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Seattle · USA

Overview

Seattle is defined by water. There's no use denying the city's damp weather, or the fact that its skies are cloudy for much of the year. Seattleites don't tan, goes the joke, they rust. But Seattle is also defined by the rivers, lakes, and canals that bisect its steep green hills, creating distinctive micro-landscapes along the water's edge. Funky fishing boats, floating homes, swank yacht clubs, and waterfront restaurants exist side by side.

A city is defined by its people as well as its weather or geography, and the people of Seattle -- a half-million or so within the city proper, another 2.5 million in the surrounding Puget Sound region -- are a diversified bunch. Seattle has long had a vibrant Asian and Asian-American population, and well-established communities of Scandinavians, African-Americans, Jews, Native Americans, and Latinos live here, too. It's impossible to generalize about such a varied group, but the prototypical Seattleite was once pithily summed up by a New Yorker cartoon in which one arch-browed East Coast matron says to another, "They're backpacky, but nice."

Seattle's climate fosters an easygoing lifestyle. Overcast days and long winter nights have made the city a heaven for moviegoers and book readers. Hollywood often tests new films here, and residents' per-capita book purchases are among North America's highest. Seattle has all the trappings of a metropolitan hub -- two daily newspapers; a state-of-the-art convention center; professional sports teams; a diverse music club scene; and top-notch ballet, opera, symphony, and theater companies. A major seaport, the city is a vital link in Pacific Rim trade.

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