Portland, OR

Last weekend Michelle and I went to Portland. We'd been tossing the idea around for awhile now, and it came up again when I read Blue Like Jazz. Michelle had been once before, but it was my first time. We decided to take the train down. It's super convenient since it runs right through Bellingham, and we got a deal from the Portland Oregon Visitor's Association - 2 for 1 tickets. So altogether we went to Portland and back for $58! That's less than we would have spent on gas, and we got to sit back and relax for 6 hours instead of driving for 4.5. We used Priceline.com for the hotel, and it worked out great; we stayed at the Hilton downtown. The room was small, but very comfortable. We spent most of our time outside since the weather was so beautiful - 60 degrees! (+10 for the canucks) Here are a few pictures from the trip:

Here's an interesting bit of Portland architecture. I believe the establishment was called the "Salmon" or something.

This is the north end of a 6 block park, right in the heart of downtown Portland. The downtown area is interesting; it kind of sprawls, lacking the typical nucleus of really tall buildings. Instead there are a sprinkling of modern skyscrapers amongst old brick buildings, "character" apartments, parks, plazas, and independent shops.

This is me in front of Powell's bookstore. It's bigger than it looks; it takes up a complete city block. Instead of building a new building they just put doors joining the existing buildings when they expanded. I bought a copy of Harper Lee's "To Kill a Mockingbird" inside. A classic american novel from a fabled american bookstore.

Michelle in front of Voodoo Doughnuts. I heard about this place on NPR almost a year ago (check it out here). It's a tiny hole in the wall, and about as small inside as your average walk-in closet. My lemon chiffon cruller was... an experience.

This signpost was in Pioneer Plaza, 2 blocks from our hotel. That's pretty much it - that's what we saw and did in Portland.