Portland, Oregon

I can see why people love Portland. Really. The food absolutely delivers, the hipsters are super friendly, and you can get whatever you want-no matter how odd (ie. fanny packs for dogs). I suppose Thien and I have lived in the city for too long; we've been trained to wait 30+ minutes for dinner, to make endless circles to find parking downtown, and of course to see lots of people, everywhere, at all times. Frankly, the lack of struggle (and population density) baffled us. I still, to this day, think that half the city is in hiding and has taken the retails stores of Mississippi Ave. with them, but that's just me. While nothing in Portland made sense, it gave us what we needed - to get away from the city but still be in the city (see what I did there?).  Portland is obscure but it's a city that's living the good life - clean, pedestrian-friendly, no crowds, cheap, great, local food, fantastic local beers and wine, forests and mountains, and the list goes on.

Portland is quirky and weirdly wonderful. Visit, wander aimlessly, and see for yourself!

Our Itinerary

Day 1:

• BoltBus from Seattle to Portland. 3 very pleasant hours with very comfortable seats.
• Dinner at Luc Lac. Maybe it's the atmosphere that draws in the crowd. The mussel and vegetarian spring rolls were great, but I'd suggest you skip noodle dishes with the chicken and pork.

Day 2:

• Breakfast @ Ken's Artisan Bakery. There's a reason why he won a James Beard Award!! Everything in the bakery was delicious and the bakery offers Stumptown Coffee! A staple for Portland.
• Portland Saturday Market.
• Powell's City of Books. It's a book lover's paradise with new, used, and out of print books. Rooms upon rooms of books. So many books!
• Le Pigeon. Another James Beard winner with great food! The way the restaurant is set up, you're bound to have great conversation with your neighbors. The kitchen is part of the dining area and you can see Gabriel Rucker in action.

Day 3:

• Brunch @ Screen Door. Get here 30 minutes before they open. There's already a line, but I promise you won't have to wait as long. The chicken and waffles, in itself, are worth the visit.
• Stroll on Mississippi Ave. in search to find cute boutique. Sadly, we came out empty-handed.
• Mount Hood, Columbia River Gorge & Multnomah Falls.  It's worth a visit because the drive and the fall were both gorgeous.  Two areas to stop for quick photo opps are Women's Forum Outlook and Crown Point Overlook Vista House. 
• Pheasant Valley Winery. Portland has hundreds of wineries and Mt. Hood area offers quite a few. We just happened to choose this one, but definitely research vineyards and wineries in that area if wine is your thing. Vineyards are usually opened starting in April.
• Drinks @ Departure Rooftop Bar.
• Pok Pok Noi. Another James Beard winner. We wanted to experience how authentic the food was compared to the street food we had in Thailand. You could get the Pok Pok experience without the long wait at the original restaurant.

Day 4:

• Back at Ken's Artisan Bakery. It was so good the first time, we had to come back for more. 
• Salt & Straw. BEST ice cream, EVER! So many unique flavors to choose from. 
• Early afternoon flight home.