The Syracuse vs. Washington Experience: Cuse Fan Festivities

For those of you who are coming to Seattle for the game or are thinking of coming to Seattle for the game, this is the last in a series of posts that, hopefully, make your planning a little easier.  I've gotten a lot of emails about the best times to come in, where to stay, what to do, etc. and I figured I'd do my best to help out. 

Part I: Where To Stay

Part II: Being A Lazy Tourist

Part III: Being An Awesome Tourist

Part IV: Cuse Fan Festivities

If you just decided yesterday that you want to come to Seattle for the game, here's a last-minute housing option for you.  GameDay Housing, which helps sports fans find a place to stay when traveling to other cities, wants to help Syracuse fans who don't want to do the hotel experience. Got a group of friends that want to stay together?  GDH is offering $200 off of a house rental the weekend of the SU-UW game.  At the moment they have two properties listed (and expect to add more), and if you split the difference on either of them with other people, it's a pretty solid deal.

To win the $200 off, just email me with the subject line: SU-UW Contest and I'll get you in touch with them ASAP.  Of course, please only reach out if you're realistically considering the service.  Good luck!

And so, here we are.  We know where to stay.  We know what to do.  And we know how to do it.  The only question remaining is what Syracuse-specific activities will we get up to while you're out here?  First, a couple leftover bits and bobs.

Layers.  If I've learned anything about Seattle in the my short time here, it's to always be dressed in layers.  You're going to wake up early and it's going to be cold.  Then, at some point in the afternoon, it's going to get really hot.  Strangely, weirdly hot.  And then later after that, it's going to start drizzling. If you're not prepared, you're going to have a very uncomfortable day.  Dress warm in the morning but be prepared to shed that sweatshirt and jacket by 3pm.

Spiders. Hope you're not freaked out, cause there's a lot of them.  Everywhere.  They're not dangerous, mind you.  But you will walk into give spiderwebs this weekend.  FYI.

Sushi.  I didn't include a Best Sushi on the last post of places to eat so let me now include Musashi's in Wallingford.  It's small, it's cramped and it's cash-only but God Damn if it's not some of the best sushi you'll have in town. It's like stepping into your Japanese friend's mother's kitchen.  The food's quick, it's mega-cheap and it's usually packed so make time for it.

Real Change.  You'll see a lot of homeless folks standing on corners, trying to get you to buy something called Real Change.  It's an actual newspaper that has articles about what's going on in the city and world affecting the homeless.  It's $1.  If you can spare it, do it.  Makes for a nice read on the bus.

Alright so with that out of the way, let's get down to brass tacks.  The game is Saturday at 4pm but the festivities begin way before that.  I'm guessing you'll be here by Friday so we need to do some pre-gaming.  I haven't seen any official SU-related Friday event so I'm taking it upon myself to put one together.  And here we go...

The TNIAAM Syracuse-Washington Game Friday Night Shenanigans Hour (Or Five)

Be there for fun, frivolity and the chance to put faces to usernames.  It's a solid, no-frills place with tons of beers on tap, plenty of liquor, food service, a couple big-screen TVs and a patio.  Pretty much all you need, right? Here's some more info on the place. If you're coming, spread the word to your fellow travelers.

Now, here's the bonus.  Nearby is a group of statues known as Waiting For The Interurban. It's a group of folks forever waiting for a bus just off the Fremont Bridge. It's a highly-trafficked area and intersection. It's rare to ever walk past them and not find them covered in chalk, shirts, signs and other hazarai. And so, our mission is clear.    These statues MUST be caked in orange by the time everyone wakes up on Saturday.  If you're up for it, bring some old SU shirts, pom-poms, hats, signs and anything else we can stick on these guys.  Fremont won't know what hit it.

That's Friday.  As for Saturday, I'm officially leaving it up to the masses.  I don't have a ticket for the FanZone thing in the parking lot.  I'm completely up for creating a make-shift Syracuse flotilla in the Husky Stadium parking lot and tailgating from there. Some folks will probably want to head over to the bars in Pioneer Square, Capitol Hill or University District beforehand, but if others are up 'gating in the parking lot, I'm in.  Let's hear some chatter.

Sounds like we'll have a good crew there.  As for those who can't make it, don't worry.  There will be photos and video.  Oh yes, there will be photos and video.