JOURNAL: Keep Portland Weird!
I absolutely love the Pacific North West, especially visiting Portland, Oregon, or as I call it PDX. I would travel to PDX a few times a year for work and always scheduled extra time to tour around after my work meetings/conferences. The food here is amazing, especially if you are a plant based “eater”, like myself, as there are tons of vegan restaurants and farmers markets to explore. PDX is filled with microbreweries, coffee shops, brunch spots, vintage book stores and beautiful natural scenery in spots not too far away, like Multnomah Falls- Columbia Gorge, Mount Hood and the Willamette River.
PDX makes for the perfect getaway with its forward thinking chefs, chilled and laid back locals and plenty of green spaces to explore in downtown’s creative hub in the West End. If you are looking for a more upscale area, you can check out The Pearl District as it has tons of luxury shopping and fine dining restaurants. You can also experience the food trucks as they can make you feel as though you’ve taken a mini world trip by sampling what they all have to offer as you can enjoy Thai, Lebanese, Italian, Caribbean, Japanese, Egyptian native cuisines and so much more at these sometimes travelling restaurants throughout the city.
Another great thing about PDX is the transportation, as you can explore by hopping on a trolley, TrimMet light rail, bus or bike. It is what some call the “green” state as they are very environmentally conscious and focused on sustainability. If you are into the arts, you can experience musicals, operas, ballets and the Portland symphony.
Portland also has this stigma of being “weird” but I find it to be such an amazing place to explore. If this is what weird is like, then I love weird! From spots like Voodoo Doughnuts, Distillery Row, Division Street and Forest Park, you will have a blast just as much as I do every time!
I worked in Portland in late 1994 for 3 months. Awesome city!
yep–live just 50 miles from Portland–the whole area is fantastic!