I love Portland - it’s that simple. Fortunately, when I lived there between 1995 and 1998, I spoke of my love for Portland frequently. I’m very aware that I’m guilty of “the-grass-is-always-greener” syndrome, so I frequently verbalized how much I loved it there - that way, I consistanlty planted my passion for Portland in my memory. I’ve always said that if Portland were in Canada, I’d move there in a heartbeat! During our two and a half years there, we definitely soaked up much of what the city had to offer – great day hikes in the city, the coast, the Columbia River Gorge, or Mt. Hood, frequent backpacking trips to the “nearby” Cascade mountains, great restaurants, markets, coffee shops, theatre, shopping, parks and much more.
As I recall the good ol’ Portland days, I vividly remember that wonderful time in my life. I was a young physical therapist, engaged to be married, fit, healthy, and very happy. Despite living in a tiny, post war apartment, sparsely decorated with garage sale furniture, it was probably the happiest time in my life. I spent my free time hiking, working out in a local gym, studying manual therapy, planning our wedding, planning a backpacking trip to Europe, and hanging out in great cafes, restaurants, and theatres. I grew out my bad perm, watched new episodes of “Friends”, and listened to the Counting Crows, Blue Rodeo, Alanis Morrisette, and Sarah McLachlan. Although my partner and I didn’t entertain much, we met some wonderful local friends, who I regret losing contact with.
Portland was rich with cultural diversity. Generally, the people there were friendly, earthy, and laid back with an outdoorsy, “west coast” style that I tried to emulate, and often still do. My shoes in those days were clunky and comfortable, that is, when I wasn’t wearing Tevas or Birkenstocks...
Fast forward 12 years and I am now calling Portland a “great place to visit”. However, this year, I viewed my love for Portland in a different light. I still love the city, as we try to cram two years of good times into four days, but I am left wondering: Is it the city of Portland that I love, or is it the association with that time in my life that I enjoy revisiting? It was such a happy time – when most things were less stressful – when my husband and I had long, uninterrupted conversations late into the night, when we didn’t have to arrange a babysitter to go out to a movie, when we planned where to hike on the weekend based on a pretty picture in a hiking book, when we used our computer for email and Tetris, when my Mom could see, and no-one I knew had cancer. Those were the days when I thought 30 was old, air travel was fun, and I was positive that everyone was going to live happily ever after.
As the years go by, I still love my life, my family, my friends, and my home on Vancouver Island - but there is a lot I miss about those days in Portland. I look forward to going back next year. I wonder how green the grass will be?
(Here are some pictures to prove how beautiful Portland is... )
Near Pacific City on the coast:
4th of July in Portland, near the Williamette River:
Portland Zoo:
Rose Test Gardens (Smells as good as it looks!) 
Eagle Creek on the Columbia River Gorge:
Dinner and a show (the Lion King was AMAZING!) 
Laurelhurst Park in the heat wave!
Beautiful, just beautiful!
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