Portland

Portland is one of the few cities we've ever visited which overwhelmed us with a feeling that we'd move there as soon as could find an available house. It wasn't a quantifiable feeling but it was the little things that crept up on us. Maybe it's the fact that the train ride from the airport to downtown cost less than a $1.50 a person. On the other hand, it could be the abundance of trees downtown and the lack of annoyingly large billboard signs. Having art on most street corners and free transportation through the downtown didn't hurt. Or it could have been the fact that the public was friendly. It was this combination of these subliminal elements that had us fantasizing about moving to Portland and avoiding the reality that we were far from ready to move anywhere.

In spite of a general nice feeling about the city, the only news I've heard about Portland involved the fact that the city seems to be overcast and that they have no major landmark for their postcards. Even the friends and family who've visited Portland seemed to have that overall feeling it was nice, but nothing concrete about it. Yes, they were accurate in the overcast condition but it wasn't as bad as described. The skies weren't that bright and were a bit mistier. As for the landmark (or lack thereof), maybe the lack of a large and unique tower for the postcards hurt it a bit but it seems more likely that it would change the town's feel to have a large tower, statue or other memorable object in the middle.

Anyway, back to the chronology as my gushing about the town isn't becoming and might come across as a obsessed teen crush.

After landing at the airport, we boarded the MAX Light Rail and in forty minutes arrived at Pioneer Courthouse Square. Pioneer Courthouse Square is the center of downtown where every major transportation line seems to converge. All of the buses, trains, tours, everything zips through here. To encourage you to hang out more, there's free internet and food vendors in the square. Stay awhile, grab a burrito and get some work done. In the middle of the square is the most photographed landmark in the city, a statue of a businessman with his umbrella. That said, the free internet and free transportation is much more impressive to brag about.

We were in Portland for only a quick two nights as we were jumping on the Columbia Queen, and we were staying at the Hilton Portland Executive Tower to depart with the group straight for the ship. Two nights is far from enough.

Portland is called the "City of Roses" but that was too limiting criteria in the world of plants, as it seemed to be a city of gardens. There are more gardens than you can cover in two days which was the impossible mission that we set out to do. That said, our first stop was the new Chinese Garden in Old Town.

The Portland Classical Chinese Garden is about ten years old, but it looks as if it's been there forever. They converted an old parking lot into a new Chinese garden which looks like an old Chinese garden for the new residents who've now moved downtown. Follow that new and old theme?

Simply put, the Chinese Garden looks like what one would expect a Chinese Garden to look like. That description is simple, but I think it's what's most striking. It's not like a theme park where every element seems real but it's obvious that you're in a theme park. You would expect nothing less after they transported the materials, the workers and the designers. Fortunately, Portland has a sister relationship with Suzhou China so with a little cross border cooperation, they sent the workers and Portland sent over a Rose Garden. Besides the buildings of Portland in the background, every angle looks like you've been transported to China. That also is what makes a Chinese garden so unique... the view changes from every angle.

Within the garden, is an authentic Chinese tea house transports you to another place. Don't expect Lipton or Tetley here -- this is the real stuff. We sampled the tea offerings which was quite a learning experience. This is the place to learn abut tea