Portland is a juxtaposition of bustling city and majestic mountains.
Portland, Oregon is to a city what indie rock is to the music industry. A previously misunderstood, somewhat ignored but currently on the rise phenomenom. Portland is fresh and truly original with a bad-ass attitude on the side—the Seattle of 15 years ago. And it’s definitely in the Top 5 of my personal “Need to Go There” travel list.
The ticket will cost you $350 round trip (insert deep breath here), but after that, it’s smooth sailing. Portland offers three things that every broke-but-determined-to-travel enthusiast wants to hear: no sales tax, great hostels, and cheap everything else.
To truly experience the rich cultural explosion that is Portland, do what the locals do. So do not eat at Applebee’s. Do not enter a Starbuck’s or Gap, and definitely do not drink a Bud Light. Instead, sample Portland’s wide variety of native restaurants, coffee houses, local designers and artisans and microbrews. Most of these can be found in the infamous Hawthorne District which is Portland’s cultural hub. It offers everything from micro-breweries to local designers, and it’s a great place to start if you have no idea where to go.
To get your feet wet, so to speak, to grasp the vibe of this city, go to Portland Saturday Market. Located under the Burnside Bridge; it’s open on Saturday and Sunday and showcases local artists and their crafts. Best news: it’s free, free, free.
In keeping with the theme of cultural celebration, Portland has its own take on food, offering a slew of restaurants with singular menus. Laughing Planet is one of them. While seating can be hard to find, there are three locations so if one is full you can run to the next one. Try their plantains and spicy barbecue sauce. They also have an extensive drink menu with everything from carrot juice to micro brews.
When it comes to micro brews, Portland is basically a holy city. The amount of Starbucks in New York is comparable to the number of micro breweries in Portland. While almost none of them are bad, some are better than others. The Laurelwood Public House and Brewery offers beer created by award-winning brew master Christian Ettinger. It’s a great place to sample the native suds. They also have excellent food to boot. I hear that the garlic fries are to die for.
If by the end of your visit you are curious about the mountains that frame the city, take a day trip to Mt. St. Helen’s — which is just 50 miles away. It’s just one of the numerous state parks that surround the city.
For more information visit http://wikitravel.org/en/Portland_(Oregon). The creator of Wikipedia is from Portland so trust me, it’s a great site.
