A Tale of Two Hostels

Hostels in the US are funny old things. They're few and far between compare to their counterparts in many other parts of the world. Boston and Chicago for example have 3 a piece compared to a total of around 70 in Barcelona. The US hasn't really taken the hostel to its heart and instead Motels are the budget accommodation of choice it would seem. My single experience of one of these places had come in Memphis and as expected they're rather more ideal for someone with a car than without! The lack of hostels has meant I've often had trouble booking where I want to stay and, on occasion, booking anywhere at all!

With just 2 hostels, Seattle becomes just another City here with a lack of backpacker accommodation and I'd been pre-warned about one of these said places. Though not far from each other the HI and Green Tortoise come at you from very different angles. The Tortoise was the place I'd been made wary of, its location next to the Needle Exchange Centre, home if addicts from all around. Hardly an ideal location! This had more than contributed to my desire to stay at the huge HI place, that whilst only a block or 2 away was in a somewhat less shady locale.

Once again though the lack of options had left me somewhat out in the lurch. the HI, huge place that it is was actually full for the final couple of days I'd planned to stay here and meant I would be swapping hostels midway through my stay. I'd been reluctant to take the Tortoise option up but even they were short of beds and hotel options were out of my reach money wise. It was simply a case of if I want to stay I'm going to have to stay there.

You couldn't witness more contrast between two such nearby places if you tried. HI hostels here in the US have a reputation of being clean, comfortable, organised and regimented. Evidenced none more so than right here in Seattle. Hostel workers walked around dressed as if 1970s Phys Ed teachers in uniformed shirt and shorts, an almost comedic sight. No Alcohol was permitted on the premises but things were unquestionable clean and well thought out.

The HI hostels often fill up with large groups in town for a conference or school kids here en masse. They're family friendly places and more often than not extremely well located. They are, ideal if fun is not on the agenda. put simply, you know what you're going to get and fun filled nights are far from its inhabitants minds. Basically, they're brilliant but ultimately boring!

In contrast, the Green Tortoise could hardly have been more different. The run down looking building housed a run down looking hostel, emphasised more than expected due to their imminent move to a new location. The rooms were fine but had clearly seen better days, the computers used or internet access were falling to pieces, half of them not in working order, faulty keyboards and mice without balls aplenty. Grungy looking seating that Kurt Cobain would have been proud of adorned the common areas. whilst staff seemed blissfully unaware of anything going on around them.

To use an old cliche though, the place had character. Its inhabitants more social, a place unlike the HI where I figured I might actually meet people! in many respects I felt more at home here than in the stuffy HI down the road despite its obvious flaws.

Indeed my expectations were met when, sat outside on the balcony I got chatting to Sandy, a woman from Corpus Christie, Texas. It just seemed the environment I was now in was geared to this happening. Having already enjoyed a few pints of something local earlier in the evening we decided to hell with it and ventured out to find a suitable drinking tavern.

We wound up in Pioneer Square. My first taste of the City's best known nightspot and Saturday was the perfect evening to soak up the atmosphere. Bars and clubs were overflowing, spilling out onto the streets as I saw Seattle rockin' for the first time. Neither of us particularly felt like clubbing so we bounded from bar to bar managing, somehow, to find all the ones that closed early! It was great to sit back and watch a City thriving on its weekend, the atmosphere was infectious and I was happy enough to let it all go on around me as I sat back taking it all in.