CHI 2005: Day 2 – Exploring the City
We were up and about early today to get what appears to be our only day for exploring the city of Portland. Luckily the weather provided a mild sunny day as the backdrop for our trek throughout the city.
Downtown Portland
Portland has turned out to be more urban than I had thought. Being a more modern city, in relation to Boston, the urban planning made getting around quite easy. I still cannot get over how much I’m in love with Tri-Met (Portland’s public transit system). Some of their methods probably would not work in Boston, such as the honor system based fare collection. But, at the very least I think Tri-Met employees actually enjoy their jobs and want to help their customers.
Powell’s bookstore, a location that many Portlanders seem to pride themselves in, definitely was a great place to visit. Aside from the six stories of books there is an art gallery which featured works from some local artists. Art is actually fairly prominent in the city, as there are many sculptures throughout the city squares.
Japanese Gardens
Just outside downtown are the Japanese and rose gardens. While the roses have yet to come out, the Japanese gardens were a beautiful sight. The area also provided a magnificent view of the city’s skyline.
Local Brews
Jun and I headed out to the Hawthorne area of town with another tourist to get a taste of the local brews. At the Bridgeport pub we enjoyed the craft brews sampler–an assortment of their best beers. You can’t beat some good beer with some liberal political talk.
Up Next
Tomorrow, the main conference begins–presentations, meetings, and hopefully some parties (does that happen?).
- CHI 2005: Off to Portland
- CHI 2005: Day 1 – Arrival in Portland
- CHI 2005: Day 3 – The Conference Begins
- My Flickr photos of Portland