Renée and Nick are Getting Married!

Visiting Portland...

Portland is a great city with many opportunities to keep yourself entertained while you're in town.  Here are a few suggestions for things we think you might have  fun doing while you're here.

Links to Portland Information

• Travel Portland
• Travel Oregon
• To find local events try Willamette Week or Portland Mercury

Getting around Portland

• Bus and light rail
• Powell's Books gives away a "Walking Map of Downtown Portland" at all of their stores. This is by far the best walking map out there.

Great things to do in Portland

• Explore the Alberta Arts District along Alberta Street from roughly NE 10th Ave to NE 30th Ave (a quick walk from the Kennedy School Hotel)
• Spend an afternoon in Washington Park and visit the International Rose Test Garden, the Hoyt Arboretum, the Zoo, the Children's Museum, the playground, the Japanese Garden and the Audubon Society.  Historic Pittock Mansion is nearby as well.
• Take a hike in the United States' largest urban forested park, Forest Park!
• Find handmade arts and crafts with Portland-flair at the Portland Saturday Market underneath the Burnside Bridge.
• Take a walking tour of Portland. There are two companies to choose from: Portland Walking Tours and Peter's Walking Tours of Portland.
• Laurelhurst Park
• Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI)
• After your visit to OMSI, take a stroll along the Vera Katz Eastbank Esplanade.
• Visit one of the largest bookstores you'll ever see, Powell's City of Books.
• Portland Art Museum
• Nearby the Portland Art Museum they have a great farmers' market on Saturday mornings.
• Check out the Chinese Garden
• Get your Portland-trendy on along NW 23rd Ave
• Take a ride and see a great view of the city in the OHSU Tram
• Pick fresh fruit and berries or walk along the wildlife preserve on Sauvie Island.
• Kayak in Portland's Willamette River.
• Drink beer and golf at the same time at  McMenamin's Edgefield.
• Catch some live music at Doug Fir, Laurelthirst Public House, or the Alberta Public House.
• Have a beer and watch a movie at the Laurelhurst Theatre
• Last 4th of July we went to the Waterfront Blues Festival and enjoyed a great view of the fireworks afterwards.
• One of the largest fireworks displays west of the Mississippi River is in Vancouver, WA (not to be confused with Vancouver, BC) just across the river from Portland.  If you go, be prepared for massive crowds.

Great things to do near Portland

• See the many waterfalls along the Columbia Gorge: Multnomah Falls, Triple Falls, and Horsetail Falls to name a few.
• Visit the beautiful Oregon Coast.  One of our favorite spots is Nehalem Bay State Park.
• Take a hike to the top of Larch Mountain, or drive to the top if that's more your speed.
• Silver Falls State Park
• Go antiquing in Aurora.

Recommended Restaurants

    Portland is known as one of the best dining cities in the country.  Here are a few of our favorites

• For a fancy Mexican dinner try Autentica or Taqueria Nueve, and for something a little cheaper check out La Sirenita at 23rd and Alberta.
• Get some great pizza at one of our favorite neighborhood dives at Flying Pie Pizza at SE 78th and Stark.
• Check out Portland's local hippie scene at Tin Shed.
• For a quick bite try Burgerville.  They're fast food with a social conscience.
• Ken's Artisan Pizza
• Go for a drink at the top of the US Bancorp Tower at the Portland City Grill and get a great view as well.
• Bernie's Southern Bistro on Alberta
• You can also get great southern food at Screen Door
• Mississippi Pizza Pub
• Caldera is where we met
• Equinox is where we went on our first real date
• Definitely go to Pix Patisserie for incredible dessert creations and plenty of romance.
• Or if you're in the mood for a slice of cake the size of your head, try Papa Haydn's.
• If you're in the mood for world-class sushi, head to Nick's old neighborhood for Syun Izakaya, rated the best sushi place in the country by several publications.
• Thai at Siam Society
• One of our favorites for quick, healthy, and delicious: Laughing Planet
• Binks is a fun bar for Portland's young and hip
• For a romantic dinner try Wild Abandon
• For a pile of barbequed pork, try Russell Street Barbecue - cheap, great food, and good for families

Wine and Beer

    Oregon is famous for producing excellent microbrew beers and wines - especially pinot noir.  There are dozens of wineries you can visit within a short drive of Portland, and there are plenty of places to down a few pints within the city.  Here are a few we recommend.

• Widmer Brewing has a restaurant and brewpub near the river
• Alameda Brewhouse
• Great for kids is Laurelwood Public House & Brewery at 5115 NE Sandy Blvd.  There are other locations as well.
• Pour Wine Bar and Bistro
• Wine Down on 28th
• If you want to see where Oregon wine comes from, try a wine tour.