Our last stop in town was to the Portland Japanese Garden...
The Zen style rock garden was my favorite part. A feeling of peace came over me while looking out at the vast court of sand and rock, like I was staring into the ocean. I overheard a tour guide explaining that technically it's not a Zen garden, because it hasn't been formally blessed by a Buddhist monk. It seems to work its magic nonetheless.
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Monday, May 19, 2008
Portland: Part 2 - A Vegan's Dream
Tired and hungry after our long waterfall hike, we made our way to the Terwilliger Vista Bed and Breakfast to drop off our things before heading into the city for dinner. We stayed in the "Gold Room" with garden view bay windows, a fancy Art Deco bathroom, and leopard print carpeting!
Our dinner at Nutshell was a treat I had long anticipated. The warehouse-turned-restaurant's walls are alive with murals of a giant green sasquatch. Fried rice fritters with avocado puree and chili sauce were delicious and the maple chocolate tart with cashew vanilla sauce was AMAZING. Another highlight was the fun salt and oil bar. They offer a nice selection of olive oils, gourmet salts, and warm breads for dipping.
The next morning we went to a vegan mini-mall. That's right...a vegan mini-mall! This plaza is home to Food Fight Grocery, Sweet Pea Bakery, and Herbivore Clothing. I love the Sweet Pea Bakery and wish they had a location in Eugene, because I would be there every morning! They have cases of hot vegan doughnuts, cheesecakes, cupcakes, muffins, cookies, scones, and plump bagels. The vanilla rice latte I ordered was perfection.
After spending too much time wandering around in complete vegan awe, we finally left for the Northwest Vegetarian Fest. We sampled delicious goodies like Coconut Bliss ice cream, a wonderful vegan cheese called Sheese, pumpkin cupcakes, homemade panang curry paste, Indian food, truffles, and raw vegan caramel!
We managed to save a little room for Portland's famous vegan Voodoo Doughnuts, but they were sold out by the time we arrived at the shop! Something to look forward to next time.
Our dinner at Nutshell was a treat I had long anticipated. The warehouse-turned-restaurant's walls are alive with murals of a giant green sasquatch. Fried rice fritters with avocado puree and chili sauce were delicious and the maple chocolate tart with cashew vanilla sauce was AMAZING. Another highlight was the fun salt and oil bar. They offer a nice selection of olive oils, gourmet salts, and warm breads for dipping.
The next morning we went to a vegan mini-mall. That's right...a vegan mini-mall! This plaza is home to Food Fight Grocery, Sweet Pea Bakery, and Herbivore Clothing. I love the Sweet Pea Bakery and wish they had a location in Eugene, because I would be there every morning! They have cases of hot vegan doughnuts, cheesecakes, cupcakes, muffins, cookies, scones, and plump bagels. The vanilla rice latte I ordered was perfection.
After spending too much time wandering around in complete vegan awe, we finally left for the Northwest Vegetarian Fest. We sampled delicious goodies like Coconut Bliss ice cream, a wonderful vegan cheese called Sheese, pumpkin cupcakes, homemade panang curry paste, Indian food, truffles, and raw vegan caramel!
We managed to save a little room for Portland's famous vegan Voodoo Doughnuts, but they were sold out by the time we arrived at the shop! Something to look forward to next time.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Portland: Part 1 - Multnomah Falls
Last weekend we ventured to the big city to attend the Northwest Vegetarian Festival! We managed to pack in quite a bit of site seeing during our two day stay.
Our first stop was Multnomah Falls...
Plummeting 620 feet from its origins on Larch Mountain, this is the second tallest year round waterfall in the country. We followed the 1.2 mile trail more than 600 feet to the top of the falls. There are amazing views of the the Columbia River Gorge along the way. Being at or below sea level for most of my life made this an energy zapping trek for me. I had to stop several times to catch my breath while pregnant women, small children, and grandparents raced past! Ha! It was definitely worth the pain (and mild humiliation) to look over the edge as the water rushed to the earth at gravity's will.
Seriously, did you see the bridge?
Fun video too...with chipmunks!
Our first stop was Multnomah Falls...
Plummeting 620 feet from its origins on Larch Mountain, this is the second tallest year round waterfall in the country. We followed the 1.2 mile trail more than 600 feet to the top of the falls. There are amazing views of the the Columbia River Gorge along the way. Being at or below sea level for most of my life made this an energy zapping trek for me. I had to stop several times to catch my breath while pregnant women, small children, and grandparents raced past! Ha! It was definitely worth the pain (and mild humiliation) to look over the edge as the water rushed to the earth at gravity's will.
Seriously, did you see the bridge?
Fun video too...with chipmunks!
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Sea Lion Caves
These are pictures from our trip to the Sea Lion Caves on the Oregon coast and my first encounter with the great Pacific!
This was taken inside the world's largest sea cave. It's only accessible by an elevator which descends 200 feet to the mouth of the cavern. The dark cave boomed with a chorus of sea lion songs and reeked of fish. There were about 100 sea lions inside the cave and 200 basking and playing out on the rocks.
Lighthouse view...
Wow!
Cormorants too...
You can hear the Steller sea lions bark and moan in these videos...
This was taken inside the world's largest sea cave. It's only accessible by an elevator which descends 200 feet to the mouth of the cavern. The dark cave boomed with a chorus of sea lion songs and reeked of fish. There were about 100 sea lions inside the cave and 200 basking and playing out on the rocks.
Lighthouse view...
Wow!
Cormorants too...
You can hear the Steller sea lions bark and moan in these videos...
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