Portland

Portland is an extraordinary yet unconventional city in Oregon, a state well known for its natural marvels. The journey there did not disappoint – along the way to our destination we passed lakes and forests, features consistent with the Pacific North-West that we have grown to love and call home.

Pearl District (and ice-cream!)

We checked in at The Mark Spencer Hotel in the lively Pearl District, an area of the city that is full of unique stores, trendy restaurants and Powell Books, the world’s largest independent bookseller and a cornerstone of the Portland community since 1971.

My husband and I opted for dinner at Thai Peacock, an intimate restaurant tucked away at a street corner a short walk away from our hotel. We were blown away by the amazing food. The khao soi and pad thai was by far the best Thai food I’ve eaten outside of Thailand.

To round up our evening we drove to Salt n’ Straw for ice cream, the popularity of the store evident by the long line-up that snaked around the block. Despite the crowd, the line moved swiftly and we were soon inside, where we were greeted by the smell of freshly-baked waffle cones. We made it to the front of the queue, where the assisting staff encouraged us to sample different flavours, while telling us about the ingredients and the artisans it came from. We tried 3 flavours, including the famous ‘pear and blue cheese’, before opting for the salted malted choc chip cookie dough and sea salt with caramel ribbons.

Multnomah Falls, shopping and doughnuts!

We kicked off the next day with delicious lattes from Stumpton Coffee Roasters, located right across our hotel. Afterward we visited the magnificent Multnomah Falls, Oregon’s tallest waterfall at 189m. The drive there was reminiscent of the Sea-to-Sky Highway in North Vancouver, as we enjoyed forest- and water- views on one side (courtesy of Columbia River Gorge) and an active railway on the other. It was a short 5-minute walk to the Falls and upon getting closer we were drenched in spray. We began the short hike upward to explore more viewpoints, taking advantage of the several amazing photo opportunities. However, we were soon hungry and returned to town for lunch.

After devouring hearty bowls of ramen at Kinboshi Ramen , we felt a quick shopping fix was in order… or so we thought! We visited the Nike Community Store and were stunned by the number of great deals. Even with the steep foreign exchange rate, the absence of sales tax and deeply discounted prices made the trip incredibly worthwhile, and we walked out with several pairs of shoes for ourselves and members of our family.

At this point we were longing for those famous West Coast doughnuts, so despite the heat, we walked over to Voodoo Doughnuts and joined the queue to enter the store. After purchasing our doughnuts we browsed the Portland Saturday Market at the waterfront area. There were people playing drums and a group had gathered to dance along to the music, while children played in the water park. We sought refuge from the heat at Powell Books, exploring the multiple floors of books. After our long walk we decided to rest in the coffee room, large iced coffee in tow to help us cool off from the heat!

That evening, we grabbed pizzas from Ranch PDX (sumptuous Chicago deep-dish pizza, unconventionally served with ranch dipping sauce) and headed over to Council Crest Park to watch the sunset with friends from Vancouver who coincidentally, were also spending the long weekend in Portland.

Witches Castle, Pittock Mansion and more amazing food!

The next morning, we visited Pioneer Courthouse Square, also known as Portland’s “Living Room”, a large plaza with ample seating that was ideal for us to relax on while we enjoyed our lattes from Stumpton Coffee Roasters. The coffee was like nothing I’d ever tasted – incredibly smooth with an intriguing, woody flavour. We walked around a bit more, pausing to browse Nordstrom Rack, before stumbling upon Mothers’ Bistro, a popular brunch spot. After a 20-minute wait we were ushered in, where we ordered the fried ricotta cheese ravioli with tomato basil sauce and migas, both of which were delicious.

After lunch, we drove westward to explore the area outside the city, making our first stop at a trail that would lead to Witch’s Castle, an abandoned and graffitied stone building surrounded by dense forest. It was a short hike to the ‘Castle’ and we enjoyed the refreshing change of pace and scenery that contrasted with the city of Portland. After exploring the ruins and taking photos, we returned to our car and on our way back to the city, stopped at Pittock Mansion, a nearby historical landmark that was once home to one of Portland’s old aristocratic families. In addition to gaining some insight into the history of the Mansion and exploring the expansive gardens, we were also treated to spectacular views of the city of Portland. Having spent most of the day in the warm outdoors, we decided to cool off by returning to Salt n’ Straw for a scoop of freckled mint chip and ooey-gooey chocolate brownie, before driving back to the hotel.

For our last dinner in Portland we couldn’t resist but return to Thai Peacock, where our food was as delicious as our previous visit. It was Sunday evening and we felt the city begin winding down for the night.

Last-minute shopping and return to Canada

After waking we made our last visit to Stumpton Coffee Roasters. We then checked out of the hotel and returned to the Nike store to take advantage of further deals. Pro-tip: signing up as a Nike member on the mobile app allowed us an additional 15% off our purchase. On our way out of the city, we stopped at Blue Star Donuts, a local ‘rival’ to Voodoo. We ordered the buttermilk old-fashioned glaze and Mexican hot chocolate. I couldn’t decide which was better between the two donut stores we’d sampled, but I enjoyed them nonetheless! All in all, we had great fun in the fascinating West Coast city of Portland!