For all you tree-huggin'-hippie-vegans out there, the Pacific Northwest was designed with you in mind (also one of the top 5 fittest cities in America!). They cater with endless vegetarian dishes and free-spirit attitudes. They're a hustle-bustle city but only an hour from the Columbia River Gorge, only 2 hours from the ocean, and right on the Washington State line.
One of the coolest parts about Portland is its transportation system. For FREE you can take a train anywhere you want in the main part of the city. For $1 you can go just outside the city, and for $3? you can go as far as the airport. This is by far the cheapest and easiest way to get around. If you're flying in, take the train to your hotel.
My trip to the beautiful city of Portland wasn't really a vacation. I was there for the ASLO/AGU Ocean Sciences meeting. That didn't stop me from having an awesome time though! The thing about Portland is that, like many cities, it's divided into sections. I suggest arriving during the day if you've never been there before.
I arrived when it was dark out, didn't know where I was going, and had a less-than-awesome first impression. I was staying at the Crowne Plaza. Note: Be on the right side of the river. There is a Crown Plaze (no "e"), which is a business center and NOT a hotel on one side of the river, and Crowne Plaza (yes, hotel) on the "right" side by the Oregon Convention Center. Once I found my way to my hotel and my fellow students, I was okay. My first night in Portland is one I will never forget, because after getting lost, all I wanted was to find food. We walked to the other side of the river and found this place called Dante's. Can we say AMAZING pizza slices at ridiculously low prices?! I had two huge slices, for like, $3. Yeah. Now, apart from the pizza, Dante's is really about entertainment. Depending on which night you go, you can expect a variety of entertainment. The night I was there involved "Go-Go Dancers" and guys breathing fire. They also play phenomenal music. If you're up for a crazy night, DEFINITELY go to Dante's. End night one.
Most of our days were spent at the Oregon Convention Center, listening to scientists and academics talk about the ocean and why what they did was super cool. Our nights were spent bouncing from brewery to brewery for their phenomenal home-brewed beer and food.
One of the days we opted out of conferencing and decided to rent a car and drive to the Columbia River Gorge, which was about an hour away. Driving through the rugged wilderness of Oregon reminded me a lot of New England, except with freakishly tall trees. I was there in February, and even though it was chilly, there was no snow, and it rained very little. I stole the above autumn photo from my friend Shirley, who visited Portland in October for another conference. Anyway, our first stop on our Columbia River Gorge 
adventure was a scenic view of Crown Point. Our next stop was actually at Crown Point where we got out of the car and almost blew over the edge. It was SO windy. We asked a woman to take our picture and could barely tame our hair from blowing wildly all over the place. Throughout the gorge there are several waterfalls, each one looking completely different from the next. Notice the picture on the left, and how HUGE the waterfall is!? I couldn't even fit it all in the picture and was standing pretty far away. I was surprised how green Oregon was in February. Being from the north, I expected snow and gloom and no leaves on most trees, but it was actually very vibrant. 
The other waterfall that really stood out to me, and is very well known, was Multnomah Falls. Multnomah Falls isthe second highest continuous waterfall in the country and cascades 620 feet down Larch Mountain. The geology of this waterfall is also pretty spectacular, having entablature basalt, pillow basalt, and columnar basalt. 
After hiking and driving for several hours, we stopped in Hood River at a brewery called Big Horse Brew Pub. It was at this restaurant where I tasted how great new foods can be. I had an apple & fig quesadilla, and holy smokes was it delicious. They also have enormous homemade brownies, a variety of soups and, of course, great beer. They actually let us sample the beer until we found one we loved, which we all did.
A secondary adventure was a day of exploring around the city itself.
Three places you MUST go. One, Powell's City of Books. I don't care if you claim you've seen a bookstore the size of Godzilla. This place is bigger and I'll prove it. Take a look at the directory to the right. It would have taken me days to look through everything. Unfortunately, we only had about an hour, but it gave us a pretty cool idea of what they had to offer!
Place #2: Stumptown Coffee. There are many, but they're all in Portland. I went to the one downtown, which has a very "city" feel. One of the walls is all brick and the room was filled with the strangest combination of people I've ever seen: musicians, business-suits, hippies, crazy student scientists... it was nuts. Not to mention they have delicious coffee. For those of you who love the Earth, most of Portland, including Stumptown, uses compostable materials. They want, need and beg you to recycle. They <3 Earth.
Place #3: Voodoo Doughnut.
Portland is famous for this doughnut shop. Imagine any combination of amazing (and unusual) doughnut ingredients, and they're sure to have it. My doughnut of choice was the Memphis Mafia, which is fried dough with banana chunks and cinnamon sugar covered in a glaze with chocolate frosting, peanut butter, peanuts and chocolate chips on top. Sounds weird, but it was delicious. And also fattening. But also delicious. No options. You HAVE to go here. P.S. The Memphis Mafia can be spotted on the top shelf toward the back left. It's topped with peanut butter and chocolate chips.... so the one that looks like it has chocolate chips on it. Yeah. That was mine.
I seriously love food. I can think of few things that bring me greater joy. Another amazing restaurant we went to was Deschute's Brewery. (yes, I know, another brewery. But really, they have the best food and drinks unique to the area!) We actually went here 2 nights. The first night I ordered macaroni and cheese with salmon. The best salmon you will ever have is in the pacific northwest. Seriously. This meal was no exception.
The second night I ordered falafel, which was also delicious. For you meat-eaters, they have an elk burger to die for. I know because I tried it. It looked amazing and tasted even better. Oh! Another place that deserves a shoutout. There's this little place across the street from Deschute's called Sweet Masterpiece Chocolate & Coffee Bar. The woman who makes this chocolate deserves an award. By far, the best chocolate I've ever had. It's a little pricey, but it's homemade. She also has a variety of candies that has flower petals in them. Also, they have wine, sandwiches and other fantastic pastries and desserts, none of which I actually had. I only tried the chocolate. Twice. We also ate at an italian restaurant, but I can't remember the name of it. Food was great though. Bottom line, the food in Portland rocks.
If you have a chance to go inside the convention center, you definitely should. It's enormous and has really abstract sculptures everywhere. One last thing. I took this picture when flying out of Portland. Yep, best city ever.
Hotel cost per person: $30/night
Food per person: $200/week
Transportation/Car Rental per person: $40
Total: $270
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