Portland in the Winter

Portland has been the most relaxed city and the weirdest I have been to.  I say that in a good way.  In fact, there is even a big slogan downtown that says, “Keep Portland Weird.” I agree!

This trip with my friends included a lot of walking through Portland’s Districts, especially downtown. I enjoyed this city because the people are relaxed, the city is Earth-friendly and health-conscious, and it has beautiful architecture.  Just don’t mind the funky pot smell throughout your time there.

 

Portland in the Winter

With not much time to explore,  my friends and I made sure to check off our top places first in hopes that the rain wouldn’t stop us from enjoying ourselves.  Fortunately for us, it seems we brought the sun with us from California, and we enjoyed some lovely partly cloudy days.  Unfortunately, the winter ice stopped us from exploring certain places, but we still maneuvered through it and enjoyed our cold trip to Portland. Here are some things you can do in Portland in the winter:

Pearl District:

One of the trendiest and upscale districts in Portland is Pearl District. Here you will find this area just north of downtown quite fun to walk through.  It has shopping boutiques, art galleries, and many entertainment options.   Our favorite stop was:

Powell’s Books

Visiting a library might not be what you were thinking of doing.  But, this place is the largest new and used book store in the world.   The incredible selection of books it has to read makes it very enjoyable.  Plus, getting lost through the sections is fun. So, if you plan a visit here, possibly go with a book in mind, or else this place can be overwhelming.

Downtown Portland:

We spent most of our time walking around downtown Portland during our trip because it had a lot to offer.  Here we enjoyed some famous doughnuts, walked past shops, and marveled at the beautiful architecture.

Voodoo Doughnuts

Talk about creativity!  You will indeed have to wait in line to buy a doughnut, but once inside, you will have access to these creative and tasty pieces of dough.  They even have vegan options for those who need them.

See the Portland Signs

As you shop around downtown and enter the many different boutiques, you will run into attractive signs to take pictures of.

 See Da Tung and Xi’an Bao Bao

Located in North Park Blocks in Downtown Portland, this sculpture caught our attention as we walked by.

Tom McCall Waterfront Park

This waterfront is a place you can sit down to oversee the Willamette River and relax.  Here you can also watch people jogging, skating, or just hanging out.  It’s also where the Portland Rose Festival is held every year.   If you want to enjoy it from another distance, you can walk the Hawthorne Bridge to get the view below.

Old Town Historic District:

Old Town China Town

In Portland’s official Chinatown, you will be greeted by an entrance gate marked with two lions at the corner of NW 4th Ave and W Burnside.

Washington Park

Even though the ice prevented us from enjoying this place much more than we already did, we still managed to get around and see what this winter wonderland had to offer. The only bummer was that the Japanese Garden was not open during the winter season, the place I most wanted to see.

Either way, here are some of the things you can see at Washington Park.  All you need to do is take the Max Light Rail from downtown and use the Trimet Line 63 to get around the park.

Hoyt Arboretum 

Our first stop was Hoyt Arboretum.  We didn’t last long here as the ice was quite dangerous for slips, but we walked around a bit of bit, enjoying the sight of the sequoia trees.  If you can, you can enjoy the 12 miles of hiking trails and the many species of plants such as dogwood and magnolias.

Memorials

Washington Park had some interesting memorials. My favorite is the Oregon Holocaust Memorial, where you will find a bronze suitcase representing the possessions lost in the chaos and a wall with engraved quotes from survivors. Apart from the memorial, there are charming houses near the rose garden.

International Rose Test Garden

We didn’t quite see any roses besides the maybe three survivors of the ice.  However, we did love the stunning view of Mt.Hood and Portland’s skyline from here. We spent our time walking around the place because even without flowers, it was beautiful. I surely need to see this place during Spring because it is home to more than 10,000 rose bushes and over 722 varieties.  The best time to visit is May through September.

Portland was beautiful, but as you can see, the weather prevented us from seeing some of the main attractions we were interested in.  However, Portland was slow-paced and quite enjoyable in the winter because we found ourselves enjoying everything slowly and thoroughly.  We didn’t need to cram too many tourist attractions into our schedule.  Downtown itself was enough to enjoy this beautiful city.

What experiences have you had in Portland during the winter?  What do you love most about this city?