old Bon Marche (now Macy’s) building starts to glow…and the rays light up one by one, and then, the crescendo, the star is lit, the Big Tree is lit, and the fireworks go off! !!!

That’s the signal to find a great place for dinner. We sample the exceptionally good food from the Wild Ginger kitchen while seeing the entertaining Vancouver-based The PaperBoys at Triple Door. What they may lack in originality, they make up for in sheer verve and enthusiasm.

It’s great to be home for the holidays!

Stay tuned: a new weekly Jam Night at 88 Keys in SoDo this coming Wednesday!