Portland

I spent a long weekend in Portland for my brother's graduation from medical school. His house was full of proud family and friends for most of the weekend, though we did get a little quiet time with him and his wife just before we left. Mom, dad and I stayed at Terwilliger Vista Bed and Breakfast, pictured below. The room was beautiful, as was the house. Sandy, the innkeeper, is an amazing cook, and I enjoyed not only tasting what she made for breakfast, but also bargaining for her recipes-she was willing to trade, so we talked about food and cooking, which I found quite enjoyable. The actual graduation pictures I took with my film camera, so I'll have to add them later.


I loved all the green in Portland. Quite a change from Texas, where the only green is where things get watered, and the trees are dwarfs compared to those in the west. Below are some shots I took while walking in by brother's neighborhood or at the B&B. There's lavender with a busy bee, what I think is some relative to a poppy, and a dogwood tree. Lastly is what my brother referred to as "the tree". It's a few blocks from their house, and is quite interesting to see. The branches are attached to the roof and follow it nearly all the way around the house. I wondered how long the owners had been working on it!
The night before Matthew graduated, we ate at the Chart House, which is located conveniently across the street from where we were staying. Since it's up on the hill, the view was amazing-you're looking at downtown Portland. I took some pictures with Matthew and Jessica's camera that show Mt. Hood and Mt. St. Helens. I'll have to get them up here as soon as I get them. Anyhow, I recommend the food at the Chart House if you're ever in Portland. It may be a little pricey for some, but it was great, as was the service, and the view would be hard to beat!