Portland, Oregon: Waterfalls, Parks, Roses and SUNSHINE

I was able to escape rainy Boston for a few days and visit Sarah T. in Portland, OR. I had never been to the Pacific Northwest before. In fact, I'm embarrassed to say that I didn't know that Portland is in the northwest corner of Oregon, not somewhere in the center of the state. (Mike, that would be a great geography quiz: where is each capital LOCATED in each state?) When Sarah and I drove out of the city on Monday to go hiking, she pointed out Washington State to the north. "What?" I said. "Really? We're that close?"

Oh yes, I am a product of the United States Public Schools.

It's my last day here and I have had a fantastic time. The weather has been stunning -- 80 degrees most days, 90 on Monday, perfectly clear sky -- and I've been relaxing, which is something I haven't had much time to do lately. Sarah works at Peet's Coffee and is also playing an opera run, so I've had time alone to practice and answer emails, in addition to time bopping around the city.

On Monday, Sarah had the day off, so we rented a car and drove to the Oneonta Gorge and Multnomah Falls area, which is along the Columbia River. We hiked a 5.5 mile route through the park and it's safe to say it was the most beautiful hike I've ever taken. In fact, I'm posting these pictures in a larger size just so everyone can take in the beauty:

Waterfalls!















The big one: Multnomah Falls:



Looking up at Multnomah:



Looking down at its base (is that the correct terminology?):



Sarah in front of the falls:



And there's me:



This photo looks photoshopped to me, but it's not! Doesn't the background look unreal?



In a natural cave:



Flowers running through a small waterfall:



TREES. Made me think of the Stampers and their logging business:



Sarah and the trees:



Washing my hands in the river:



Sarah caught me cooling off with a little more water:



After hiking, we returned to Portland, and stopped at a Lebanese restaurant called Nicholas's. I don't know if it was because I was so tired from hiking, but that food was the best Middle Eastern food I have ever had. And prepared the fastest! The waiter rapidly brought out dolmas, babganoush, pitas straight from the over (filled with steam!), spinach pies, hummus, tahini and the best falafel ever. We scarfed ravenously.

Tuesday, I practiced, and (ahem) took care of some business in town. Then Sarah met me for food and drinks at Bartini, a bar with a fondue list and a list of 60 martinis! I had a blackberry lemon drop and a basil berry-tini, while Sarah had a coconut mojitotini. Those were some good drinks. We had some fondue touted as real Swiss, but I couldn't taste the kirsch. It was good anyway! In addition, we stuffed ourselves full of seared tuna, wild mushrooms over polenta, fried manchego, and white bean and tomato dip. All for a ridiculously low price - I fear I have gotten far too used to Boston restaurant prices.

We then walked to the waterfront:







Portland has parks everywhere. The waterfront was lovely, and Sarah told me about the rose festival that's held there every summer. We saw dragon boats warming up for their appearance in June's festival.

Tuesday night, while Sarah played "Magic Flute", I watched "Legend", which I had never seen. It was pretty good - very Dark Crystal/Labyrinth/80s fantasy movie. Tom Cruise didn't look like he had gone crazy yet. And what ever happend to Mia Sara? Legend and Ferris Bueller - two huge 80s cult hits - and then what? I wonder what she's doing now.

On Wednesday, Sarah was able to get the morning off, so we BIKED to the International Rose Garden. This was my first experience biking in a long, long time. I was pretty nervous, but it ended up being a lot of fun, and I'm looking forward to borrowing my sister's bike for a while. Washington Park, where the Rose Garden is located, is unbelievably huge. It's an old growth forest in the middle of the city! The rose garden itself hadn't come into full bloom, but I took some nice flower photos. My favorites:









I took about 50 flower shots but I won't assault you with them now. I have a feeling I'm far more into them than anyone else would be!

I had a hotdog at the park but still joined Sarah in some Mexican food at Cha Cha Cha's, which is near Peet's. By the way, this week I've been blessed to receive free iced coffees from Sarah. Mmmmmmm! I biked most of the way home, leaving Sarah to her coffee tasting class, and practiced for a bit. When Sarah returned, we met up with Sandy and had Ethiopian food across the river. Oh, so very very good. This trip has been a culinary delight. We then watched a bit of Sarah's unedited movie and made a bunch of playlists for each other.

Sleep came easily.

Today I've been blogging and am meeting Sarah for lunch at a cute little cafe. This afternoon I'm not quite sure what we'll be up to! Portland has been fantastic and Sarah has been a fabulous hostess. I'll miss the weather, for sure. Back to soggy Boston tonight on a Jet Blue red-eye.....