Seattle - Washington, Oregon and the Pacific Northwest - page 142

bands from the Pacific Northwest. Dominating proceedings is the Sky Church , a huge
screen that displays various musical and sci-fi films.

Chihuly Garden & Glass MUSEUM
( 206-753-3527; www.chihulygardenandglass.com ; 305 W Harrison St; adult/child $19/12;
11am-7pm Sun-Thu, to 8pm Fri & Sat; Seattle Center) Opened in May 2012 and reinforcing
Seattle's position as the Venice of North America, this exquisite exhibition of the life and
work of artist Dale Chihuly requires a sharp intake of breath on first viewing. It has
quickly become a top city icon to rival the neighboring Space Needle.
The masterpieces are split between an eight-room exhibition hall, a Glasshouse filled
with natural light and an outdoor Garden. Between them they showcase the full gamut of
Chihuly's Pacific Northwest influences, most notably Native American art, Puget Sound
sea life and wooden boats.

Children's Museum MUSEUM
( 206-441-1768; www.thechildrensmuseum.org ; 305 W Harrison St; adult & child/grandparent
$8.25/7.25; 10am-5pm Mon-Fri, to 6pm Sat & Sun; ; Seattle Center) In the basement of
Center House near the monorail stop, the Children's Museum is an anachronistic learning
center that offers activities and displays seemingly imported from an earlier time; it's a
museum that might itself belong in a museum. But it's all very charming, if lacking in
modern-day bells and whistles.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Visitor Center VISITOR CENTER
(440 5th Ave N; 10am-5pm Tue-Sat; Seattle Center) The world's most un-
selfish billionaire's generous actions are eloquently displayed at this suitably high-tech
visitor center (part of the larger foundation building), which opened opposite the Space
Needle in February 2012.
Spread over five rooms with highly interactive exhibits, the center lays out the Gates'
bios and shows examples of their work around the world (including fighting malaria in
Africa and notable philanthropic activities inside the US). It also offers scope for plenty
of visitor involvement. Various screens and notepads invite visitors to jot down ideas,
help solve tricky problems and lend their own brainpower to the foundation's 'intellectu-
al bank.'

Pacific Science Center MUSEUM
( www.pacsci.org ; 200 2nd Ave N; adult/child exhibits only $18/13, with Imax $22/17; 10am-5pm

Mon-Fri, to 6pm Sat & Sun; ; Seattle Center) This interactive museum of science and in-