What's happening in Seattle this week?

Pike Place Market has operated since 1907, and its weekly cycle still sets downtown Seattle's tempo. Monday through Friday the market runs 9am to 5pm with fewer visitors and better vendor conversation. Saturday mornings by 10am the main arcade is shoulder-to-shoulder, though Sunday tends to be calmer with shorter waits at the original Starbucks location at 1912 Pike Place. The fish-throwing at Pike Place Fish Co. happens all day, but mornings carry the strongest smell of Dungeness crab on wet ice. Flower stalls on the lower level sell bunches for $5-8, cheaper than the upper arcade vendors facing First Avenue.

Tuesday and Wednesday are Seattle's quietest days for sightseeing. Museum of Pop Culture at Seattle Center tends to be emptiest midweek, and the Space Needle's observation deck (the tower opened in 1961 for the World's Fair) has its shortest queues before noon on Tuesdays. Thursday evenings around 8pm, Capitol Hill shifts into weekend mode. Pine Street and Broadway fill with bar-hoppers moving between Rhein Haus, a Bavarian-style beer hall with $8-12 pints and indoor bocce courts, and the smaller cocktail spots along Pike. Friday and Saturday the waterfront along Alaskan Way gets loud with cruise-ship passengers walking from the terminal at Pier 91.

This week sits in Seattle's dry season, currently around 22°C with clear skies and 61% humidity, comfortable for all-day walking without the layering strategy that defines the other 9 months here. Sunset falls near 8:50pm, giving you long warm evenings where the breeze off Elliott Bay drops the feel another 2-3 degrees. Rain is unlikely this week, so the outdoor patios along Pike and Pine in Capitol Hill stay open past 10pm. At 47°N, Seattle's summer UV index reaches 8-9 by midday, high enough to burn on a 2-hour waterfront walk.

Sundays belong to the neighborhood farmers markets. The Ballard Farmers Market on Ballard Avenue NW runs 9am to 3pm year-round, with about 60 vendors in summer selling Skagit Valley strawberries and fresh-shucked oysters at $3 each. The University District Farmers Market on University Way NE runs Saturdays, same hours, slightly smaller but less hectic. Capitol Hill's live music corridor along Pike and Pine books most shows Thursday through Saturday, doors at 8pm, tickets between $15 and $35. Monday and Tuesday are dead nights across the city. Wednesday is the one midweek evening where a few venues run open-mic or comedy sets along Fremont's 36th Street.