You either love or hate Portland
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7/5/2007
I've lived in many places in my life, skipping like a stone from city to city. After living in Portland over 10 years, Portland has an energy that resonates with me, breathes with me....and it's definately home. (You can tell how this review will go perhaps). If you are somebody that feels like the clouds are a comforting blanket of beautiful contrasting grays and blues then you may understand where I am coming from. Some don't like the rain. If so, California is calling you back. After a few days of sun I miss rain. The rain is the life force behind all the vegetative beauty in this city. This city is like one un-ending garden of flowers, trees and of course roses. You can see Mount Hood in varying degrees of breathtaking beauty from many vantage points within the city. It is like a mother that watches over us. If you are into the outdoors the bike paths offer miles upon miles of paved good paths, that loop and meander through the city and down onto the spring water corridor following the Willamette River. Snowboarding, skiing, mountain climbing, and hiking are about an hour and half drive to Mount Hood. The Willamette River and Columbia offer kayaking, windsurfing, jet skiing and boating. Skateboarders have some skate parks that I couldn't honestly rate. My time as an extreme skateboarder has passed. The coast is about another hour and half from us. The Gorge is a mere 20 min with tons of hiking trails that take you through the most beautiful spots of old growth trees and waterfalls. Downtown nightlife is vibrant and keeps up to the early hours of the morning. The music that comes from Portland is amazing, along with the art and various local writers. The arts are thriving from ballets to symphonies, to plays. Each community that you visit within the city has their own pulse, their own "thing" and the people that live here are the best part. You can go into any store and find a range of someone from dressed up corporate to tattoed older ladies talking to pierced and tattooed younger ladies with shades of color in their hair that resemble tie dye shirts. People are real. They wear what they want, say what they think, and at least the one's I engage in with conversation are open to the diversity of opinions. Clothing styles vary as much as the tattooes and hair. One night I saw an Irish cowboy wearing a cowboy hat, green cowboy boots and a kilt. Looked rather good on him. Don't get me started on all the fresh produce and local products you can buy. I'm dow
Angel | Portland, OR