Excited about Sasquan!
I'm sitting in Spokane International Airport, on my way back from the Sasquan All-Hands meeting; the last big meeting before the convention itself. I felt it was important to come, even though it's just a short visit, because I'm the Area Head for our First Night and I really, REALLY wanted to see Riverfront Park. That's where our First Night celebration, our "welcome to Worldcon and welcome to Spokane" party, is going to be.
I *love* the park. It's a great location, just a short way across footbridge from the Convention Center. There's plenty of trees for shade. Lots of wide, paved paths to get around, and most of our grassy spaces are easily handled by even a small mobility scooter (yes, we checked for accessibility -- we want this to be as inclusive and accessible as possible). The people with the park and Visit Spokane have been working with us and I think that it's going to be a lot of fun.
Now, a few things I noticed about Spokane itself. This is my first visit to the city (indeed, to the state of Washington) and I think it'll be a great venue for Worldcon. The downtown core is very compact, easily walkable for those who walk (and cutouts in most curbs for those on scooters; it's not perfect but it's very doable). The main party hotel is a bit of a trek from the Convention Center but probably not any worse than it was in Montreal, and I think there's less traffic in Spokane.
The people are ALL friendly and cheerful; I was REALLY impressed with how the staff of the Red Lion a the Park took the time to repair my friend Nolly's scooter when it stopped working (and she wasn't even staying there). Hotel staff, restaurant staff, random passers-by...everyone was genuinely very nice. The people who work in the park, the staff from Visit Spokane, even the TSA coming into the airport was cheerful and friendly and smiling. (I'd say that the TSA staff were welcoming, but I'm leaving).
Foodwise, the city has a lot to offer, and by New York standards I think it's really very inexpensive. A pint of good local beer in a hotel bar costs $5 (sorry UK fen, it's a US sized pint, so it'll look small to you). Certainly back in NY I couldn't touch at that price, even in a regular bar. There's a decently diverse restaurant scene with a nice wide range of prices. There's some GREAT local wines that I'm looking forward to sampling more of.
If, like me, you're a runner, you're going to love Spokane. There's a great trail right along the river that's wide and flat and connects with the trails in Riverfront Park as well. I'm half-toying with having a Sasquan Unofficial 5K. It looks great for walking and biking, too.
I'm getting really excited about Sasquan. I think First Night is going to be a blast and that Spokane is gonna be a great town for Worldcon.
I'm excited about it!
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