Portland Experience – A Tale of a Lively City

A mixed culturally rich city with lively people and streets where you’ve got a great lot of entertainment sources ranging from theatres to fabulous gardens and a hipster paradise and of course not to forget the incredible food and natural beauty, we are in Portland today!
The largest city of Oregon, Portland acts a major port in the Willamette Valley region to the northwest of the Pacific boasting the influx of the Willamette and Columbia Rivers. It’s a fun fact to know that Oregon’s 60% of the population are found here in Portland. One of the most desired and fancy places to be in, here are some of the best experiences of Portland. Check it out-
How to Get There?
Once you’ve landed, the TriMet Max Train will take you take to downtown. It isn’t expensive and you’re through the traffic, enjoying the natural scenes and great view of the mountains. The journey would take some 40 minutes or so.
Being an easy to travel city, Portland can be travelled easily on foot or on bike. Here are some of the best places you must visit when in Portland-
1. Washington Park: located to the west of the city center, the Washington Park attracts a huge number of tourists. The place is famed because of its catchy view of the snow clad mountains along with the International Rose Test Garden, a museum and a zoo. You can spend the entire day here observing and enjoying the surrounding. If you are with your little ones, then there are no chances of their getting bored as the place houses children’s museum too. The place is open from 5 am to 10 pm.
2. International Rose Test Garden: founded in the year 1917, this place oldest operated public rose test garden in the US. The specialty of the place is that new varieties of roses are being developed here. The plants are very attractively sectioned with spaces for people to explore and enjoy the view. What’s fascinating is that the winner plants are placed in the space which is named as the Gold Medal Garden. The Peninsula Park Rose Garden is another place displaying lovely roses on the other side of the river.
3. Powell’s City of Books: if you are one of those who can’t do without books even while travelling then this place is for you. Located in Burnside, explore in to millions of books at this popular used bookstore. You’d be thrilled to find interesting books displayed under new and interesting titles, you definitely find one matching your mood.
4. Portland Art Museum: founded in the year 1892, the Portland Art Museum is the seventh oldest museum in the US. With ever exceeding informative collections, the museum now boast over 42,000 things to see and learn including Native American artifacts, graphic arts, Asian art, Northwest art, English silver and photography. One of the most treasured pieces of collection is the Vincent Van Gogh’s Cart with Black Ox. The museum is open all days of the week with paid entry.
5. Portland Japanese Garden: tired of a hectic day and need some peace? Find all of it in Portland’s Japanese Garden. Covering less than 6 acres of land, this place is located on the grounds of an old zoo. A lovely place it is with beautifully placed gardens exhibiting in different styles and a picturesque ceremonial tea-house. The garden spaces include strolling pond garden, picture like flat garden and the Zen focused sand and stone garden.
6. Oregon Zoo: founded in the late 1800s, housing about hundreds of species including marine animals and varieties of birds, the Oregon Zoo actually began as a private collection of animals by a man named Richard Knight. You’d find animals from all over the world including Amazon, Africa and the Arctic. The zoo focuses on preserving the species of the Pacific Northwest.
Apart from the above listed places of interest that you just can’t miss, there is this Portland Saturday Market which is a pleasant walk experience and you definitely take this. The market is an open air market and is open every day. In fact it is the largest continuously operated market in the US. Buy anything from crafts, to foods to flowers or simply stroll. Its total fun!
Some other places to go shopping here are Portland Farmers Market, Lloyd Center, Sellwood, Cascade Station Shopping Center and Crafty Wonderland.
What to Eat?
Portland offers some of the best menus and here is what you got to try!
Devilled Eggs with boquerones are a love to die for combination. Go grab your bite at Grain & Gristle. Some other lip smacking delicacies are Korean Fried Chicken, The Cheesus, IKE’s Fish Sauce Wings.
That was Portland at a glance. This lovely place with its lovely people is for sure a traveler’s paradise. You got to go there to believe!