Portlandia
Oh, Portland. Your rain and your sun. Your greens and your blues. Your outrageously delicious heart-attack food. Your over-the-top hipsterness. You’re quite the charming little town.
My friend Jiongyi and I drove down to Portland for just a couple days after our trip to Seattle. And as long-time readers and friends may remember, I did an entire Pacific coast road trip last year that also involved Seattle and Portland, so it was fun to hit a few of the same spots but also explore new places we missed the last time around.
Some rain and a train on the three hour drive down.
Jiongyi used his credit card points and got us a posh place to stay right by the Portland airport.
It turns out Portland is a multi-use airport, which meant fighter jets flying by our window all morning!
Our first stop on the foodie adventures– Potato Champion. They’re known for their poutine, which is actually a Canadian invention. Fries + gravy + cheese curds. It’s gross and delicious. And we got some fries with pulled pork and bbq sauce as well.
We did the beer sampler at Deschutes, where Jiongyi was disappointed to discover that the only one he really liked was the one he already knew he liked, the Black Butte Porter.
Next, on my friends Vince and Young’s recommendations, we had dinner at Pok Pok Thai, where we were first shuttled across the street for drinks and appetizers. I really enjoyed my tamarind drinking vinegar. Sounds bizarre, tastes great.
On day two, we headed out in the morning to Multnomah Falls. There’s a tiny Jiongyi somewhere on that bridge.
I love the nature surrounding Portland. The entire west coast is just so lovely.
We also visited a number of gardens, the international rose test garden, and the arboretum.
And then we took a trip up the Aerial Tram, which leads to a medical campus at the top.
More delicious stops– Portland classics– Voodoo Doughnuts, Pine State Biscuits, Stumptown Coffee.
