"Sleepless in Seattle "

Living in the bay area , i always thought that its a gr8 place to live .. loads of sunny days & open land ,parks , museums & lots of Indians & Indian restaurants too .I loved it there .Then when my husband was offered a job in Seattle , i was wondering what now ??? I've heard about the Space needle & Microsoft HQ & that it rains quite a bit ! I was wondering how life would change if at all ..... It had taken me sometime to settle in the bayarea living all my life in India .

Living in Kerala for the most of my life , rain was the least of my challenges .I love the rain & has spend a number of rainy days playing in the rain , making mud piles & splashing dirt with my sister . Building paper boats, floating it in streams of rainwater & we even had boat races with our paper boats . I love the rain & it would be a good idea to let my son grow up & enjoy the rain aswell , I was eager to checkout the positives of moving to Seattle . I did a lot of research & found that its a gr8 place to settle with a family , gr8 education system , better housing costs than the bay area ( no surprises there !!) wonderful parks & loads of activities for kids & grownups , absence of state tax ,Wow! so we decided to move to Seattle ,especially after the hot & long summer in the bayarea , It was hotter than back in India .

We finally moved to Seattle the last day of October ( yeah on Halloween's ) , it was still sunny & warm in the bayarea & i had been preparing myself to get ready for the not so warm Seattle ! At the airport i found all the passengers headed Seattle had a warm winter coat handy .Ii had mine too ( the one i had used in Tahoe in winter ) & every time i tried it @ home i would pacify myself saying "its not gonna be that cold , its just rainy in Seattle " i landed at the Sea-Tac airport & a gush of cold breeze flew by & i felt really cold , but that was just the beginning . The journey from the airport to our temporary apartment ( my husband's office arranged it ) was pleasant , the roadside views were totally different ;the difference between a dessert & a forest !!!! In the bayarea every time we drove you could always find the road stretch miles ahead of us & empty or almost empty land on either sides of the freeway , but here in Seattle i felt as if i was on a Safari ( a little exaggerated expression , but that's exactly what i felt then ) The roads were twirly & huge trees on both sides of the freeway , any vacant space had breathtaking views of beautiful lakes , blue clouds touching the water's edge , beautiful fall foliage .That the first time i had ever seen it other than in photographs . It was beautiful . Settling down took more than a week .. the morning mist & clouds & huge trees let almost no light in through my window ... & i felt miserable , like a traped rat ... & dint know what to do .... but i was determined to make it work & everyday evening i took my son out for a stroll as we used to do in CA , but alas i never found anyother family around & i was wondering why !!! In CA strolls to the park in the morning & evening were the best way to bond with other parents & kids . Well i got the answer in les than a week , i was down with a flu & so was my son ....& we even had to use heaters in the house in October !!!! So gradualy i realized life is gonna be a bit different here in the Northwest .. being a beach bum o@ the arabian sea coast with warm water & moderate climate all my life , i had no idea how strong climate would impact my lifestyle . I found it vey hard for the whole of October & November ...i would desperately watch the weather channel , waiting for a sunny patch & i could run out without all the gear !!!! My son felt out of place , loosing all his friends back in CA & not able to meet anyone here ... by December i managed to get a hold over how things happen here ..... Slowly but steadily i discovered indoor activities for the winter & none was hapier than my son .
Christmas came & i was thrilled .. i'v seen snow once before in Tahoe & that was it , i'v heard someone tell me it might snow maybe a couple of times in winter . I loved it in Tahoe & was looking foward to it in Seattle ... well i was not dissapointed on this one ... It snowed on christmas day .. well that was the best part of Christmas for me that year ... That was the first time i had experienced a white christmas .... atleast thats a consolation of having to celebrate Christmas away from all our families back in India . I miss my family & especially so for my son , not being able to spend time with his grandparents , aunts & uncles & cousins . But the white Chrsitmas did heal my heart & give me a wonderful feeling & i felt @ home right here in Seattle .
Christmas was over , but the rain & cold remained , by now though i had realized that its better not to wait for a sunny day ....my son was so very upset of being alone i realized its best for him to attend day care for a few hours each day ... that was one of the best decisions we made ... he was more than happy & made friends & ate food all by himself & sang his ABC's all befor he was two .
Seattle has been home for us for two years now & we still have lots of places to discover ... & inspite of all the rain & cloudy days that drives me to depression , i love it more than CA.
Each season has its own colour & beauty , nature is @ its best here . Lots of activities for each season , waterfalls , trecking , hiking , parasailing , ice skating ,tubing , bicycling , wildlife , natural wonders all of it is less than an hour drive .
for anyone who wants to make it home , its an awsome place , just tolerate the cloudy days with a pinch of salt ... but its a good deal .... U'll never go sleepless in seattle wondering what to do next ....