Portland (Oregon)
From Imakoopedia
Portland, "The City of Roses", is the largest city in Oregon and one of the major cities in the Pacific Northwest.
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Understand
Portland lies to the far northwest of Oregon, straddling the Willamette River just south of its confluence with the Columbia River at Vancouver, Washington. Portland is the biggest city between San Francisco and Seattle, and vies with those cities as the spiritual capital of the laid-back northern Pacific coast.
Get in
By plane
Portland International Airport (PDX) - a taxi from the airport to downtown will cost you around $30, while the MAX light rail will set you back 2 or 3 dollars, and take you from one end of the Portland to the other. Plus it goes right down town. All light rail connects with the city wide bus system.
By train
Amtrak provides service to Portland from all along the west coast. The Amtrak Cascades service runs three trains per day between Eugene, Oregon to the south, and Seattle in the north. This is quicker and much more reliable than the regular trains, which can be delayed for hours on the long routes from California or Canada.
Portland's Union Station is located north of downtown, about a 15-minute walk from Pioneer Square. It is adjacent to the Greyhound bus station.
By car
From Washington to the north and California as well as most of the rest of Oregon to the south, the easiest way to get to Portland is on Interstate Highway 5. Highway 5 runs directly through downtown Portland with a number of exits.
From Boise and other points east, Highway 84 leads along the Columbia into Portland. From the Oregon Coast Highway and other points along the Pacific coast to the west, the easiest approach is Highway 26. It cuts east towards Portland between Cannon Beach and Seaside.
By bus
Greyhound provides bus service along the West coast as well as from points inland.
By boat
No useful boat lines exist, although you can cruise up and down the river.
Get around
Portland is an easy city to bike, walk or use public transport.
TriMet
Portland's TriMet authority maintains a Bus, Light Rail, and Streetcar public transportation system. http://www.trimet.org/
See
- Saturday Market. http://www.portlandsaturdaymarket.com
- Pioneer Courthouse Square
- The Public Services Building (1120 SW 5th Avenue), aka The Portland Building, is considered an architectural icon. Designed by Michael Graves and built in 1982, its coloring and embellishment marked the arrival of postmodern architecture and the end of stark glass and steel edifices. The statue in front, "Portlandia", is second largest copper statue in the United States -- only the Statue of Liberty is larger.
Museums
- Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI). OMSI is great for kids. It has hundreds of hands on activities and you can spend a full rainy day there and not get bored. But if all you want to do is see an awesome movie check out the IMAX theater that gives you a 360 view of space travel, scuba diving, race car driving, or an Africa safari. http://www.omsi.edu
Public art
- First Thursday of every month all art galleries in the Pearl district are free, and many serve wine and cheese. http://www.firstthursday.org/The Pearl as the locals call it is a newly remodeled and redeveloped area across from downtown P-town. It was old warehouses just five years ago and now it is posh high rises and condos that have trendy shops and galleries at street level. A modern new city park sits in the middle that includes a boardwalk, grass, trees, waterfall which fills a pool every half hour or so. Little kids love the water on a hot day.
- The bronze statue of a woman on 5th & Washington is titled Kvinneakt, created by sculptor Norm Taylor. But everyone knows it as the "Expose Yourself to Art" statue, after a popular poster featuring a flasher facing this work. The flasher was a tavern owner named Bud Clark, who went on to become mayor of the city.
Do
- Washington Park (http://www.parks.ci.portland.or.us/Parks/Washington.htm), SW Park Place (off Highway 26), 503-823-PLAY. sunrise-sunset, every day. Washington Park is a classic urban park. Sprawling over about 140 acres just west of downtown Portland, the park encompasses a Japanese Garden (http://www.japanesegarden.com), the Oregon Zoo, the International Rose Test Garden (with beautiful views of Portland and Mount Hood), a Vietnam Veterans Memorial, and a Lewis and Clark Memorial. Free (some attractions charge admission).
- Forest Park, (in the northwest of the city) is about 20 km2 (7.7 mi2), or 5000 acres. It is the US's largest urban park, and possibly the largest in the world. Many great hiking and biking trails to be found.
- Rose Festival (http://www.rosefestival.org/). June 3-12, 2004. The actual Rose Festival Parade (not to be confused with the similar-sounding parade in Pasadena) is on the 12th.
- Chinese Classical Garden, NW 3rd & Everett.
- The Oregon Zoo http://www.zooregon.org
- Pittock Mansion http://www.pittockmansion.com/
Learn
Work
Buy
- Powell's City of Books (http://www.powells.com), 1005 West Burnside, 503-228-4651. 9AM-11PM every day. Powell's is a landmark in Portland, and most residents are proud to let you know that this is the biggest independent bookstore in the entire world. Covering an entire city block, the store stocks over a million books in 3500 sections. And that's not counting the 5 other branches in Portland (travel bookstore at Pioneer Square, technical bookstore in the north Park Blocks, the airport bookstore, and...)! The store can be imposing (get a map from the front desk), but it's a don't-miss for anyone who loves to read.
- Sellwood One word, Antique, if you love old vintage furnishings than you need to head towards Sellwood. Plus there are some great new restaurants that serve fancy Thai or Indian food without breaking the bank.
- NW 23rd, north of Burnside. Mostly (not completely) yuppie junk, but one of the most densely populated shopping/eating districts in Portland.
- Hawthorne District, east side of the Willamette. Head shops, microbreweries, and craft stores.
Eat
Budget
- New Seasons supermarket. They make the best sandwiches and have an awesome deli counter. You choose your bread, meat/tofu pate, veggies, and spreads. Quality that you've never seen before. Every one will love it. Five locations and more on the way, Concordia, Orenco Station, Raleigh Hills, Sellwood, and Seven Corners on NE division. http://newseasonsmarket.com/
- The downtown core is home to a small army of Food Trailers. With less overhead than the traditional indoor restaurant, you can pick up a delicious meal on the cheap. Choose from a wide variety of ethnic foods including Indian, Mexican, and hot dogs.
- A staple in Seattle, Taco Del Mar serves up a 2 lb. burrito for around $5. The ingredients are fresh and the staff are mostly laid-back hipsters. Try the fish taco (their namesake). Various locations around the downtown area.
Mid-range
- Great brunch at Henry's on SE 26th and Clinton.
- Byways Cafe, 1212 NW Glisan St. A very '50s-style diner in the middle of the trendy Pearl District, with spectacular breakfast eating and enormous portions. Get a serious blast from the past, and enjoy the food too.
- Excellent thin-crust pizza at Pizzicato or Hot Lips Pizza. At Pizzicato try the faux-Italian options, and at Hot Lips get any of the surprisingly good veggie pizza toppings like artichoke. Pizzicato is throughout the metro area; Hot Lips is at 1909 SW 6th Ave. downtown near Portland State University and in the Pearl District at 710 NW 10th Ave.
- For New York-style pizza, it's hard to beat Escape from New York at 622 NW 23rd., and New York, NY at 7737 SW Barbur Blvd. uptown. The restaurants are shrines to New York, unlike their chain-restaurant counterpart, Pizza Schmizza, also quite good and spread throughout Portland.
- Kornblatt's Delicatessen at 628 NW 23rd Ave. serves up a mean corned beef sandwich, better than most of what you'll get on the West Coast, not to mention their famous bagels. Outside tables in the summertime add to the pleasure.
- Portland is famous for its bread, and the bakery that started it all, Pearl Bakery, anchors the Pearl District. The bread is rightly acclaimed as the best in town, and you can eat in and get a variety of sandwiches or even excellent breakfast pastries. 102 NW 9th Ave., in the Pearl District.
- Mio Sushi, near NW 23rd St., is a great and constantly crowded place to eat sushi. It's also pretty reasonably priced. The sushi is fresh and even when crowded the service is pretty quick. 2271 NW Johnson St.
Splurge
- Basta's Trattoria, at 410 NW 21st Ave., serves excellent Italian food in a rustic-style decor. The wine list is extensive, and the menu is long but not overwhelming. Try the ragout over rigatoni or the lamb.
- Portofino Caffe Italiano is a very small restaurant with attentive service and solid northern Italian and French Riviera cuisine. 8075 SE 13th Ave., in Sellwood.
- Pazzo Ristorante, downtown, has both an excellent location near several movie theaters and the shopping district and solid Italian-Pacific Northwest fusion cuisine. It gets quite crowded on Friday and Saturday nights, however, so be forewarned. 621 SW Washington St.
- For a more bistro-like atmosphere Southpark Seafood Grill & Wine Bar is located in the southwest corner of the shopping district and near a few movie theaters and the main Portland Center for the Performing Arts facilities. The food is, again, excellent Mediterranean-Italian fare with a regional seafood twist. 901 SW Salmon St.
- McCormick and Schmick's has now expanded across the U.S., but way back when it was just four (now five) Portland fresh-seafood restaurants. They still serve fresh seafood, too, and it's excellent almost any way they prepare it. Downtown at 235 SW First Ave. (McCormick and Schmick's Seafood Restaurant), 0309 SW Montgomery St. (McCormick and Schmick's Harborside at the Marina), 401 SW 12th Ave. (Jake's Famous Crawfish), 611 SW 10th Ave. (Jake's Grill), and in Beaverton at 9945 SW Beaverton-Hillsdale Hwy. (McCormick's Fish House and Bar).
- El Gaucho, a chain with other restaurants in Seattle and Tacoma, serves what The Oregonian sometimes calls the best steak in town and has one of the darkest interiors in town. The steak and ambiance don't come cheaply, however, so be prepared. 319 SW Broadway Ave., downtown.
- Ringside is El Gaucho's local competition, also an on-again, off-again champion of the Portland steak contest. It, too, is dark, but fully local and noisier. Expect to spend here as well. 2165 W Burnside, downtown.
- For a more ethnic experience, Plainfields' Mayur is well-known for both good Subcontinental food and good overall experience, in a big house at the edge of the West Hills. 852 SW 21st Ave., near downtown.
- If you like dessert, Papa Haydn is the place to go. Although the entrees aren't all that impressive, sometimes there are four different lemon desserts, not to mention a plethora of chocolates of every kind, on the menu. Either at 701 NW 23rd Ave., near downtown, or 5829 SE Milwaukie Ave., in Sellwood.
Drink
Take advantage of the Northwest's famous microbrews - small breweries that serve their own (and other's) craft beers. A world away from the generic beers that are the mainstay of America (comparable to 'real ales' in the UK).
- Bagdad Theater and Pub, 3702 Southeast Hawthorne, 503-228-4651. 2:30-midnight every day (depending on feature). The Bagdad is one of the great things about Portland: a 700-seat second-run movie theater serving a selection of regional craft brews you can drink while you watch. Add on top of that a good selection of pizza (slice or pie), sandwiches, and other brew-pubby foodstuffs, and you've got a great place to blow an evening. Movies start around 5:30PM, and run about every two hours after that. $3 (admission; beer and food extra). http://www.mcmenamins.com/Theaters/?theater=Bagdad
- Likewise the Mission Theater (1624 NW Glisan) and Kennedy School Theater (5736 NE 33rd) are part of the McMenamins Empire.
- The Delta Cafe on SE Woodstock, serves messy Barbecue Pork sandwiches, lemonade in a jar, and 40oz Mickey's.
- Dots on SE Clinton and 26th, a funky night spot.
- Coffee People, with locations throughout the city, is Portland's answer to Starbucks' empire, except the coffee is better. Try a Velvet Hammer if you need caffeine. http://www.coffeepeople.com
- Silverado, Stark and 12th in SW. Gay bar, strippers. Always a fun crowd.
Sleep
Budget
- International Guesthouse, 1818 NW Glisan, 503-241-2783 (800-909-4776 code 178, E-mail: hinwp@teleport.com).
Mid-range
Splurge
- Embassy Suites Portland Downtown is in the renovated Multnomah Hotel and boasts good location and nice decor for the money. 319 SW Pine St., 503-279-9000, www.embassysuites.com (http://www.embassysuites.com/en/es/hotels/index.jhtml?ctyhocn=PDXPSES).
Contact
Portland is home to one of the largest community wireless networks based on the works of The Personal Telco Project (http://www.personaltelco.net). Check to find one of nearly 100 spots you can log onto the Internet free of any charge. Many major attractions such as Pioneer Square, PGE Park and many local parks are covered.
Stay safe
While not overly dangerous, Portland is not necessarily overly safe either, especially for young women at night. Portland is a relativelly large city and some areas such as southeast and especially north portland can be dangerous.
Cope
Bring or buy an umbrella if your in Portland between September 25th and June 25th. Wear a rain jacket if you don't want to stand out so much as a tourist.
Get out
External links
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