Our first full day in Portland started on the one hand marred by an early jetlagged wake up call and the anguish of having to wait for the delivery of my mom’s lost luggage, but on the other it’s been a beautiful sunny day with temperatures above 20°!
I was worried that they’d deliver the bag so late that my entire carefully arranged itinerary for the day would be ruined, but in the end we were able to leave the apartment shortly after eleven so it wasn’t that bad at all! Phew!
I wanted to kick off our trip with our number one goal: getting to see The Tree at the Portland Japanese Garden! I’ve told this story before, but ages ago our family computer had this stock wallpaper of a gorgeous, gnarled maple tree that we always assumed would be somewhere in Japan, and only when I traveled here last time did I realize it was in Portland all along. And ever since then I’ve been wanting to show it to my mom in person!
A short Uber ride took us to the garden before noon. The climb up from the parking lot was like I remembered, with modern sharp-edged buildings carefully designed to only barely stand out from the lush forest around the ravine. The admission price is steeper than I recalled, but definitely worth it.
Once inside the garden grounds, we were dismayed to find that the Umami Cafe was fully booked until past lunchtime (“Even if we just want to have a coffee?” I asked. The lady responded “There is no coffee served in the cafe. Only Japanese green tea.”), so instead we made a beeline to The Tree, and sure enough it was right where I left it.
When I last visited it was early April, so it was bare. Today I found it covered with a thick layer of leaves that were already transitioning from green to red. I noticed that the branches themselves were covered in green moss, giving the tree the aura of an ancient creature bonded with the environment.
The amazing maple tree is only one reason to visit the garden, though. I love this place because, as with any other Japanese garden worth its name, it features a lot of different sections, each with its own ambiance and design. There’s an exquisite pond with a soothing waterfall, a bridge, and stone lanterns. There’s a koi pond where a lot of fat, colorful carps bumped into each other. There’s a square zen garden, with rocks places strategically on gravel. I was stunned by the view of Mt. Hood in the distance; somehow I expected it would look distant and small from the city, but no, it feels enormous and imposing, with clouds reaching only its midsection.
And there is also a big pavilion in the center of the grounds with a veranda that gives out to a different kind of zen garden, this one a curved expanse of checkered sand surrounded by beautiful trees landscaped to provide the best possible view from exactly that place.
I suppose, strictly speaking, that the garden is not that big -at least compared to some of the ones I’ve seen in Japan- but I promise you it is a delight to walk along its course, taking in the striking natural beauty of a tiny twisted tree or a discreetly placed stone carving.
We also thoroughly explored the small but bountiful garden shop, stuffed with precious Japanese trinkets. If you’ve been to Japan, you need only take one look at the shop to recognize that it is authentically Japanese, not just in the origin of its products but in how they are arranged. I bought myself a stunning pair of lacquered chopsticks to add to my collection, an incense holder with the shape of a gingko leaf, and incense to go with it.
After we became convinced that we had explored every nook and cranny of the place, and having returned to The Tree to wave it goodbye, we finally exited the garden at about one o’clock: exactly on time for my itinerary! Not being able to have a coffee break in the cafe in the end made up for the time spent waiting for the bag at the apartment.
My first idea for lunch was to go to Mother’s Bistro… but it’s closed on Mondays! Then I thought I’d go to Bamboo Sushi… but it’s closed for lunch on Mondays! Finally I decided on Jake’s Famous Crawfish, a seafood and fish restaurant in downtown Portland that came recommended by one of my guidebooks (at this point I have three). I was afraid it might be touristy but instead we found a very atmospheric old-timey wood-paneled bar/restaurant with only two other booked tables (I guess Monday lunch is a slow time?). We ordered and split a flavorful Parmesan-encrusted sole and cod fish & chips, both yummy. Both the other tables ordered burgers, which… why even come here for burgers?
Even though I’d been starving, American portions being what they are, I was completely full by the end of the meal. My plan for the afternoon was to traipse around downtown peeking into a variety of shops that I’d picked up from the guides. First was Kiriko Made, a shop specialized in all sorts of Japanese arts and crafts, from clothing to home wares to jewelry to sashiko and more. It’s a surprisingly large shop, and furthermore every square inch is packed tight with all sorts of curiosities. I was fascinated but did not actually buy anything, maybe because I’d just been to the Japanese Garden.
In keeping with the day’s Japanese theme, we also visited Kinokuniya, a Portland branch of the Japanese chain of the same name. They sell a variety of geeky merch, a lot of English-language manga, a lot of stationery, and -this is what really impressed me- a pretty solid catalogue of Japanese-language manga, too! Unfortunately they didn’t have the two I am currently reading, but imagine how cool it is to be able to walk into a store to buy manga in Japanese instead of having to import it all the way from Japan.
(We did also visit a couple of non-Japanese stores, in my defense. A lot of off beat, locally designed decorative wares here.)
To add some culture to the mix, we also checked out Pioneer Courthouse Square, the symbolic center of Portland, although it felt smaller and less lively this time than when I visited in 2018. Maybe it’s because it’s a Monday and there’s less buzz around it?
We also walked past Arlene Schnitzer Hall, a venue more known for its big Portland sign that makes for a good photo opportunity!
Finally, I rectified my failure from my last trip and this time I got to see Portlandia, Portland’s equivalent to the Statue of Liberty. Even though it is one if the symbols of the city, it is almost impossible to see any pictures of it, because the author of the sculpture owns the rights to its image and refuses to sell it -meaning it does not appear on guidebooks, posters, postcards, keychains or anything like that. I do believe I am allowed to show you it, because this is not for commercial purposes, but just in case keep this between us!
I liked the statue, and it’s bigger than I imagined, but the fact that she is crouching and the trees right in front of it make the statue not stand out very much. Knowing that it was recently renovated, it did look shiny and polished!
And that was it for our first full day in Portland! By now we were tired from all the walking, so we sat down at a bus stop and waited for the bus that took us straight to our apartment to rest our feet.
Time to plan for tomorrow!
This Is A Lake 