Theatre Turned Overpriced Store

I posted a photo of this building facade about a year ago, and the only reason I'm featuring it again is because I think the colours look a lot better and more vivid in this shot. This used to be an old movie theatre, but is now Macy's, an overpriced clothing and home supplies store on Main Street in Walla Walla. Macy's is a chain store, but I believe it's only in the northwest United States. You can read more about it at my previous post (click the link above).

Taste of the Valley

Clearly this is not the elite taste of the valley ($6.50 wine isn't going to be amazing), but here you have it. I believe that all (or at least most) of these bottles were made right here in the Walla Walla Valley. With nearly 150 wineries in Walla Walla and the surrounding area, there is plenty of wine to be had. I, unfortunately for any of you interested, am not a wine drinker, so I can't fill you in on anything about these fine-looking decanters (which, for all I know, could be mostly cooking sherry and the like). I love how elegant they look, and how beautiful the labels can be.

Inland Octopus

This is the valley's local toy store, Inland Octopus. I honestly have no idea why it's called that, so if any local is reading this and knows the answer, please share in the comments. The mural above the entrance to the store is quite controversial in the valley, and has garnered some national news coverage. Walla Walla's downtown foundation has regulations regarding signage and storefronts. The foundation believes that this mural violates the code for downtown storefronts, and they have filed a civil suit against the store, charging them $100 per day until they either a) remove the mural or hide it with something acceptable or b) win in court. In my opinion the mural adds character and fits perfectly with this particular toy store. I've been told by some people I know that their kids love it - and what else should matter? It's a toy store, designed for kids. Regulations and foundations aside, what do you think of it?

Disappearing Act

This is supposed to be Wal-Mart. I was sitting at a red light at the intersection right next to the large store and glanced over...only to find the store had disappeared! Winter is quite regularly foggy in the WW Valley; I don't usually mind, though, because it hides the fact that otherwise, things are pretty dreary and boring.

Shopping at the Movies

This is the corner of Colville and Main Streets in downtown Walla Walla. As you can see, the dominant building is Macy's, a well-known high-end department store. I don't shop there much (due to the "high-end" part of that last sentence), but occasionally I like to browse. The store is kind of neat inside, since it used to be a movie theatre. Some of the floors are sloped, the walls are rounded and decorated, and the doors are wider than most store doors. While most of the inside really does resemble a department store, the youth section is very much still in the theatre shape, with a ramp into the section and a step down into the shopping area, with very high ceilings and angled walls instead of just a large square or rectangular room.

Beautiful Disaster

So many books I don't even know where to start! This is another shot of the inside of Earthlight Books, a new and used book shop located near the east end of Main Street in Walla Walla. I particularly like the random origami art hanging from the ceiling here. Another picture taken just for my friend, Ciel, from Versailles Daily Photo. Bonjour, mon amie!

Just for Cieldequimper

This may look like a mess to you, but to a local Walla Walla bookworm, this is heaven on earth. Welcome to Earthlight Books, a favourite haunting place for people like cieldequimper, author of Versailles Daily Photo, who visits the valley from time to time and adores this little book shop near the end of Main Street in downtown Walla Walla. This shot is for you, Ciel...and there's more to come tomorrow!

Poland 5

Checking out the grocery store. It looked very similar to those in America, however the packaging was smaller and all in bags - very few things in boxes. That included breakfast cereal, which was weird to me, since almost all of our cereal comes in boxes in America.