Moving to Portland, OR

[RandomHero]

Hey everyone,

Lifelong resident of Seattle so far, I decided I'm moving to OR. Well, Vancouver for the first couple months, then into OR. I've got work and home lined up already, but I honestly know no one there besides my younger brother, and would love some tips.
1. Cool places to hang out. Pubs, restaurants, venues for local music.
2. Anyone who could use a hand on projects or side projects, as I'll be far away from my usual suspects.
3. Any recommendations for cool places to see, i.e. landmarks, camp grounds, awesome little towns to check out.

I really haven't explored much of Oregon yet, been through a few times, and just found a nice situation there that made my desire to move somewhere new an easy decision. Anything DVXUsers can give me advice wise would be very welcomed. Much thanks.

 

[Fahad]

portland is a cool place. i visited there twice.

there's a million venues to check out. i believe there's a newspaper called "the mercury" which is free and you can find it everywhere. that paper has a lot of ads in it for local music shows.

don't forget to visit rogue brewery!

 

[RandomHero]

portland is a cool place. i visited there twice.

there's a million venues to check out. i believe there's a newspaper called "the mercury" which is free and you can find it everywhere. that paper has a lot of ads in it for local music shows.

don't forget to visit rogue brewery!

Thanks very much! Exactly the kind of stuff I'm looking for.

 

[Fahad]

no problem.

Portland has a very unique culture (compared to other US cities). they have a saying/mindset that goes "keep Portland weird." and weird it is. in a good way.

they had a "naked bike ride" last time i visited. and i thought "ok... i guess that's cool, but what's the underlying political statement?" and when i asked my friend, she said "there's no statement, they just want to bike naked"

haha

 

[RandomHero]

no problem.

Portland has a very unique culture (compared to other US cities). they have a saying/mindset that goes "keep Portland weird." and weird it is. in a good way.

they had a "naked bike ride" last time i visited. and i thought "ok... i guess that's cool, but what's the underlying political statement?" and when i asked my friend, she said "there's no statement, they just want to bike naked"

haha

I think Vancouver, BC had one of those when I last visited. It's hard to process 200 people on rollerblades and bicycles parading naked down the street at 1am when you're loaded. I do think in the interest of everyone's eyes, I'll avoid joining that particular aspect...

I'm pleased to hear someone speaking highly of the culture there. I've heard others say it's kind of like a Seattle wannabe, which I am seriously hoping isn't true... I've already had Seattle Prime, as it were.

Anyway, truly thanks again. I'm glad i've got a place to start looking for the fun anyway.

 

[David Saraceno]

Love Old Portland.

 

[Mike Harvey]

I'm pleased to hear someone speaking highly of the culture there. I've heard others say it's kind of like a Seattle wannabe, which I am seriously hoping isn't true... I've already had Seattle Prime, as it were.

I think that's Seattle folk just being snobbish... I mean, look at how overly image conscious we tend to be ("...but we NEED an NBA team, otherwise we won't be a World Class City..."). I honestly think we have an over inflated opinion of ourselves up here... and I know more than a few who think Seattle is a wannabe West Coast New York.

I've only passed through Portland, but my friend's in that area love it.

 

[Fahad]

I'm pleased to hear someone speaking highly of the culture there. I've heard others say it's kind of like a Seattle wannabe, which I am seriously hoping isn't true...

i don't think it's true.

i visited Seattle for a day, and got a little feel for what it was like. i liked Portland more because it wasn't too big or small.

you really don't need a specific recommendation for venues. i promise, just walk down the street and you'll want to go to all of them.

it's a fairly progressive city, too.

what i've been told/seen, about Portland:

pros:
- there's a city ordinance that makes it so you rarely see chain retail/fast-food outlets.
- one of the few city's in the nation that feeds the homeless (free)
- has the largest book-store in at least the US (powell's)
- bars are required, by law, to serve a full-food menu

cons:
- high unemployment rate (good thing they feed the homeless)
- high suicide rate (i think i saw suicide advertised)

pro or con: it has a very liberal marijuana law.


note: there's a really good cuban restaurant on/near "burnside". very authentic. it was delicious.

 

[Fahad]

as far as film goes:

- they have a few film fests. there was a "portland underground film" fest when i was there and considered going. but, i looked at what was playing that day (same day as naked bike ride) they had "bike porn", a review of which said "it's exactly what it sounds like, porn, but on bikes". meh.

- there are a lot of theaters that show older movies (one's that have been out for a year or two). they usually serve booze, too.

 

[RandomHero]

- has the largest book-store in at least the US (powell's)

I'm SO glad you brought that up. I have a friend who wants to come visit there and she really wanted me to find out what that bookstore was. I'm definitely making that one of my first stops... and then of course progressing to a bar with a full food menu

 

[RandomHero]

I think that's Seattle folk just being snobbish... I mean, look at how overly image conscious we tend to be ("...but we NEED an NBA team, otherwise we won't be a World Class City..."). I honestly think we have an over inflated opinion of ourselves up here... and I know more than a few who think Seattle is a wannabe West Coast New York.

I've only passed through Portland, but my friend's in that area love it.

I have a feeling you're right. One of the reasons I'm glad to be leaving is that Seattle in general leaves this ultra-hipster/trendy taste in my mouth that I don't care for. Granted, I live a ways out of the city, but going there for concerts, nights out or whatnot, it's easy to feel out of the loop if you don't drive a Mercedes or wear a suit. That being said, I'll still be happy to come back and visit, and will always be a 'Hawks fan!

 

[thekeygun]

Theres another film festival called "peripheral produce" which is an awesome name.

There are so many great bars and places to eat there! It would take me too long to list.

I lived in Portland for a bit, and only went to Seattle once. They are VERY different. I'd say Seattle has more of a city Vibe. Portland is more laid back. Seattle is more spread out, Portland has a great public transportation system, and you can basically bike everywhere.

 

[Fahad]

Theres another film festival called "peripheral produce" which is an awesome name.

nice.

Portland is definitely hippie.

the music scene is a bit overwhelming. there are so many bands, local and out-of-town, playing everywhere, all the time..

 

[Mike Harvey]

I have a feeling you're right. One of the reasons I'm glad to be leaving is that Seattle in general leaves this ultra-hipster/trendy taste in my mouth that I don't care for. Granted, I live a ways out of the city, but going there for concerts, nights out or whatnot, it's easy to feel out of the loop if you don't drive a Mercedes or wear a suit. That being said, I'll still be happy to come back and visit, and will always be a 'Hawks fan!

First chance I get, I'm moving to Snoqualmie (but then again, I'm from Lynden, so I don't like big cities by default =P). Yeah, Seattle is much more hipster-ish than Marysville, that's for sure =).

Granted, I do love the area and all of it's natural beauty, and my family has been here since before Washington was a state... but i can never live inside Seattle proper again. I know a lot of people love it, but I'm just not one of them.