Portland, Oregon
 

Sitting waiting on my PDX-AMS-MAN flight at the moment and thought i'd kill a few mins by raving about Portland.......what an absolutely fantastic city!

Really blown away by the place. Incredibly beautiful (despite raining most of the week), the people are fantastically friendly, the food and beer being mostly local produce is amazing! The city really has a feel that I havent experienced in the states before. Hope on my next trip i get to spend some personal time.

To any native Oregonians........thanks for a great week..........and GO BLAZERS :cool:

Plus, Portland has the best bookstore in the country.

It is even better if you get to the surrounding countryside, such as wine country (much like Napa was 30 years ago prior to over-development). Oregon does have a lot going for it in terms of having a sustainable environment that is pleasant to live in, and thanks to the huge influx of Californian refugees it has all the big-city amenities of San Fracisco or LA, just better done. Nicer in the summer as there is definitely an outdoors focus, but even in the worst weather it is not so bad (better than many cities at their best).

Nice to hear. ^ Portland isn't my home of origin, but it is my home of choice, for all the reasons you mentioned.

It's the Pacific Northwest, it's what it does here.....rain......a.......LOT.
But if you are born and bred to it, you don't really notice unless it gets really bad. Glad you liked the city. I'm from Seattle myself, but this be God's country that's for sure! :D

As a native Portlander, I feel compelled to say that it is a miserable place to live. Endless rain. The damp coolness sinks into your bones. You may be able to tolerate it for short visits, but you do NOT want to relocate there!
:)

Portland is one of my favorite cities in the US. Love the street food. The beach and mountains are 1 - 2 hours away. Very very scenic. People are so friendly and hospitable.

I think my favorite part is Cannon Beach. Especially the Stephanie Inn. I think I had 10 cookies when I stayed there :).

I also like Portland and hope to return soon, but I'm in Beijing because business is booming here. In essence, I'm trading a (really) good lifestyle for money.

Please follow as the thread moves to the Travel->West forum. Ocn Vw 1K, Moderator, TravelBuzz.

^ It really is a wonderful city, like nowhere else in the country. Great place to walk around, people watching is top notch, even the homeless people are fun to talk to. Besides the obvious hangouts of Powell's and Voodoo Doughnuts, I love hiking in Washington Park, beer drinking on Burnside and strolling down by the river.

Now I want to go back and pronto!

Agreed!! You forgot to mention how it is dark in the winter from about 3 PM until 9 AM as well.... Even darker in Seattle!!

That's odd. I'm thinking of moving there and everyone I talk to who lives in Portland goes on and on and on about how much they love it. :confused:

The wet and dark conditions tend to promote occasional breaks with reality. Self-medication is the norm.

:)

Portland is especially nice for runners, cyclists and dog lovers. In the summer the place transforms into an outdoor city due to the abundance of parks, fountains and street fairs (not to mention the many beer festivals and carnivals). My complaint is that it's growing too fast, putting up some incredibly ugly buildings, and turning into a more California-like atmosphere.

In my humble opinion, the very worst part of Portland is it's trendy Pearl District (I call it the plastic town)!

Agreed. I'm a native Texan, but have been here in PDX for the last two years. It's been hard to tolerate the weather during the winter. However, I do have to say that during the summers it can be absolutely amazing here. Besides the weather, the city itself is a great place and is definitely comparable to my hometown of Austin.