Metropolitan Mindfulness

City Sweats Courtesy City Sweats

Some cafes discourage computer use—thereby encouraging connection—by simply not offering free Wi-Fi with their impeccably prepared coffee and cakes. Examples include bright Coyle’s Bakeshop (8300 Greenwood Ave N) in Greenwood and Lighthouse Roasters (400 N 43rd St), a Fremont institution. “We want our neighbors to know each other and talk with each other,” Lighthouse owner Ed Leebrick says.

Along those lines, Conversation (*110 Stewart St), a restaurant with an intriguing wine selection in the Thompson Seattle hotel downtown, tucks prompt cards into menus to facilitate interesting banter. Some cards are cheeky and fun—“Does pineapple belong on pizza?”—while others tug at nostalgia or dig a little deeper, and you can even write your own for possible inclusion in a future edition.

Organizations like Abbey Arts facilitate community-centered concerts, dance classes, storytelling nights, and special events like sound baths. Check out their Cathedrals concert series featuring indie bands adapting to epic spaces. For a more traditional music experience, enjoy the Compline Choir performances that echo throughout Saint Mark’s Episcopal Cathedral (1245 10th Ave E) every Sunday at 9:30pm on Capitol Hill.

For solo quiet time, book a pod at Urban Float (various locations), where “weightless meditation” awaits. Bliss out in a private, sensory-managed tank while floating in purified water mixed with Epsom salts. Or find tropical-tinged tranquility inside City Sweats (various locations). At these sweat lodges, saunas use heat and infrared light waves to deeply heat the body and ease the soul, especially welcome this time of year.

*Visit Seattle Partner.