Portland

Rails
1

Anyone out there in Portland. I’ll be in town this weekend, and was
looking for advice from Rubyists on things to do.

Thanks,

Jake

2

Which coast you on? East or West? :wink:

3

On 6/28/06, Jake P. [email protected] wrote:

Anyone out there in Portland. I’ll be in town this weekend, and was
looking for advice from Rubyists on things to do.

Assuming you mean Portland, Oregon

  1. Visit Powell’s Books downtown (and Powell’s Technical down the
    street)
  2. Go to the Blues Festival at Waterfront park (all weekend)
  3. If you like burgers, check out Jake’s Crawfish (not Jake’s Grill,
    totally different place).

Of course that just scratches the surface. Hope it helps!

4

Thanks Justin. I do mean Portland, OR. I’m visiting from Ohio.

5

I’m visiting Portland Oregon, from Toledo Ohio.

My girlfriend and I are tired of the scene here and are looking for a
new area to live.

6

Jake P. wrote:

Thanks Justin. I do mean Portland, OR. I’m visiting from Ohio.

Funny, I’m also thinking about going to portland too. I’ll be visiting
in August. I could use some help planning my trip. If any of you
portlanders have skype and care to chat send me your skype name to
[email protected].

Thanks.

7

I’ll be in town for OSCON too. My brother (who has been there before)
recommended I read “Fugitives and Refugees” by Chuck Palahniuk (author
of “Fight Club”). The book mainly focuses on the fringe scene there
and I’m not sure if a real Portlander (or at least someone who’s been
there) would agree that it really reflects what Portland is like for
the normal person.

At the very least it’s interesting, a quick read, tells you about some
unique restaraunts, museums and other places, and teaches you the
correct pronunciation of Willamette (wil-LAM-met).

8

Go to Jake’s for seafood.

9

I’ll be in Portland for the Open Source Convention that last week of
July (23 - 30).

If anyone has any advice, particularly for good restaurants, I’d love to
hear it.

Wes

10

I’ve lived in Portland for a number of years now and I wish I liked it
more than I do. There’s plenty to like and do, but there are barriers
to total enjoyment in any city – Portland’s barriers are more subtle
on first glance but begin to poison a relationship with the city after
a certain point – I won’t go into detail as it’s a bit off-topic…

Anyway, here’s what I recommend to do for a first-time Portland
visitor looking to audition it as their “new city” (I’ve been in this
position before)

A. Go to a McMenamins. Portland is the only place I can think of that
I would ever stay in hotels at – even though I already live here.
http://www.mcmenamins.com – Edgefield Hotel out in Troutdale is a
great place to stay! I got married there too. Beautiful grounds,
artwork, rooms, great food and drinks… and a very close proximity
to…

B. Travel the Gorge! Check out all the waterfalls like Latourel Falls.
It’s beautiful and only a very short drive away.

C. Powell’s obviously, as said above. It’s the Amoeba Records of
bookstores.

D. Don’t let all of Portland’s charms seduce you before you take a
really critical eye at the mental health of a large amount of its
inhabitants, before you weigh the financial feasibility of low-paying
jobs (including programming jobs) and higher and higher rents, utility
costs, and terrible terrible public education. There are at least two
Portland’s to be seen, and the “rose city” is very enticing but don’t
make any rash decisions about it.

D. Taylor S.,
Reality Technician
http://www.realitytechnicians.com