A fifteen-minute bus ride to the top of a steep hill east of downtown takes you to Capitol Hill , the city's alternative center since young gays, hippies and assorted radicals moved in during the 1960s and 1970s. Today it exemplifies the city's diverse lifestyles and, despite a fair bit of gentrification driving up the rents, remains a good choice for munching on ethnic food, listening to old LPs, and hitting the club scene. The shops and cafés around Broadway are abuzz with neo-bohemian activity and are littered throughout with storefront coffee vendors and espresso carts. East of Broadway from Twelfth to about Ninth avenues, the Pike/Pine Corridor is filled with all-night coffee houses, live music venues and some of Seattle's best nightspots.

By contrast, the northern end of the district features mansions built on Gold Rush fortunes that sit sedately around Volunteer Park (named after Spanish-American War veterans). Here you'll find the 1912 Conservatory 's hothouses, home to flowers, shrubs and orchids from jungle, desert and rainforest landscapes (daily 10am-4pm, summer closes at 7pm; free), as well as the old Water Tower that provides a free, sweeping view of Seattle through wire mesh. In the same area, the Seattle Asian Art Museum , 1400 E Prospect St (Tues-Sun 10am-5pm, Thurs closes at 9pm; $3, free first Thurs of month; ), boasts a 7000-piece collection of ceramics, jade and snuff bottles from Japan, China, Korea and Southeast Asia. Ten blocks east, Washington Park stretches to the north, encompassing the University of Washington Arboretum , a lush showcase for indigenous Puget Sound vege-tation, with plenty of charming footpaths and different varieties of regional trees. At the south end of the park, the immaculately landscaped Japanese Gardens flash banks of pink flowers beside neat little pools with exotically colored carp (March-Nov daily 10am-dusk; $2.50).

Capitol Hill

• Capitol Hill

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