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Show c 1 I i ra ! The Daily Herald Sunday, February 14, 1993 Apply early for passports sai Knight-Ridde- r one, of the 4.3 lion? No, I don't mean that staggering number of people who think Ed McMahon is going t6 announce their names on television as winners of several gazillion dollars because ar Bloom-ingto- j H MP jy mswm. gar m m m B B 1b B B B B B B B ' m d, 1 ' " 1 " " -i- Dili tfUnililTrill mega-number- Shoppers enjoy a break at a food court recently that the 2.6 million square-fomall will work in the long run. The novelty hasn't worn off, the Christmas shopping crush is barely a memory and the real test, they say, will come in the next couple of years. "Right now, I think they've got a right to brag a little bit," said Sid Doolittle, a partner with Chicago-base- d retail strategists McMillan Doolittle. "But it's such a big project and it requires such huge volumes of visitors and purchases to be successful, can it sustain that over longer periods?" Numbers aside, the first six months have shown that even the - llfl a- ft . ' MaJ w.Jt- AP Photo s, reDespite the tail analysts aren't ready to predict in the Mall of America in Bloomington, ft Minn ot chrome-and-past- el offering everything from Alamo flags to stuffed zebras has a slightly seamy side. It became the target of a boycott last summer when the Minnesota chapter of Business and Professional Women accused Hooters restaurant, which features waitresses in shorts and cutoff tops, of exploiting women. And last weekend, reality set in when three people were shot at the Knott's Camp Snoopy amusement park in a fight over a hockey jacket. "The whole point of malls is to provide a new urban experience for people who are terrified of the real thing and had quite enough of jjassport in hand and be able to' mail it in with your application. (It will be returned with your new passport.) . If you meet those require: ments, applying by mail for your new little blue book is a snap. First, you pick up a renewForm DSP82 al application from almost any post office A SEATTLE We were sitting in The Gravity Bar, in the Capitol Hill section of Seattle, sipping our fluorescent wheatgrass drinks and considering our choices the steamed vegetable sandwich or lentil soup??? when we heard about the bomb threat. According to Steve, our bartender, a caller had phoned just moments ago. We had 10 minutes before a bomb would send us off to places farther than any electrolyte-ladeamino acid drink could take us. Outside our fashionable watering hole, as if in confirmation of what Steve said, we could see flashing lights and policemen darting about in protective headgear. A tide of patrons from neighboring stores drifted onto the sidewalk. Apparently, the authorities were taking this threat seriously. But inside The Gravity Bar. ethereal women in nose rings and vintage dresses and men with dyed hair and black leather continued to lean over their spirulina-lacevegetable drinks. Steve, our bartender, seemed unperturbed. He was discussing weightier matters with a fellow bartender, such as whether to catch an evening show featuring the local rock bands ip n, neo-industr- head-sho- t. ce . d pony-taile- d and"Hammerbox." . it," said University of Minnesota professor and culture observer Karal Ann Marling. "It's ironic, because there really is no escape." Maybe not, but the Mall of America is trying its darndest to be a place people escape to when cabin fever strikes, the kids become hyperactive or when a craving for fried cheese curds sets in. The mall has tried to be everything to everybody. An ecumenical church has held services in its rotunda. Thousands of have powerwalked through its miles of corridors. A couple even plan to exchange wedding vows there and hold the reception at Camp Snoopy. The mall's proprietors have kept copious notes on who is doing what under its gargantuan roof. Among its observations so far: On average, visitors spend more than three hours per trip. Sixty-si- x percent eat something in that span and 26 percent spend money at Camp Snoopy . Nine of 10 patrons make a I purchase, spending an average of $84 per trip, compared with the $35 industry average. 70 percent of all visitors come radius. from within a Over 4 million rides have been taken at Camp Snoopy. The fitness-seeke- rs 150-mi- le Ripsaw roller coaster leads the pack, but Paul Bunyan's Logshoot is a close second. The park has also dispensed 20,000 gallons of boy- -' senberry punch, 129,000 pounds of french fries and 32,000 pounds of mashed potatoes. 97 percent of guests say they - hi ij 1 !- - i W i plan to return. About 289,000 visitors have come by tour bus, and 96 groups have flown in from Japan. Not everyone who treks from afar is impressed. Louise and Wayne Stegman drove in from St. Joseph, Mo. They said the megamall compared unfavorably to the West Edmonton Mall in Canada, the largest on the continent. "They have fountains, things on display. This one's so plain," Mrs. Stegman said. "And there's not much for the fellas to do while the women are shopping," her husband added. No records have been kept as to how long one must spend at the mall to truly get a sense of it. "The fact that it's so big creates a mystery, which ultimately may stand in its favor," culture maven Marling said. "But will this still be a charmed environment in two or three years when we've all learned where the Easy Spirit store is?" s M AP Photo Snoopy welcomes visitors to Camp Snoopy at the Mall of America. The mall drew 16 million visitors in its first six months. A large thriving counterculture shapes character of Seattle By PAMELA REYNOLDS Boston Globe 0) (See PASSPORT, Page C6) xhf few n, According to conservative estimates, upwards of 16 million people from every state have shopped, miniature-golfechowed down, gone for a ride or partied at the nation's largest retail and entertainment center since its Aug. 1 opening. Forty million visitors were expected to trek there annually by 1996, according to figures. And total .sales after one year are expected to be 20 percent higher than the original $650 million projection. your 18th birthday. Of course, you must have the layable to Passport Services n the amount of S55. Then, end it, along with your old lassport and your renewal to the address on of ie back the form. ( Don't be concerned that the Jdress is not Portsmouth, m 63r x&tA seeing it all." sim.-ple-st rf (heck, or buy a money order, ipr Burnsville, Minn., said between bites of baked potato in the food court. "I haven't come close to European trip, never to bs used again. Nevertheless, the potential for a logjam is sjfch that the State Department has set up a new processing center to handle renewals by mail. (According to Sheaffer, the new National Passport Center ih, Portsmouth, N.H., is expected to process more than 2,5 percent of the passport workload in. 1993 about f .1 million renewals. ' And, for those who qualify, renewal by mail is the method. Just how does one qualify? Easy: You must have a passport issued in your name that was issued within the last 12 years and after inally, you write out a U "I've been here three times, and lost," Patrice Asleson of tfcjned for that Jiken m I still get 10-ye- ar e, is s&gr which way is up." She isn't alone. ! Ijlack-and-whit- m first-tim- And for all those folks, Sheaffer has one piece of advice: Apply early. Don't wait until a month or so before your summer trip abroad. ,"May is 'usually the peak period (for passport applications), just before summer," Sheaffer said. "If people can dp it before then, it's a lot faster for them and a lot easier ' for us. " It may be particularly important to apply early this year, because the first of the passports were issued in' 1983 (prior to that, passports were valid for only five years), and thus are up for renewal this year. I '.Not all of those 1983 issues will be renewed. Some lost or stolen passports were replaced in the interim, some passport holders have died, and some passports were ob- -. 1 n BLOOMINGTON, Minn. -An attraction to rival Disney World or just an overgrown shopping mall? Six months after opening its doors, the Mall of America seems to be somewhere in between. "I feel overwhelmed. It's decadent," said Jan Fernkes of e visitor peering a incredulously at the seven-acr- e amusement park. "I'm just stumbling around here trying to decide subthey bought a 24-yescription to Popular Mechanics. I mean the 4.3 million people who will apply for a new or renewed U.S. passport this year. At least that's the number the State Department is expecting, according to Gary Sheaffer, a department press officer in Washington. full-fa- oft By PAM SCHMID Associated Press Writer mil- or county courthouse. And Sheaffer says to make sure you get the new version of the form, white with red printing. You can also call the Passport Agency in Philadelphia and (phone The one. send you they'll agency phone is answered by one of those &!$&!! machines, but the choices presented are fairly simple and the information is clear and complete. You just leave your name, address and telephone number when told to do so by the &!$&! ! machine, Your next step Is to get two identical well, photos of yourself not your whole self. Basically, they just want what is known in our business as a The photo must be close-u- p enough of a from distance the that your ihin to the top of your head is inches. between and The photos can be color or but must have a white background. Also, they must have been within the last six a m fascination last or fade away? Newspapers Are you h Will By JACK SEVERSON , bw "You guys can stay or go." he said, nonchalantly. Now that's Seattle for you . Languid and loose. Easygoing to a fault. Bomb, you say? No problem. What do ya' say we split and check out The Posies at the Crocodile Cafe? There is a certain ease of living in this city of water and hills, an undercurrent of Zen acceptance w hether one is that is frequenting the coffeehouses and ethnic restaurants of the city's Wallingford section, the bookstores and shops of the University District, or dancing the night away in one of the city's "grunge" clubs. Indeed, this easygoing constitution translates into a bohem-ian- a that flourishes throughout the Pacific Northwest, providing a welcome respite for the traveler who is weary of more conventional city touring involving buses, mud seums and stores that sell key chains. Seattle is one of the few cities in the country where counterculture thrives (some say as strongly as it once did in San Francisco), shaping the character of the city from the downtown business district to the outlying neighborhoods. When you're in Seattle, yes. visit the Space Needle, and pay S6 to whisk up to the observation deck, which stands a perilous 518 feet above ground level. And yes. pay S3. 30. hop aboard the harbor ferry and feel the ocean spray in your face as ou bob across Pugct Sound and back. Spend a day browsing at Pike Place Market, where artisans and craftspeople ever-presen- t, salmon-shape- sell sculpture and handmade jewelfishermen. ry beside fish-tossin- g Slip beneath the sidewalks and buildings of the Pioneer Square district to see the original city. Drop by the Seattle Aquarium for $6.50 and watch wriggling salmon spawn. But make a point, too, of visiting the "real" Seattle, tucked away from all the tourist hoopla. Hang n coffeehouses and out in glitzy juice bars with a copy of "The Rocket," the local alternative music newspaper. Tour the bookstores. Drop into a record store. Listen to music on KCMU. Take a walk on the wild side. And find out what all this talk of "grunge" is about. Bohemian life in Seattle begins nowhere else but in the Capitol Hill District. Atop this hill just east of downtown, a collage of diverse gays and straights, artgroups ists and businesspeople, yuppies live in tight apartand slackers ments or rambling Victorians. But make no mistake about who or what piedominates here. Funki-nes- s well-wor- flourishes. We knew this as soon as we began our walk along Broadway, the neighborhood strip cluttered with coffee shops, import stores, newsstands, cinemas and chic boutiques. Call it the '60s done up '90s style. We had been directed here by Steve Bennett, owner of the paneled and polished Gaslight Inn bed and breakfast, at 1727 15lh Avenue. Under an imposing deer's 1906 head in the carefully-restoreVictorian mansion, Bennett outlined a plan of attack for experiencing Seattle's more offbeat offerings. First, he suggested a stroll down Broadway and a trip through the d mall known otherwise as the Broadway Market. Then we could stop by the B & O Espresso, "like the Monopoly game." and later check out Tugs Belmont for pump- The newsstand of choice, the place to see and be seen, is Steve's Broadway News, at 204 Broadway E. There are more obscure magazines offered here than fish in the indusPike Place Market. Finding even ing, grinding, trial music. And finally, maybe we just a spot to stand here or in would want to go to one of the Roma cafe next door can theaters, the Harvard Exit w ith its be particularly difficult late in the lobby armchairs and couches, or afternoon, when half of Capitol the lavish Egyptian Theater. Now Hill's residents return back to the that was Capitol Hill, Bennett said, neighborhmxl alter a hard day's hunkering down over a map before work and begin their search for a flickering fire, yellow highlighlatte and a magazine. (The other ter in hand. But we might also half of the Hill's residents, mostly check out the and musicians and music lovers, are then 45th Street, and then the just waking up.) Farther down Broadway, we hit stores and clubs in Belltown and The Cramp. Inside the Broadway then... Market at 401 Broadway E., The Bennett was getting really excited. Cramp is similar to the Urban Outfitters clothing store, located also So there we were on Broadway, in the Broadway Market. Here the having taken Bennett's advice. The smell of incense hung in the air,' young and stylish buy clothes. If courtesy of The Vajra, at 518 you're in need of a biker's jacket, orange and black flare jeans, or Broadway E., a local store selling oils and incense. Passersby, flannel. The Cramp beckons. But just about every store in Capitol though they would be loath to admit it. bore a shocking similitude Hill offers it's own unique window s to the characters in the Cameron on Seattle culture. Even the incan ide store Sein prov drug Crowe film, "Singles," set sights, with its big marque adverattle. Everyone was young. Everyone was single. Everyone was tisement of a Folgers coffee brick wearing cool hats. And though it for $4.49 a pound. A required stop is certainly the and a nippy 50 was aforementioned w ere more than just Gravity Bar. inthere degrees, the side Broadway Market, which a few Seattlitcs hugging the sidewalks in baggy cutoff shorts, just eventually asked its customers to leave on the day of the bomb like the ones the Matt Dillon charThe restaurant continues to threat. in wore acter "Singles." serve "postmodern natural food" We began to feel a bit (or vegetarian food and drink w ith uneasy in our collegiate the added tw ist of carbo fuel and sweaters and preppy down parkas. We look like we're from Boston, (See SEATTLE, Page C8) don't we? head-splittin- g t" Pay-les- mid-Januar- y s, i . |