A Port of Call

Being 125 kms from the ocean, one would hardly expect a city to be a major port. Portland's name is a bit of a misnomer as it was a rumoured winner of a coin toss. It could have very well been named Boston! A progressive "green" attitude is fueled by it's relatively young population. Home to the smallest park in the world, the largest bookstore in the US and the largest concentration of breweries in the US, Portland is a bit of a surprise.

The 29th most populated city in the US, to me, was shockingly "hip". For example, in the Hawthorne district, in between each one of the 20,000 coffee shops, you'll find vintage clothing shops, "Free Tibet" shops, craft shops and other alternative lifestyle type shops. Many of which are housed in the bottom floor of what might be mistaken for 2-storey colonial homes. It gives the whole place a very bohemian feel. Even with major corporations like Nike and Intel being the major employers, there is a sense of "screw the man" as you meander through the, albeit, grid-patterned streets. I stayed with a happy home of CouchSurfers. The house was a bit of Grand Central station with cornucopia of folks popping in and out. The interesting things was, all but one were from out of town, even out of state. Portland, being the biggest city between Seattle and San Francisco on the west coast seems to be drawing the college grads who can't really afford the other cities, or are just looking for a gateway to nature.


At just over 500,000 people, Portland has all the advantages of a major city while still feeling like a town. The transit systems is relatively cheap and efficient. The city is wired (not just on StumpTown coffee), with WIFI hotspots all over town. It has a sense of multi-ethnicity despite the 78% White majority, although it's official crime rate is on the high side. But people still take the time to stop by the coffee shop or hang out in Powell's, the US's largest bookstore. Certainly not a feeling of rat raced-ness. The plentiful parks are a haven for picnicers, joggers and loafers alike. And being there at a time of year when cherry blossoms were in bloom gave it an extra sense of beauty. The city lacks any serious WOW factor for tourists. The coolest thing in the city, the Shanghai Tunnels, were a series of underground opium dens. But tourist information informed me that the tours don't run anymore, i was gutted!

I guess when you go into something with no expectations, i hard to be disappointed. Portland is not a place that i ever fell i need to go back to, but it's hardly a place i would avoid. Clearly it's a lifestyle city that can't truly be appreciated without living there for some time. That amount of time is a luxury i simply can't afford for this city.