I had forgotten about oregon, and I'm sorry that I did


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North America » United States » Oregon » Portland
June 12th 2015
Published: June 16th 2015
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When my mom asked if I wanted to tag along, my response was "I forgot it was a state." (My apologies Oregon.) However, I am always ready for an adventure so of course I agreed to go and packed my bags a few days later. With some Pinterest research and set out where exactly I wanted to go in the short amount of time that I had available.

Portland: You are wonderful. There is so much culture in such a small area and I am really sorry that I couldn't explore every block of your city.I would have loved to do all of the cool hikes in the area, or check out the more hipster part of town, but there simple wasn't enough time.

The first thing we did was take a city bus, and a city train from our hotel in Vancouver, Washington to Portland. Our first stop was Powell's! I LOVE books, and I couldn't pass up the chance. If anyone is a book lover that is the place they need to go! It is just floors with ceiling high book shelves stocked with both popular books, and books that are on any topic in the section divided rooms. It was heaven. Due to the amount of time we had we only spent a little over an hour inside and that wasn't near as long as I could've stayed. There is a rare book room, and any other topic you can think up, there is a section or more dedicated to it.

The next stop was VooDoo doughnuts that we had heard oh-so-much about. The shop itself was a neat little place. We got a classic VooDoo doughnut to bring home for my step-dad (they aren't as good second day.) We selected two or three other kinds and all of them were delicious. Unlike a place like Dunkin' or a chain, they weren't as greasy, they are more of a cake type doughnut with plenty of unique flavor options, giant doughnuts, and overall it was a cool little doughnut shop.

After this we took an Uber car (excellent experience with drivers) and went to 23rd St in the Alphabet District. This was where a lot of the shops were and some places to eat. We ate at Little Big Burger, which as a good snack. The people were so friendly and multiple talked to us
Mount Hood Mount Hood Mount Hood

The pilot made an announcement since we were getting close to landing. You can see the mountain from different locations while you are in Portland. It looks surreal.
because of the doughnut box we were carrying, and recommended Blue Star doughnuts down the strip. We also selected some of those with unique flavors in a less sugary way. Three Monkeys was a really neat store to be in, it was just a little more pricey. There were some vintage shops, rug stores, leather shops, many cool shops as you walked down the strip.

The people were very cheerful. Relaxed seeming. Helpful, and they wanted to give you advice, make sure you got to see all of the things they enjoyed. On the plane home I sat by a married couple, recently married. "Julie" and "Brandon" were both Oregon natives, Julie grew up on the southern coast, and Brandon grew up farming in "the valley." They were both genuine and friendly. They reminded me that although Portland is hipster/hippie, and Oregon often gets that rep, that the rest of the state is relatively normal. That the temperature varies, and different parts of the state seem to have different seasons going on.

To me I'm not used to seeing mountains in the distance, and it was surreal. It almost had a moon like glow to it since it
Little Big BurgerLittle Big BurgerLittle Big Burger

Split a burger, and it had a yummy kick to it!
was covered in snow and it was 80 degrees. Adds to the skyline, and landing in the plane it seemed so close. The Columbia River runs in between Oregon, and Washington, and that gives a perfect view of the mountain as you cross the bridge. Really made me want to go into nature with all the tall pines and explore.

Portland, I will be back to visit you. I can't wait to see what more you have to offer.

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