Sun and pizza

Today it was 60 degrees and sunny. People took off their shoes and bathed in the sun at the park a block away from the apartment.



Renee was excited to get out and enjoy the non-Michigan weather after her return from Detroit yesterday. We started the afternoon be eating at a pizza place we've been waiting to try. This was Renee's first of seven slices. If only they had been bigger.

Driving

I borrowed a car from a friend to get to a few meetings last weekend (Thanks Sam!). Because I didn't think it was hard enough to drive around in a new city, I thought I would try to snap a picture of the experience. Here I'm driving over the Burnside bridge into the city.

View from the top

The other day we walked up to some of the ritzier condos in Portland. The prices were way out of our range, but the pictures were free.



Finally we were able to snap a picture of Mt. Hood.



After some careful eye squinting we were able to locate our apartment.

Spring has sprung

Walking along the street the other day, we noticed these little guys poking out of the ground.



Here's some more evidence...sorry Michiganders, no Photoshopping done here.

Cartographer's Revenge

After seeing what the Oregonians did to the state of Michigan in their map, a certain cartographer has taken his revenge.

The Park

Yesterday we climbed up to the top of a large bluff which is right in our back yard. From there we could see most of the city and found a really nice park and some trails through the woods. We could see a ghostly version of Mt. Hood which unfortunately didn't come out in the picture. However, Renee is excited to direct your eye to the city.



Here is the park at the top of the bluff. It is amazing how you can be in downtown Portland one minute and the next be in the middle of the wilderness.



This is a path up into the woods. Renee is looking for a hummingbird we spotted earlier.

Zoo

A few days ago we took the train to the zoo/washington park.



At the zoo Renee bad some feathered friends.



Somehow we managed to escape the exhibit without being pooped on. A feat in itself judging by our fellow visitors.



The zoo had a SPECTACULAR bat exhibit. It consisted of a semi-circle cage which you could walk into. From there you were surrounded by large glass windows which were lit from above and filled with hundreds of bats. The cave area also had fruit hanging so the bats were super active and feeding.



Here you can se the bats crawling on the top of the cage.



Because the windows were slanted, you could get extremely close to the bats. Although getting them to stay still long enough to take a picture was a different story.



This orangutan ran right up to the viewing window to check out all the people. He just hung out and stared at us. He particularly seemed to like little kids in strollers.



This guy didn't stop doing laps the whole time we were watching him.



These sea lions were HUGE!

Nob Hill

Here is a view of some of the apartments at the top of the 'Nob Hill' district. They have an excellent view of the city. Oh yeah, there's also a Chico's.

Pacific Northwest College of Art

A few days ago it was rainy and thus a perfect day to check out PNCA, one of two area art schools. This is a picture of the main lobby which houses eight student galleries.



One of the shows was of artwork from a cartoonist named Joe Sacco. Apparently he was awarded the American Book Award in 1996 for his book Palestine.




Here is a close-up of one of the original pieces. Really nice work.

Unlimited Texting

At PNCA there was an installation piece which had this sign attached to one side.



The front of the piece was a little station where you could sit and communicate with someone across the atrium at an ajoining station. There where two pullies which pictures could be sent (via hand crank) and received, a spyglass, and a tin can to speak into. It didn't mention what kind of a contract you had to sign to get one, but I'm looking into it.

Package!

Today the postman brought 3 packages from afar!

Cupcake Jones

Here in Portland there are specialty stores for everything. Even cupcakes. Today warranted a trip to Cupcake Jones. They have a rotating cupcake menu and sell a dozen cupcakes for a mere $36. Oh yeah, they don't taste too bad either.

New 'Doo

New haircut for a new city.