OVERVIEW

Portland is super WEIRD. You might think to yourself, oh, I've met weird people before, in fact, I am weird. No you haven't, and no you are not. Go to Portland, interact with the locals a few times. You'll wonder to yourself, is there some strange etiquette here that I have yet to learn? What planet am I on??? Once that happens, you'll know you caught the weirdness bug of Portland.

There are so many amazing things about the city. I mean - Rose Garden filled with thorns (I quote, miss Taylor Swift...), amazing, amazing food... absolutely incredible and somehow untouched beauty in nature. Its like the rest of the world has gone flying by, and somehow this little bubble has hidden from the treachery of time and managed to maintain a state of nature that I wasn't quite sure even existed on this planet anymore. If I was more outdoorsy, this would probably be heaven. I mean, going here, I almost wished I was the rugged nature type.... but then I saw my cozy Marriot bed and snapped out of it!

JAPANESE GARDEN

Feeling very Zen! This garden is beautiful, relaxing (ie ZEN) and something about this place just makes you breath in, and breath out and all the stress is gone. Just imagine, cool crisp air, beautiful trees, flowing water and a slight breeze. This Japanese-inspired garden has pagodas, pretty waterfalls, lots of ponds/streams, pretty bridges, really big old trees and Zen rock gardens.

The Zen gardens are rocks and stones that are centered around peace and calm, a lot of times they use rakes to make the stones look like waves coming out from an island "rock" in the ocean. Oddly, it seemed to work because I found the whole thing relaxing.

ROSE GARDEN

Portland is known as the Rose City. Somehow this fits, because they tend to be slightly pretentious (ie THORNS), yet its quite a lovely place to be (ie the ROSE). There are a few stories as to how this came about, but however it started, its easy to see why. Roses grow extremely well here, and I've never seen so many beautiful roses in one place. Every different color you can think of, mixed colors, small and big roses... they smell and look absolutely amazing. I had a ball taking pictures, close ups, bunches of roses shots, me and Greg in shots... Shakespeare was definitely onto something when he said "Of all flowers, me thinks a rose is best." Greg really wanted to see the black roses, and they turned out to be really red roses that seem to have some very dark reddish-blackish petals (booo, should've called them Vampire Roses, much more mysterious and accurately colored). They also have a ketchup and mustard rose that is red with yellow petals. My favorites were the yellow roses, the color just looked like inspiration for "chasing the sun", and it was a rainy day!

POWELL BOOKS

So, yes. I like big books and I cannot lie. I love reading and a giant bookstore that takes up an entire city block? I'm in! I wandered around for awhile and finally found a really interesting book on how to survive anything - like ANYTHING. Hurricanes, volcanos, floods, swamps, snake bites, so I started reading in the middle of the store and got hooked. On the 2nd floor, they have a place where you can publish your own book....super cool. I also got a picture standing on their infamous stairs... they say "What do Walt Witman... (several other names here) all have in common? They've all self-published. This way to the Espresso Book Machine."

FOOD CARTS

... Are a BIG deal in Portland. They were basically everywhere, including near the segway tour. It was near lunch time and there were people everywhere, in line, waiting for food, observing, it was a bit of a cluster. We asked for tips on which food carts to try, and the advice was just pick one because you can't go wrong. That's good because we only had a chance to try one, it was a mexican/taco food cart, and it was amazing. We did manage to get grease everywhere so be careful transporting (no one said anything about healthy!). If you like food, and don't want a sit down meal, food trucks are the way to go.

OREGON ZOO

This seemed like one of the smaller zoos that we've been to. Not sure if this is because it was drizzling / raining most of the time or if it was because it was cold and I was hurrying. We got to see polar bears, who are always cute. Anytime I say this, Greg makes a comment about how they are not cute and how they could maul you. But seriously, they have these giant paws that are just cute. We saw the cheetahs, which sadly are very endangered due to inbreeding. They are super fast, however once they chase down their prey, they are pretty much spent. This leaves them vulnerable to other predators walking along and killing them and taking their meal. This is one of the multiple reasons they seem to be dwindling in numbers. Otters are one of my favorites, and they are gigantic at this zoo! They also had a California Condor, it was the first time I've seen one in person. Greg did report on this in high school and knew a lot about them. In the 1980's they had to be rescued from the wild because there were such a small number of them left (like 20-something in the entire world). They've been breeding them successfully and have re-released some back into the wild recently. They are pretty smart, well mannored and adapt well so they've been rather successful with the re-release. Hopefully this continues, can you imagine how sad it would be to lose an entire species? (Its very sad, and it happens way too often).

PORTLAND BY SEGWAY

However many times I almost manage to crash, fall and/or other form of chaotic-ness, I still always love Segway tours. How could it not be fun standing on something and riding around like a crazy person? Somehow, I have not been banned from any city Segway tours. That being said, I sadly have to say Portland Segway was rather disappointing. One of my absolutely favorite things to do is learn about the cities that we go to. I love hearing the history, the fables and all the things that has made the city what they are today. Its just nice to see that connection - that passion! Our guide didn't know anything... the things she memorized to say didn't include much history at all. We learned one thing that was interesting, and that was Portland was named by a flip of a coin. This was interesting to know because when you go there, this "fits" - it totally makes sense in the culture and in the people. What we didn't learn about was the history of roses and what they have to do with Portland. Also, there were museums with statues and we would just ride up to them and look at them. We'd ask questions and the poor girl just didn't know anything, so we finally looked for plaques and found a little bit of information.

This was a bit sad because I absolutely love the experience of going places and learning about them. Its a crucial combination to understand and truly appreciate something. That beings said, take the Segway tour if you want to see some stuff and go for a fun ride, however definitely book a walking tour too. We drove by a few of the guides and could hear them talking and it was extremely interesting... I found myself listening in because we weren't getting the info on our tour! One good thing that happened on this tour is we met two crazy southern guys that were really into sports, and of course they completely hit it off with Greg. I found myself in a sea of sports talk. They were both really nice and invited us on all this special access stuff they had at the Oregon State game. Apparently one of the guys just sent a message on twitter about how he was coming out to see the team and how excited he was, and they gave him access to tours and buffet food, etc all for free. So, he invited us to join them!

VOODOO DONUTS

24/7 Donuts? Yes, PLEASE. Voodooooooo donuts (I just really like saying that word) is, in my mind, the Pat's Cheesesteak of Philly. There are huge lines all the time to get in and they wrap around the building, and well, its basically all madness. Drunk people must show up here all the time at insane hours. Its like $25 for a dozen donuts, so its not cheap. However, the donuts are well made and they are super delish and unlike anything you'll find anywhere else. Plus, a lot of them have these obscene-sounding names and I found myself editing which donuts I wanted because well, there was NO WAY I was saying THAT out loud.

The only problem was the paradox of choice. It was like walking into the toothpaste isle at Redners. I look at all the toothpaste and find myself utterly confused and completely paralyzed and I wish I didn't need the stupid toothpaste after all. I mean, what happened to the plain white Colgate toothpaste?! So, Voodoo donuts I literally just picked anything I saw that wasn't obscene sounding and looked decent. I can't even remember what half of them are called... but I do know that some were named after Eminem stuff, there was a crazy bacon syrup sweet donut, and many others that just made you laugh. I think I could only eat 1-2 donuts. Greg ate the rest. I wish I had room for more, they are just so filling!

LE PIGEON

The only way I can eat weird stuff is to not know what it is. I just can't eat something that I know is a pigs ear or a boar's tongue. Its gets all in my head and I find myself getting sick thinking about it, let alone looking at it on a plate. So, I ordered sweet bread because I have no idea what it is and I thought it was bread. Then Greg started making fun of me, and asking if I know what it actually is. I said NO, and to this day I refuse to look and see what sweet bread is because I actually enjoyed it, and it will totally ruin it for me if I know. So, in this situation, ignorance is bliss.

BEAST

At Le Pigeon you had a menu and choices, at Beast, you kind of just show up and they serve you a like 1 or 2 options available. I learned from Le Pigeon, the less I know of what I am eating, the better. So I ordered some stuff, tried not to think about what is actually was and it seemed to work. Everything was amazing. Its pretty expensive but is definitely fine food. Its hard to find good quality stuff and well made together. It was like a five course meal, and for once I ordered the wine tasting with each course. This seemed like a good idea at the time, but they just kept bringing more wine. The first one was good, the 2nd one I had to chug it, the 3rd one I took a few sips and gave up and handed it to Greg. I'm pretty sure I couldn't even take a sip of the last one...I was done by then. German wine... French wine... Sigh and Yum.

POK POK

Wings and wings and wow! Best wings EVER and by leaps and bounds! Who knew... a little Asian/Thai place in Portland would be so incredible? This place in probably the best food at the best price. It was not very expensive, yet incredible. They don't use super expensive ingredients - in fact, the chef does his best to buy the "cheap" foods that are sold in his hometown market and just make them incredibly well. He has MASTERED it. When I say cheap ingredients, I mean stuff that normal people will buy at market, so definitely don't associate cheap with junk because the food here is anything but. You have to walk up and put your name in, and usually you have to wait to get in. We ended up sitting at their "bar" area which wasn't really a bar, just set up with bar stools and a taller table near the door. I was worried it would be cold at first because it's chilly outside and they are not in a building...its just posts with this big clear plastic in front.. however they had heat lamps everywhere so it worked out well. Plus, a few minutes after we sat down it started raining. Thank goodness we got in when we did! I felt bad for the people standing outside in the rain.... obviously the place is good when people stand in the rain waiting to get in!

OREGON STATE / RESER STADIUM

I don't think I've ever been on a tour of a stadium before...and it was a really, really fun experience. Let me back up though, and start at the beginning. Somehow, we were late getting to Oregon. I don't remember exactly why, I think it has something to do with traffic and maybe breakfast taking too long, or maybe getting up to late? I forget. All in all, we were running late. We drove by the stadium pretty much the exact time the tour should have been starting, but then we had to park a ways a way and walk there. So, good thing we were in decent shape because we pretty much walked super fast/ran.

We got there, and no sign of the two crazy southern guys. We looked around everywhere and finally, just happened to glance in what turned out to be the locker room and saw one of the guys standing there talking. We knocked on the window and he opened the door and let us in... and said "they are with us!" I'm not sure why I found this so funny, but it definitely made me smile! We got to see all the players lockers, their stuff (which STANK oh my lord) and we took a bunch of pictures. Greg really liked it... being he's all into this. He knew the players and was telling me which ones were popular.

After the tour of the locker room, we went to see the players gym which was insane madness crazy. Its designed so that you literally don't need to leave your "spot." So, you go to your spot in the gym and your spot is basically all kinds of equipment that keeps you where you are - so no more walking to one spot to do legs, another to do arms, etc. Its literally all right there! Just park in your spot and do everything you need to. Its really neat - have never seen anything like it! Its definitely the gym of the future. From the gym, we headed over to the lounge/seating area. They have some really nice seating set ups and I wish we could have seating like this at the Flyers games. They have private seating that's not in a true box, but still sectioned off and set up high and you get your own TV and everything with it. Also, right behind you is a private food / catering area with restroom easy access... its basically perfect.

At the end of the tour we went into what looked like a gigantic gym that had food and seating and a big play area for kids. We got passes to a private buffet, which was awesome. We also got a bunch of free stuff, like scarfs that you could put around you and at the bottom there were inserts to put your hands and keep them warm! Also got a cute orange & black pompom which I will definitely hang onto for the Flyers.

OREGON / AUTZEN STADIUM

The Ducks... people get really into this sports stuff. I'm all for crazy, some people are just really crazy. Its like, another level or something. We got some cool pictures, we met up with Ches and his friend, who I can't seem to remember his name. They had the same Oregon vacation planned we did apparently! They tried the twitter message with Oregon, but didn't work for this stadium. Probably because they are so much bigger! These guys change uniforms all the time, Nike designs a new uniform for them every game.

Greg got a Oregon jersey, and we ended up getting pictures with two crazy Oregon decked out in green-and-yellow fans. We took a walk around the stadium, and the southern guys invited us to sit with them but we decided our seats were much better so stuck with where we were. After we got seated, the southerners were trying to look for us and sent Greg a text to see where we were located, and Greg told them to look for the guy wearing the green and yellow Oregon jersey (haha). Later on in the game, one of the guys was standing up under the big board and he's pretty tall... (obviously the big board is much higher though). Greg send them a message and said to tell him to sit down because he was blocking the big board... he was on a roll.

MULTNOMAH FALLS

This was one of my picks, and one of my favorites. Just the previous week, we hiked up Diamond Head in Hawaii, so we figured... why not give it a shot in Oregon too? Multnomah falls is beautiful, absolutely lovely. The hike getting up the mountain is 1.5 miles and its NOT easy! It was much harder than Diamond Head. Plus, it was damp so you had to be careful not to slip. There were trees everywhere but the drop offs from one path to the next were not pretty, plus the rocks.... I enjoyed doing it and I think poor Greg was just trying to get it over with. The best part was the signs that told you had far you were and how much more you had to go. Towards the end, the markers got closer together, it was like extra motivation that you were almost there.

Once you get to the top, there's just a platform that looks out with a pretty view. You have to look down to see that you are literally overtop the left edge of the waterfall. Greg refused to even get on the platform. I wanted to take some pictures, so I had to get far back to capture some with him. The pictures at the top aren't the greatest because there aren't any significant land marks or sign markers that show where you are or that you're at the top. It just kind of looks like you are standing next to some trees with a wooden railing next to you. Meanwhile, a gigantic waterfall is falling to the earth below you. This was a bit disappointing, I love taking pictures - it helps me remember moments in time, and looking at them it can just take you back to where you were in the moment. I was annoyed that I couldn't get a picture with some assemblance of something showing we were at the top! I wanted to venture off to a different path, but Greg was having no parts of this. He's definitely the practical one. So down we went, the same way we came.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Outdoorsy, coffee-drinkers, book-lovers, somewhat pretentious, terrible drivers, super-weird dressers and well, total foodies. That sums up Portland in a nutshell. Oh, and they seem to have issue with people taking legal left turns... more than one occasion I saw a native honking and it was well, weird.

Its also very beautiful. You can look around and see lakes, snow covered mountains, low hanging clouds around the mountains and taco places everywhere. It just has this we are modern yet untouched feel to it. Every place you go has a feel, and I had the hardest time putting my finger on what Portland's was in the beginning. We went to Voodoo Donuts one night and I saw a sign that said "Keep Portland Weird" and I finally got it. In Portland, weird is a total norm.