Super Bowl XLVIII
Seattle Seahawks 43,. Denver Broncos 8
East Rutherford, New Jersey
February 2, 2014
When I got the opportunity to go to Seattle in 1997 with my then girlfriend (now ex-wife), I was excited. I had only been to the West Coast once before, in early 1996, for a journalism conference in San Francisco, which itself was amazing and beautiful.
This was in the spring of 1997. Specifically, it was in mid-May, literally the day the semester ended for both of us. We both had done well, and so there was reason to celebrate!
I was excited, because a lot of my favorite musicians were from Seattle. You might remember that, at the time, Seattle had recently been the musical capital of the moment, with the whole "Seattle sound" of "grunge", which spread quickly in the music world. So, I wanted to visit some of the places of local musical lore. Wanted to see where bands like Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Sound Garden, Alice in Chains, and the Screaming Trees, for starters, had gotten their start.
But really, I just didn't know what to expect. I knew almost nothing about the city itself, other than the Space Needle, and the Kingdome, where the Seahawks and Mariners played. Oh, and I also knew that they had a pretty decent basketball team that had made it to the NBA Finals the year before, losing in six to the mighty Chicago Bulls. That was about it.
We landed at SeaTac Airport, and met my girlfriend's bother, who had moved out there earlier in the year. He was the reason that we were there. He drove us to his home, and we got our first glimpse of the city, including the Space Needle, and maybe even the Kingdome. But it was nighttime, and so our view was limited. it looked nice enough, but that was about it. Couldn't tell anything by just driving past it at night.
The next morning, however, was very different. We woke up, young enough to easily shake off the jetlag, and were getting ready to go to the local coffee shop to get some coffee. That's the other thing that I guess I knew about Seattle, was that coffee is absolutely huge there. And I would have plenty of it, as well as this other, mysterious drink that was new to me at the time, and which still reminds me a little bit of Seattle every time that I have it right up to the present day: spicy Chai tea.
In any case, the weather was not at all what I had been led to expect. Of course, Seattle has a reputation for being gray and rainy all of the time, right? But it was sunny and beautiful, in the mid-80's, with a dry warmth, believe it or not. You simply could not ask for more beautiful weather, and to this day, I don't remember ever having experienced more pleasant, agreeable weather like we had that week (that's right, all week). It was simply perfect.
And so was Seattle! I fell in love. You see, I didn't know what to expect, exactly. But given Seattle's reputation, I know that my expectations were of a grim and gritty city.
I could not have been more wrong. And that was understood literally with the first few steps that I took out the door of my girlfriend's house that morning. Again, it was beautiful and sunny, and so clear. Facing north, I looked to my right, and saw the majestic Cascade Mountain range, with snow capped peaks, looming over lush green fields. When I turned and looked left, I saw the Puget Sound, with the rugged Olympic Mountains towering over the sound. All of the mountains were capped with snow. It was stunning!
Later that week, I would see the most beautiful sunset that I have witness in my life! We were eating late (it gets dark in Seattle well after 10pm during that time of the year), and we found a place right by the water of Puget Sound. The Supersonics were on, and normally, I would be quite taken by the game. Especially at the time, being younger and far more into sports. But not on that day. The sun was setting, and it bathed the sky in pastel colors. I looked towards the snow-capped peaks of Mount Olympus, which was bathed in a pink light, and the relatively still waters of Puget Sound mirrored this scene. Breathtakingly beautiful! Man, I wish I had brought a camera with me.
In any case, we did some really cool things in the city that time. We enjoyed some cool seafood dinners, had tons of coffee, went to the San Juan Islands (specifically, Orcas Island) and camped by the waterfront, and visited the sites of the city, as well. That included, of course, the Space Needle, and it was all so very pleasant. What an incredible city!
We were lucky enough to go a few years later, as well. That would have been in the fall of 2001, but the weather was not as accommodating then. It was typically gray and rainy, like it's reputation. Still, we enjoyed ourselves.
I fell in love with Seattle in 197, and was ready to move there. I didn't, but a part of my heart seems to have remained there. Usually, anything that reminds me of the city, including the music, Chai tea, and Seattle sports teams, are enough to get me in a good mood simply thinking of them.
Now, I have never been to Denver, although I definitely want to, and have been tentatively planning to eventually, go to the Rockies. There is so much of the country - particularly the interior - that I have never seen. The pictures that I have seen of Denver are beautiful. And indeed, I will be rooting for the Broncos for this Super Bowl, mostly because I would like to see Peyton Manning get that second ring, particularly after the season that he had.
That said, I would not be unhappy if the Seahawks do manage to win. If they don't, I will hope that they make it back to the big game, and soon, and pull it off then.
As I said earlier, I love Seattle. I remember that her brother kept referring to Seattle as "Ideal America". It is a city that seemed friendly and very open-minded, which was not a small part of the attraction. I never actually did move there, but if I had, I think that I would have been happy there. The more relaxed pace would have suited me.
Now, I encountered this article about Seattle, with prominent figures in Seattle, albeit in different fields, discussing their beloved city.
Here is the link:
"Seattle Sound: Chris Cornell and Mario Batali", published by NFL.com, January 30, 2014:
http://www.nfl.com/videos/seattle-seahawks/0ap2000000320393/Seattle-Sound-Chris-Cornell-and-Mario-Batali
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