Hostel life

As a first-timer staying in a hostel, I wondered who I would meet and talk to. There was one woman from Southeast Asia who checked in about the same time and was in and out the door right away.  I too wasn't long for hanging out in the room because the Seattle Art Museum was just a few blocks away and there were only a few hours left when it was open.

Room with a view

After visiting the museum, I came back quite worn out, which museums always do to me.  Upon entering the room, there was a woman sitting on her bed, who greeted me with an extremely cheery "Hello!" when I stepped inside.  I made polite conversation and indicated that I needed to take a nap before going out to dinner with friends.  I felt a little bad, but I was tired and grumpy. I wasn't sure how this was going to work out.

Common area

I got back from dinner and found that the common area was full of people and there was a keg that had been depleted.  It started to feel to me a bit like a fraternity party, but with a much more diverse set of people.  I talked to a young gay man who was visiting from San Francisco and was excited to check out the night life.  We ended up talking about his dislike of oysters, and I did my best to persuade him they were a taste worth acquiring.  He made some conversation about my going out with him on the town, and, hilariously, I gestured to my attire and suggested I wan't suitable for full on partying.  He stepped back, surveyed me from head to toe, and acknowledged that at least "your shoes are pretty cute."  Ha!

Across the room was the friendly woman from my dorm room, and her friend. As fate would have it, they were from the neighboring state of Minnesota.  Although I don't remember their names, it turned out they were very nice, and had even saved me a sign up slip for karaoke.  I took it as a sign that it was time for me to try it (I had dilly dallied too long at an earlier karaoke opportunity and it slipped away).  I found the song I wanted, and ended up singing in front of a bunch of strangers from around the world.  It was fun! There was a father with his three daughters staying there, and the young women all got up and performed "You and Me Baby 'Aint Nothin but Mammals" as he videoed the performance, which seemed odd to me, but hey, live and let live.

The next couple of mornings were super chill getting breakfast - there was toast, milk, cereal and eggs if you were motivated enough to wash your own cooking dishes. That was when I saw the people like me....40+, there were several folks older than I was.

So many things to do!

Overall, I think the best part about staying at a hostel was the location and cost. Since I was going to be out exploring all day, the extremely reasonable rate to hold on to my luggage and have a place to sleep was unparalleled.  I don't know about other hostel locations, but the Green Tortoise was better than any hotel chain or Air B&B could hope to get.  I enjoyed hearing different languages spoken, and I would think if you were there with several friends it could be a great social scene. It is what you make of it.  I'm very glad I went this route.