First vacation of the year – check! I’m finally now at an age where it has become maybe not a little bit easier, but more convenient for my cousins and I to get together. When we were younger, we were on family trips and there were a lot more people around, but now that we’re adults, we get to plan the trip and we get to do all the things we like doing. There’s a sort of an independence that comes with it and I think that’s why I enjoyed my weekend in Portland so much. A handful of my cousins are still in school ie) Grad school, dental school, etc. They’re all smarty pants! Kristie and I have never actually been to Portland before and since one of our cousins is currently living there and in school, we knew it would be the perfect place to visit first.

I had been itching to experience Portland for myself because for years all I’ve heard was that it was better than Seattle, worse than Seattle, more hipster than Seattle, etc. And now that I’ve finally seen it, I have my own opinions to make. First off, Portland is gorgeous. The trees, the bridges, the water – all things that reminded me of home without actually being at home. I love the little neighborhoods – Alberta, Alphabet District, Pearl, NW 23rd – it’s like any other major city that has their own area. I did, however, find the pace of Portland to be much slower, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, just something I’m not used to. Our cousin also let us borrow his car the first day we were there and I found it to be fairly straightforward to get around. Let’s talk about the things we ate though since that’s usually the only reason why we write these posts.

Read more “Yow Yow! Does Portland!”