This is a great time to go out when many others are at home watching TV.
Sure, it’s the biggest pro football game of the year — and the most watched TV event — but not everyone cares. If you’re not tuning into the Super Bowl on Sunday, you could read a book, clean your closet, take a nap or just relax at home. But a day when most people aren’t out can also be a great time to go out, so here are a few suggestions:
1. Visit a museum. If young ones are part of the plan, head to the first weekend at the new site of KidsQuest Museum in Bellevue, with fun for kids from babies to 8-year-olds and their caregivers. Activities include water play, Bellevue Mercantile and other make-believe exhibits, tot zones, art studio and outdoor play area. The museum is open daily, including from noon to 5 p.m. Sundays; 425-637-8100 or kidsquestmuseum.org.
Also in Bellevue, it’s the last day of the Bellevue Arts Museum exhibit “BAM Biennial 2016: Metalmorphosis,” which is focused on the medium of metal; 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday; 425-519-0770 or bellevuearts.org. The “Star Trek: Exploring New Worlds” exhibit is in its final weeks at the Museum of Pop Culture, through March 5; 206-770-2700 or mopop.org. Frye Art Museum’s current and permanent exhibits of art, featuring works collected by two of Seattle’s earliest patrons of the arts, Charles and Emma Frye, has the added feature of always free admission; 206-622-9250 or fryemuseum.org.
2. Rain is in the forecast, but don’t let that stop you from a walk outside. Grab your umbrella and head to your closest park or trail, or take a trip to Seattle’s year-around outdoor mecca, Washington Park Arboretum. Colorful witch hazel, winterberry and holly, fragrant daphne and blooming hellebores are among the pleasures of the Joseph A. Witt Winter Garden, a short walk away from the Graham Visitor Center and parking areas. The Winter Garden is featured on the guided Arboretum tours at 1 p.m. Sundays; 206-685-8033 or botanicgardens.uw.edu/washington-park-arboretum.
3. I’m sure it’s not just me who can’t get enough of baby gorilla Yola at Woodland Park Zoo. She’s so cute, hanging out and exploring the outdoor gorilla exhibit with her mom, Nadiri, silverback Leo and playmate Akenji from 12:30 to 4 p.m. daily, weather permitting. Among the zoo’s many other attractions, zookeepers host a program for visitors at the Humboldt penguin exhibit at 2 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays; 206-548-2500 or zoo.org/page.aspx?pid=1722.
4. How about a swim? The Seattle Parks and Recreation indoor pools open on Sundays are Ballard, Madison, Medgar Evers, Queen Anne, Southwest and Rainier Beach; seattle.gov/parks/find/pools. Lynnwood Recreation Center Pool has water slides, a lazy river, water playground, lap pool and shallow play area. It’s very popular, especially on weekends, so it’s a good idea to get there half an hour before an open swim session starts, or get an advance ticket online; 425-670-5732 or ci.lynnwood.wa.us/PlayLynnwood/RecCenter.htm. Mountlake Terrace Recreation Pavilion Swimming Pool has a shallow-water leisure pool with spray toys, a lazy river and water toys during public swims; cityofmlt.com/531/Pool-Schedule.
5. Go shopping. Patronizing local businesses is always a great place to start, browsing through a bookstore, thinking of spring at a garden store or grabbing coffee at a local cafe (as long as there’s no TV). Or take a trip to the mall, probably less crowded than a usual weekend day.