Saturday, June 14, 2008

greetings from Portland

After a bit of weather-related drama on Thursday night, I finally got to Portland yesterday morning. I'll save my "sleepless in Seattle" story for later.

This place is so mellow. I was out and about all day yesterday and did not see one road rage incident, a refreshing change from Chicago. Bikes are everywhere, and drivers are a lot more considerate around them than some of the maniacs I see in Chicago. All day in and around downtown traffic, and not one honk. !!! No lie.

I'm staying at the Ace Hotel (check out the About page), interesting place, funky-cool blend of a spruced up but fairly spartan old building, a lounge area that feels like a college dorm lounge (in a good way), some nice modern touches (like this Mac laptop in the lounge), in the midst of a lively entertainment district. Been enjoying some excellent local seafood and wine and fine hospitality.

I'll be wandering a bit more today before I pick up a rental car to head south to Eugene and Medford. If I'm lucky, I'll get out one of the hotel's bikes for a while this a.m. Been taking lots of pictures and I know there will be plenty more before the end of the trip. More later as time and computer access allow.....

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