Portland, Oregon

If you visit Powell's Book Store in downtown Portland, you will find hundreds of books on their shelves that tell, both through written word and photographs, about the beauty and diversity of this area.  There were several reasons driving my decision to move here in 2007, and the geography was certainly one influence.  The city of Portland is one of the prettiest you will see anywhere, with the Willamette River running north through the city to join the Columbia River where it divides Portland from Vancouver, Washington.  There are 11 bridges spanning the river, beginning with the Sellwood Bridge to the south and ending with the St. John's Bridge to the north, providing links between the west and east sides of the city.  It is a bit tricky getting around in this metropolis, and I have found my GPS to be invaluable.  Before buying my Honda, I used a Thomas Guide to the point that the pages started falling out.  To say that Portland is one hill after another is no exaggeration, and there are blocks of the downtown area where you simply cannot make a turn.  After 6 years, I still try to plan my route to consider both directions and the time of day, in order to avoid confusion and frustration.  It would be difficult to identify one area over another as a favorite for me.  Part of the charm of the city is that there are so many divergent opportunities to explore and experience the beauty of the area.

Washington Park overlooks the City, with views of Mt. Hood, and includes the Rose Garden, Japanese Garden, walking trails, and the Arboretum.  

In my world, a visit to Portland is not complete until you spend some quality time experiencing the beauty and serenity of the Japanese Gardens.  I have spent many hours here at different times walking, watching and simply soaking in the peaceful environment of this very special gardens.  I have dedicated a full blog post to the Gardens, but wanted to include a few of my favorites here.

My townhouse was located a couple of blocks from the Nike World Campus in Beaverton, and I took advantage of their extensive walking paths on a regular basis.  The Campus includes a large pond in the center, where geese made themselves at home, and the surrounding path takes a walker through a japanese-style garden and a grove of bamboo.  I never learned the identity of the artist commissioned to create the sculptures that made their home on the Campus, but always enjoyed finding them in unexpected places.

Japanese Garden area of Nike Campus

Two examples of the sculptures to be found at Nike World Campus.














The Portland waterfront offers some really special views of the city and the bridge system.  There are miles of waterfront walking trails, as well as boating opportunities up and down the Willamette.