Portland

Korrin B.

November 26, 2010 - 2:00 PM

I have mentioned this before, but I shall repeat it here. I love that the University of Oregon is so close to a big city like Portland. It is fairly easy to take a weekend and hop up there for a different kind of experience. It is a nice convenience for students.

Last weekend, I did just that. I have a friend who graduated from the UO last year and moved up there and I had been meaning to visit him. We met studying abroad in Greece. So, I went up Friday to stay a night. I ended up having a lot of fun and was once again convinced that Portland is a very cool city.

It felt so good to just hit the road first off, but it felt even better to get out in such a neat city. My friend lives in a part of Portland I hadn't been in before. It is a wonderful little area full of local shops and restaurants and that unstoppable vibe of mellow floating throughout the air. His flat is on the top of this neat, older house and is right off the main street of the neighborhood. It is full of big windows with wonderful views of the surroundings. He definitely got lucky finding the place!

A few of us went out for dinner at a Mexican restaurant that was a short walk from his house. It was super tasty. Walking there gave me the chance to do some window-shopping as well and have him tell me a little more about the neighborhood. After dinner, we headed out to some different places downtown and met up with some other friends.

The next morning we went to Portland's Saturday Market. I loved seeing all of the farmer's market booths and all of the food vendors. We got some of the tastiest breakfast burritos from one of the stands. Saturday Market is the perfect example of why I love this area of the world. There is just something about the combination of the people milling about, the wonderful foods, and the crisp, mellow environment that makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, despite the temperature outside.

Being in Portland left a huge smile on my face and an undeniable feeling of pure bliss in my heart. I look forward to traveling the world, but there is something about the West Coast that will always have my heart and soul begging for more.

It was nice to get away from Eugene for a night and do a little Portland exploring. I am hoping to start going up there more next term. I might even stay weekends at my aunt and uncle's house to do some of my thesis writing.