Portland
I have managed to make a fool of myself three times already here in Portland, Oregon, and I've only been here for three hours. Here's how:
1. I asked the rental car guy where "the mountain" was and could you see it from the airplane if it were sunny out. I was tipped off that there is a mountain around these parts because there was a picture of one on the wall as I got off the plane from Dulles. He pointed out the window behind me and there it was, a giant thing, in the distance. It was visible in the moonlight, covered in snow. It is really humongous. You can see it from virtually every street in town. It's in all the newscasts. The buildings looks itty bitty compared to it. That is Mt. Hood. If you gaze in the other direction -- which I haven't tried yet -- you can apparently see the other mountain, Mt. St. Helen. I'll try that tomorrow.
2. I drove all the way into town in my rented red Chevy Cavalier with my driver's side door sort of open. I thought it seemed REALLY loud in my car. I accused the road surfacing, in my East Coast snobbery, thinking maybe it was made out of redwood chips or something. I could barely here the classic rock station I had found on the radio. After I got to my hotel, I asked the valet what they made the roads out of here because it was so noisy. He told me they use tar and concrete, just like civilized people in the East, and that the problem was probably that my door was partially open. I said, "thank you," and went inside. it really is cruel that when you rent a car you have to figure out how it all works whilst simultaneously performing difficult driving tasks like exiting a multilayer parking lot and mergin onto a high speed highway that you have never been on before.
3. I got miserably lost in my red Chevy Cavalier trying to find my hotel (the Westin). I ended up somehow driving up a little mountain. This is a hilly town. The little mountain was very cool, with wonderful condominiums with fabulous views and a little windy road through tall evergreen trees. It is right smack in the middle of town -- I think. Turns out I was near Portland State University and was driving through a neighborhood called Governor's Park.
I have also learned some cool things about Portland so far:
1. It is very hilly here. I had no idea. I was expecting it to be like Eureka, California, which is flat and ugly.
2. There is a lot of water everywhere. This is apparently due to the fact that the Willamette River and Columbia River meet here in this town.
3. It is a transit mecca. Whilst existing the rental car parking lot I kept hearing the sound of military jets overhead. As I exited, I saw two jets takeing off -- WOOSH! They were combat airplanes and they looked very cool drifting off over Mt. Hood. My brother could tell me what they were if he were here. Also, along the interstate coming into town is a nice looking light rail system. Dulles should be ashamed. Ony copmlaint with it is the headlights on the locomotives blind drivers on the highway. Then, I drove for a little while on the famous Interstate 5 -- the same one that goes all the way down the San Joaquin Valley to Los Angeles and which has been the subject of recent newspaper articles about how boring the San Joaquin Valley is. I-5 crosses the Willamette River in a series of overpasses that would make the Springfield Mixing Bowl weep.
4. Possibly due to the transit-mecca nature of this town, there is no traffic. I parked my red Chevy Cavalier right in front of my hotel. You know, the spot under the marquee...
5. This is the thirty-second state that I have visited.
Finally, four annoying things have happened so far (which are different from the embarassing things at the top of this email):
1. This is the West Coast which means everything shuts early. E.g., dinner service at the Westin stopped at 10 p.m. I got here at 10 p.m.
2. Airplane was populated by Infrequent Travelers.
3. There are no cashew nuts in my mini bar.
4. I get the impression that Starbucks is frowned upon.
posted by Anonymous @ 12:40 PM
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