Memorable Monday - Portland Adventures
A few months ago, a couple reached out to us from New Jersey and explained how they were planning an outdoor adventure elopement in Oregon and wanted to ask if we could join them. I don't want to give too much away until we deliver the photos, film and show you a full blog post coming soon, but it was pretty amazing!! Before marrying Stephen, I defiantly had the travel bug! My family went on vacations but it always seemed to be similar places and we never left our time zone. Although Portland is still in the same time zone, the vibes and culture are much different than Chico and we loved our short time there! Before I continue, I want to explain something that is very important to me.
As much as I love social media, sharing our lives with you and complete strangers, we would never want people to think we have it easy or that our lives are completely perfect! Waking up at 2am to drive through the wee hours of morning to the airport is not glamorous! After arriving in Portland, the first thing we did was go straight to bed because we needed to be rested for the elopement which brought us to the area in the first place. There's this constant struggle I'm sure most of you can relate to of looking at pretty pictures online and becoming jealous or envious of what others are doing or what they have. This concept is not foreign to me. It's really really hard not to compare yourself or situation to someone else's. Everyone is in different stages and for me, I've learned to be grateful and not let other's success make me jealous! If you have the travel bug, I challenge you to make plans and go on that trip you keep thinking about. Do something out of the ordinary with a friend, or change up your routine during the week. I'm always surprised by the little adventures we go on all the time that keep me motivated and creatively fueled.
Alright, now that I've been able to rant a bit, let's get on with this post! If you have the travel bug, Portland is a great place to start. There are lots of great Airbnb houses to stay in, quaint neighborhoods and beautiful hiking trails just outside the city. Next time you're in the Portland area definitely check out some of these places we visited! While we were in Portland for the elopement we were able to do some quick site seeing, eat at some amazing restaurants (thanks to some of your suggestions)!! Both Stephen and I had visited Portland before for quick trips like this one but didn't get to explore as much.
Salt & Straw - This ice cream place is some of the best ice cream we've ever had! There menu consists of seasonal choices as well as their normal (not-so-normal) flavors. Some of the seasonal flavors were ingredients you would never think went well together. Like Strawberry Honey Balsamic with Black Pepper?!? Well it was amazing and they let you try as many flavors as you'd like before ordering so you can find the perfect match!
Good Coffee - The name says it all! Really good coffee. This was our first stop after the airport to blog a bit and answer some emails. After only sleeping a few hours, this girl needed some caffeine. The barista's were super friendly and the coffee was perfect! What really made me fall in love with this place even more was the atmosphere and decor. I'm a sucker for coffee shops with a good vibe. It had a very mid century modern feel to it. I kept telling Stephen I'm not cool enough to order coffee from there. That was because everyone there had such great style (and we were in workout clothes from the airport)!
Japanese Rose Gardens- Alright, confession time, we never made it to the rose gardens but had several of you suggest to us we should check it out. We woke up and had the option of going to breakfast or visit the gardens. We chose breakfast :D This will for sure be a place we explore next time!
JAM - This was the breakfast place we chose to go to instead of the gardens :D It was three blocks from the Airbnb we stayed at (p.s. look at that room link, the room was so cool and artsy) and had amazing food. It's called JAM because they make their delicious jam from scratch and have it on all the tables to add to your food! It was so good, like liquid candy, Stephen's favorite!
Hawthorne Street - This was the same street JAM is one and there are lots of quaint shops and other amazing restaurants to explore in this neighborhood. It was right down the street from our Airbnb so we just walked over to this area.
Multnomah Falls - These falls are about 40 minutes outside of Portland and would make for a great picnic and day trip. There are tons of trails in the area and lots of smaller waterfalls leading up for the big one. People of all ages can enjoy a simple hike to the falls or explore more around the area.
Oneonta Gorge - This was the place where our couple had their ceremony. The hike is a mere .6 miles round trip BUT can be extremely cold and slippery during certain parts of the year. The hike is so short, we would highly recommend this as a must see! Just know that before you get to the waterfall, there is about 20 foot high log jam you have to climb over. The logs are slippery and can pose some danger if you're not careful. Next after that is the freezing cold water you have to hike through. Depending on the time of year, the water could be anywhere from waist high to chest high (which it was for us) at the deepest point. This hike to the waterfall was seriously breath taking and we hope to do it again soon!!!
