Note: This post was written last week during a particularly boring conference session.I'm in Seattle attending a conference. Seattle's cool. I like it. Having been to a number of convention centers, I have to say so far Seattle's facilities and amenities top the list. The downtown area is vibrant with lots of stores, restaurants and hotels. It's close to the waterfront with its attractive and enticing Public Market and the original Starbucks. (*see below)
Starbucks. I like Starbucks. I've mentioned previously my proclivity to seek out Starbucks when I travel. My biggest disappointment when visiting China was our inability to find the Starbucks in the Forbidden City.
I am frequently made to feel that my affinity for Starbucks is shameful. Oftentimes, it's implied as in Seattle's Rough Guide when it states that the original Starbucks' interior is the same as every other Starbucks (not true). Other times, it's explicit such as when the friend who styles himself as a coffee aficionado sneers and looks down his nose at the suggestion we stop by Starbucks for our caffeine fix.
When traveling far afield, it is comforting to stop in a Starbucks. I'm not saying I'm going to spend all my time in Seoul in Starbucks and then claim to have seen Seoul. But it certainly was interesting to see how the Seoul college students commandeer their local Starbucks as a study hall/student center, much more so than any other Starbucks I've visited.
I'm staying at the Sheraton Seattle which is the conference hotel which is why I chose it. Wishing, however, that I had stayed at the Grand Hyatt. It's equidistant to the Convention Center, has a Starbucks and a Ruth's Chris Steakhouse in the lobby and is not a construction zone.
At the Sheraton, we have a bar and restaurant. Period. My first night after verifying that the hotel lobby gift /sundry store was open til 11 pm, I went down for a snack only to find out that for the duration of the construction, the lobby shop is closed.
Of course, there's an enticing little food basket conveniently placed next to my TV with candy bars for $3 and bottles of water for $5.
*It turns out that even though everyone freely refers to the 1912 Pike Place location as the original Starbucks, there was a store at 2000 Western Avenue which predates the Pike Place store. Not sure what the explanation is for this . . .
3 comments:
The original Western Ave. Starbucks location was before Starbucks was in the espresso business. Starbucks actually started out selling coffee and tea supplies: whole beans, grinders, tea pots, that sort of thing. The Pike Place market location is the first true Starbucks as the world now knows it.
Thank you, Brent, for clarifying that. I had hoped there was some such explanation. I had been feeling a bit misled but I feel better now.
I get the same sneers about Starbucks. When they first opened, I wasn't all that impressed. Mainly, because one of my first visits was at 8:30pm and my friend and I were urged to leave since it was near closing time.
I find it interesting how Starbucks do differ in different countries. You'll find cappucino everywhere, but not so with say a green tea latte. In Beijing, on my first visit I went to a Starbucks that had bands every weekend. A real coffee house feel.
I am impressed with the company's treatment of employees. They offer insurance and stock options.
I have learned that in Japan and Korea Starbucks doesn't hire people over 30. I wrote a comment card on that and will write to the headquarters. One doesn't have to hire 20 somethings and teens to seem hip.
Post a Comment