Portland

2/29/16 inks (Mt. Hood sketched from the aerial tram.)

Having grown up and lived in Seattle my whole life, I think of Portland, Oregon, as the way Seattle used to be up until the ‘70s. In Portland, you can still find a parking space downtown relatively easily. When you signal to make a lane change, drivers in the adjacent lane actually slow down or wave you in instead of speeding up to keep you out. Portland still has the easy, comfy feeling I nostalgically recall about Seattle before Microsoft and Amazon happened. When we get tired of the traffic here, we go to Portland.

2/28/16 colored pencils (Moo Lung dragon at the
Oregon Historical Society Museum)

The last time we were there was a couple of years ago in May, and we lucked out on beautiful weather that allowed us to visit two wonderful gardens. This time we spent most of our two days indoors, dodging the rain. But that gave us an opportunity to explore the Oregon Historical Society Museum, enjoy some brews at Deschutes Brewery and Pub and hang out at the mecca for all readers – Powell’s City of Books.

When the sun came out, we rode the streetcar from our hotel to the waterfront and got on the Portland Aerial Tram. While we used it as a tourist attraction, the tram is primarily used for commuting. On the way up we both took photos and videos, but on the way back down I captured a glimpse of a shrouded Mt. Hood in my sketchbook. (Fastest sketch ever – the ride lasts three minutes, but my sketch probably took less than a minute!)

After two fun days in Portland, we drove a short hour-and-a-half westward to the ocean. . .

(See my Flickr album for more sketches and photos of Portland.)

2/29/16 Pigma brush pen, colored pencils (Deschutes
Brewery in Portland's Pearl District)

2/29/16 ink, colored pencil (Powell's Books coffee shop)

2/29/16 ink, colored pencil (busker outside Powell's Books)

Mt. Hood from the Portland Aerial Tram

Quaffing brews at Deschutes

A bag of books from Powell's