Traveling to Portland, OR, later this month...anyone in the area wanna meet-up?

[Drew]

Hey everyone, thought I'd let the internets know I'm going to Portland, Oregon from September 19-23, and if anyone is from or near there, let me know if you want to meet-up with me at some point. I'd love a city walk/hike/tour with someone or to do a bar crawl of if you're familiar with the local gay scene. Or maybe something else (tea at the Japanese Garden? Visit a vineyard?)

Let me know, I'd love to make a new friend or two or three while out there!

[VileKyle]

I used to live there, but not anymore. Enjoy yourself there though. It's a great city!

[Pix]

It's been over 10 years since I was in Portland so take my recommendations with a grain of salt as things could've changed since then:

DO visit both the Japanese AND the Chinese gardens. And if you're into books then be sure to visit Powell's, IIRC it took up an entire city block and had about anything you could imagine outside ancient archives...but beware that sometimes it can be hard to find a parking space around there (though IIRC they do have a parking garage if you're willing to pay to get in).

[starbelly]

I'm from Portland! I've got shit going on those days but if I get any free time I'll give you a heads up. Definitely go to the Japanese and Chinese gardens, and, like others have said, Powell's is one-of-a-kind. If you want to catch a movie, the Living Room Theater is across the street from there, which shows lots of indie movies and limited releases. The best part is you can have food and cocktails inside the auditoriums, and the seats are designed like couches. It's really nice.

Also check out 2nd Ave Records if you're into music (particularly punk stuff, but they have everything). The Waterfront Park is lovely too, and there's a multitude of great restaurants and stuff downtown. Which area of the city will you be in? I go to school at Portland State which is in SW Portland. The city is divided into quadrants— the Willamette river divides north and south, and Burnside divides east and west, just for reference (makes getting around a bit easier too if you know the quadrants).

NE Portland is as rough as the city gets, and it's not bad really. SE has lots of great antique shops too in Sellwood, so you might want to check that out if that's your thing. The Pearl and Alphabet Districts are a bit ritzy but neat no less (that's in SW Portland).

I'd also HIGHLY recommend going to St. Johns, which is in far NE Portland, and going to Cathedral Park there. It's my favorite park in the entire world. It sits under the bridge they have jazz festivals there in the summer. It's absolutely beautiful.

[Drew]

I'm from Portland! I've got shit going on those days but if I get any free time I'll give you a heads up. Definitely go to the Japanese and Chinese gardens, and, like others have said, Powell's is one-of-a-kind. If you want to catch a movie, the Living Room Theater is across the street from there, which shows lots of indie movies and limited releases. The best part is you can have food and cocktails inside the auditoriums, and the seats are designed like couches. It's really nice.

Also check out 2nd Ave Records if you're into music (particularly punk stuff, but they have everything). The Waterfront Park is lovely too, and there's a multitude of great restaurants and stuff downtown. Which area of the city will you be in? I go to school at Portland State which is in SW Portland. The city is divided into quadrants— the Willamette river divides north and south, and Burnside divides east and west, just for reference (makes getting around a bit easier too if you know the quadrants).

NE Portland is as rough as the city gets, and it's not bad really. SE has lots of great antique shops too in Sellwood, so you might want to check that out if that's your thing. The Pearl and Alphabet Districts are a bit ritzy but neat no less (that's in SW Portland).

I'd also HIGHLY recommend going to St. Johns, which is in far NE Portland, and going to Cathedral Park there. It's my favorite park in the entire world. It sits under the bridge they have jazz festivals there in the summer. It's absolutely beautiful.

Awesome! I'm staying at the Mark Spencer Hotel in the Pearl District. Heard it was nice, and they can get me discounted tix for art galleries and museums. I probably won't rent a car (I hate driving in places I'm not familiar, particularly large cities), but I've read I'm right on a streetcar line, which helps. Plus I've heard it's easy walking and blocks are smaller than in other cities (considering I often traverse a lot of NYC with its huge blocks, hey, I should be able to handle it).

I've heard about the theaters that serve homebrewed beer.....I've got a feeling there's going to be a lot of drinking while I'm there (haha). And I love Japanese/Chinese gardens....I've been to the one in San Francisco and it was lovely; I use a photo I took of it as my backdrop pic on Facebook. I'll be sure to check them out.

Give me a shout if you can hang out!

[Counselor]

If you're over 21, Embers is the "chill" gay bar, no ridiculous kitsch. stpdo2 and I went to the Pittock mansion when he visited, amazing place to see Portland from.

[Counselor]

Also: Go to Nichola's on Grand. Amazing Lebanese, worth the wait, and you will wait.

[Drew]

Also: Go to Nichola's on Grand. Amazing Lebanese, worth the wait, and you will wait.

Cool, I'll be sure to check these out, Embers sounds cool - laid back and not clique-y is how I roll. Thanks for the suggestions!