I made it to Oregon on Saturday. I took the 101 up from Santa Rosa, the scenic route. I got to enjoy the redwoods, the northern California coast replete with Humboldt fog, and several tiny towns I might never have known existed otherwise.
I stayed with my cousin in Springfield rather than drive the extra 2 hours into Portland. It was quite the change of pace! My cousin’s property is 13 acres in Oregon logging country, practically on top of a hill overlooking a gorgeous valley. The gravel drive up to their house from the paved road is a mile long. They have ducks and horses, and they’ll have goats soon. It was a wonderful detour from the city.
Portland lives up to the hype, folks. It is such a beautiful city, even from the highway. If you haven’t been, it straddles the Willamette River, with gorgeous green hills on the west and flatter on the east side. The Willamette is a big river, not unlike the Thames or Seine that run through London and Paris, with lots of different, beautiful bridges that cross it. It is so green, everywhere. I’m staying in the NE part of town, east of the river, in a section called Irvington. It looks a lot like Pasadena, actually, with the tree-lined streets and beautiful turn-of-the-century homes. The weather is GORGEOUS. The people are NICE. They actually look at you and nod, wave, or say hello in acknowledgement of your existence – I didn’t know anyone did that anymore!
I was emailing a friend today about my travels when I realized I haven’t stayed more than 3 nights in one place since I left Pasadena almost 2 weeks ago. The constant packing and driving is starting to weigh on me. I’m off to Seattle tomorrow, but I’ve decided to skip Vancouver this time around. Instead, I’ll come back to Portland and spend 5 WHOLE nights here before I fly off to Brazil. 5 nights in one place sounds like a dream to me right now 🙂
