Portland, Oregon: A lover

Proudly, I have an official profile on The Culture Trip now. You can check it out here: http://contributors.theculturetrip.com/contributors/phuong-pham  

Speaking of culture, I just made my way to Portland, Oregon few weeks ago. It was my first time visiting Oregon, and it was totally wonderful.

About the time that I went to Portland, the weather was just perfect. It was not raining, but about to rain. I love that transition, that you can smell and feel something new is going to happen. My friend and I booked a room through VRBO (stands for Vacation Rentals by Owner), another option aside from Airbnb. We were staying in North East side of the city, and the houses there are so beautiful. Every house has a small garden, where they grow roses, A LOT of roses. Then I knew for sure that I traveled in Portland. We called it the City for Lovers.

I hope I did not overrate the variety of cuisines in Portland, but you should not miss out checking the food trucks in the city. They are numerous, diverse and multicultural. They don’t look sloppy and lousy to me at all, but rustic and authentic. We were lucky to come to Portland during the long weekend, and we got a chance to check out the farmers market there. Here we checked out how people ate, played the music and enjoyed their lives. By the way, if you are a fan of handmade soap, you would love this farmers market. This was the first time I’ve seen a “truffle soap”, and I just wanted to eat it right away.

The greatest thing about Portland might be its amazing public transit system. $5 for one day pass, and you could travel literary everywhere in the city. You definitely can go to the airport by yourself.  To be fair, it does not take long to explore the city. The market fair, the food trucks, the parks, donut place (Voodoo Doughnut, which was a bit overrated I think) could be checked out within a day. To me, the place that I wish I could have more time to explore is Powell Bookstore. It was the biggest bookstore I’ve ever been to. A fascinating thing is that they have all the new and used books. People say I am a weirdo because I love old books. I really am. I found the small highlights or hand-written notes very fascinating and precious.

Outside of Portland is a totally different world. Along with the Columbia River, we made a silly route visit the Oneonta Gorge and Multnomah Falls. Remember, don’t waste your gas to follow Google Maps to Columbia Gorge Scenic area, because all the waterfalls are nearby Columbia Highway. Actually, I would highly recommend going straight to Trillium Lake, which is truly a glimpse into the beauty of nature.

It is not easy to love someone, as not easy to love a city. Every city has its own color, just like a person. When I walk in Portland, I see green. When I walk in New York, I see yellow (probably because of the cabs). For some strange reasons, I see San Francisco filled with various colors (maybe because of the Castro’s flag).  It took me three months to fall in love with San Francisco (I am skeptical, ;)), but I know I will take Portland as my potential lover.