We met with Petra Heußner-Walker for a German passport matter and she was extremely kind and…read moreprofessional. We called her number to set an appointment. She called us back on the same day and set an appointment for us (which was about two weeks later). Her meeting location was a nice location, easy to find in Kirkland. The appointment started on time and lasted about 20 minutes. Petra and her coworker were very kind, efficient and took absolute care of us. When we left, she gave us a few things for our children (flags, books). She also gave us a list of education resources for our children (as it turns out, there is an after school program for our children in Bellevue) that would be great for our children. If you are a German citizen in the Seattle area, save yourself a trip to the consulate in San Francisco.

I am a group travel leader who has depended on Cambodia's Seattle Consulate for two years. I've…read morelearned that the honorable Consular Huoth is an agreeable person who has operated this small office for over a decade. He personally answers his phone and processes visas. In the weeks before the busy winter tourist season, the normally quick turn around for visas becomes backlogged and is made worse when people phone daily due to their anxiety. In my experience, people will be happier and the process will work better with a bit of patience. Phone calls will not cause things to go faster. Consular Huoth has been doing this for years and can be trusted.

Nihonmachi, or Japantown, was once a vibrant and thriving community in Seattle. When the Executive…read moreOrder 9066 was written in 1942, it forever changed the people and the places within this community and beyond. Nihonmachi in Seattle never fully recovered. The Nihonmachi Alley installed new murals to officially mark its history with a grand opening on August 25, 2018. Sketches of Kokusai Theatre, Maneki Restaurant, Sagamiya Confectionary, and Uwajimaya Grocers by artist Amy Nikaitani now mark one wall to remember these longest running businesses in the area. The fence of Chiyo's Garden are wooden pieces at different heights with numbers. Those numbers are the rise and fall of the Japanese population in the area. Since its original grand opening, additional artwork has been added to the opposite wall. Being an official historical site, the National Park Service has a webpage for this alley. https://www.nps.gov/places/nihonmachi-alley-5.htm The Wing Luke Museum invites visitors to come and remember history - "The murals in Nihonmachi Alley are a collaborative effort between Friends of Japantown and local Japanese artist Amy Nikaitani. In this space, history meets art to invite you to explore the often unseen community treasures in Japantown: Chiyo's Garden, Danny Woo Community Garden and Kobe Terrace." My ratings of this alley vary depending on the audience. 2 Stars - If you are purposely coming here expecting ornate decorations, this alley will be a disappointment. 3 Stars - If you expect to learn a few things but doesn't feel a connection. 4 Stars - If this community is meaningful and/or history matters to you, this alley will serve as a beacon to the past. 5 Stars - If you are/were personally affected or know someone close to you that were affected by Executive Order 9066, this alley will have a "about time" vibe to finally give recognition to what was wiped away and to bring forward a history that needs to be "never forget" and "never again".

- Basic CPR class -…read more This is possibly the cheapest way to learn CPR with some practice on the mannequin. It was $10 per person, but they host small classes with a limit of 10 people, so it's harder to get in and you usually have to register ahead of time. This class is unlikely to be sufficient for work requirement and their certificate doesn't seem official, but it's a good way to learn CPR and abdominal thrusts. It takes about 1.5 hours and you will also learn how to operate an AED as well. There are plenty of parking and it's easy to find the building and the classroom with the map they sent you via email before class.

The Spokane Street Bridge runs over Harbor Island and the Duwamish River/Waterway roughly parallel…read moreto the West Seattle Bridge. These two bridges are separate bridges, with the Spokane Street Bridge being the shorter of the two and the West Seattle Bridge being the taller of the two. Some bridges are stacked bridges meaning they have multiple decks/layers (typically two in my experience) for vehicles to traverse, one upper deck and one lower deck. The Spokane Street Bridge and West Seattle Bridge are not the stacked type of bridge instead they are distinct bridges running alongside each other. Southwest Spokane Street runs across the Spokane Street Bridge and is a fun driving experience especially at night. There are stoplights at each end of the bridge, something to keep in mind if you like to speed as traffic can get a bit backed up at these lights. Walking the bridge is also a fun adventure especially now that the West Seattle Bridge is temporarily closed for repairs. The platforms being utilized by workers to aid in making repairs to the West Seattle Bridge are easily visible from the walking/biking trail, the West Seattle Bridge Trail, on the Spokane Street Bridge. If you come during the day when repairs are a work in progress it is possible to see the workers and equipment being actively used occasionally. Stairways on both sides of the Duwamish River take one down to the ground below. I explored the stairway down from the bridge on the west side of Harbor Island and found a sidewalk that I used to reach Terminal 18 Park. Clean and well maintained bridge in my experience with some lovely views of the Port of Seattle and the West Seattle Bridge.

Back in the 70's prior to cable TV J.P. Patches ruled the airwaves from the City Dump @ KIRO TV in…read moreSeattle every morning. Now I watched daily before walking to school. This statue pays tribute to the legend or ICON named JP Patches and his morning creation. I only wish a Boris S Wort " Second Meanest Man in The World" statute was erected close by cause he was an awesome Super Villain of Seattle. Gertrude which was JP's sidekick / girlfriend and telephone operator is on the other side of the statue. For those who grew up in Seattle and weee Patches Pals we all know what an inspiration JP PATCHES was to the community. His philanthropic charity's lived on even after the show eneded in the 80's. You could see him at many Seattle events including the Seafair Parade on occasion or even a birthday party for a fee. This statue is a must for all fans to pay respect to and get one last photo with a Seattle Icon. They don't make people like this anymore and I'm proud to still be a patches pal. Thanks JP you were the best and whomever created the statue you're amazing.

Seattle's Favorite Clown [Seattle WA]…read more Just across the street from the Berlin Wall marker is this larger than life 6-ft tall bronze sculpture of JP Patches and his girlfriend, Gertrude... their arms hooked while pulling each other in opposite directions. The statue is in an open space located in a Fremont neighborhood in Seattle. The official name of the statue is "Late for the Interurban." The statues were created with great detail. It even has hooks on J.P. Patches' famous button-filled jacket so visitors can hang buttons on it. I've not seen a single button placed on the hooks, though, so if you come and visit leave a button on the jacket. ツ It also includes an ICU2TV set (prop used on the program to make it look like the characters were watching you back) The show characters were played by Chris Wedes (Patches) and Bob Newman (Gertrude). Review #3620

Lady Liberty on Alki Beach looks North to The Mountains & Puget Sound and if you're walking then…read morebeach stop by and pledge your allegiance . I've walked by many a-times and paid my respects for LIFE , LIBERTY & PURSUIT of HAPPINESS! Freedom isn't cheap and this figurine reminds of that.

We were able to get new visas in time for emergency travel within 24 hours of our flight. Mr…read more Aashray Mehta and his team provided our family with incredible service on such short notice with expired visas. We were able to complete paperwork for new visas, receive our visas within hours of our flight, and literally travel on day of. Mr. Mehta's implementation of an emergency service hotline for emergency travel service proved truly a life-saver. Mr. Mehta was very kind, compassionate, knowledgeable, and patient. He was understanding of the duress our family was going through. He and his team made the process super painless. This shows the agency's desire to support the needs of its community. We were so grateful we were able to get our visas and travel without incident. Thank you!

Talk about crying to deaf ears! Reaching out to the consulate feels like sending a message in a…read morebottle across the ocean--except the bottle never lands anywhere. Sent an email on August 8th, just a simple, time-sensitive question about OCI renewal. The website didn't have the answer, so I thought, 'Why not ask the consulate directly?' Silly me! No response. Tried again on August 13th, pinged two email addresses this time. Nada. Added a third email on August 19th, hoping maybe the third time's the charm. Nope. It's like I'm emailing into the void! At this point, I'd settle for an auto-reply, just some sign of life. But nope--just crickets. It's 2024, but apparently, some things never change in the world of work culture. Disappointed doesn't even cover it!