pdx

A good karma review:
http://travel.nytimes.com/2009/05/10...rtland.html?em

Fodorite018

I read that earlier today They did describe the feel of Portland pretty well IMO, but missed the mark on two things. Adidas and the tram, IMO.

Cries_Van_Notebook

I can't stand Matt Gross. He has a flair for the obvious.
He never offers anything new and reminds me of "journalists" who write articles on how to lose weight: don't eat; drink plenty of water; exercise. DUH!!!

I miss Daisyann McClain. She was a very good writer and offered original examples of how to save money whilst travelling.

Thin

Thin

nanabee

We just ate at a great little Mexican Restaurant in the SE Clinton Street area called Nuestra Cucina. It is a delightful place! I also recommend Cafe Mingo in the Pearl District.
I love the food scene in Portland and thanks for posting this PDX!

pdx

mms - the tram isn't mentioned but there are a couple glimpses in the photo slide show and the video.

thin, you crochety old fart,
I tried a search for Daisyann and am unable to locate any reference to her. Did she write for the NYT?

My (petty) gripe about Matt Gross is that the Frugal Traveler has a baby that is fed with formula, the most expensive option. Where's the frugal in that?

nanabee

Yes, how un-Portland of him! He must be from NYC or someplace like that.

taconictraveler

Thin: ;You are so right. I loved Daisann McClain. She had a flair for the UN obvious. Where is she now???
Actually you also have such a flair. Wish I knew where you should go for lunch on the UWS on Wednesday, but haven't a clue.

pdx

Nuestra Cucina is one of the most excellent restaurants in the world! Good score, nanabee! They make beautiful music with their food. That chili margarita is lovely, too. Time for another visit. I love that smell of the roasted chilis.

nanabee

PDX, their flan is heavenly! Next time we are just going for the margaritas and desert!!

lcuy

Any new grandsons, naanabee?

Fodorite018

pdx--I didn't look at the pics, but saw the tram mentioned on page 2.

Scarlett

<BLUE>After breakfast, lunch and coffee, I put my insatiable hunger aside to explore both the well-known and obscure corners of the city. I invested $4 in a ride on the aerial tram, a gondola that ascends from the banks of the Willamette to the hilltop Oregon Health and Science University, where I gazed out over the city’s many bridges, its low-slung east-side neighborhoods and the peaks of Mount Hood and Mount St. Helens on the horizon</blue>

I posted this article on TripAdvisor
I agree about the Tram .. what tourist would enjoy riding on a hospital tram for the view while the other passengers are on the way to visit loved ones or for treatments etc. I lived in Portland, we used that hospital and believe me, those trams are for employees and patients.. some of the article seems to be garnered from older articles..
I enjoyed Matt Gross and his article about taking the baby to Venice..

Avoid_Kauai

The tram is SOLELY for the doctors that work there and the students attending. It has cost the tax payers 50 million dollars, 25 million more than budgeted --a luxury for the staff and students, yet everyone else is left to foot the bill.
The fact that it appeals to silly tourists is just another feather in the bonnet.

OHSU folks don't have to pay to ride the tram, it's free for them.

Everyone else pays $4 bucks a ride, plus paying back the 50 million dollars.

Cries_Van_Notebook

crotchety old fart?

I am only 39.

And it is Daisann McClain, not Daisyann, and yes, she did write the Frugal Traveller column of the New York Times for years.

Next time you call me a crotchety old fart I will take off one of my cha-cha heels and gouge your eye out with it.

Bitch.

Thin

Andrew

The Tram was part of an expansion of the OHSU campus down into South Waterfront. It's part of a growth plan for the South Waterfront area that includes the Portland Streetcar, which connects the Tram to downtown Portland.

The Tram is intended for patients too not just doctors and students - to move quickly between the South Waterfront campus and the main one on the hill. Originally it was hoped more people working at OHSU would buy condos at South Waterfront but apparently that hasn't happened so much.

And by the way, TriMet monthly passholders also do not have to pay extra to ride the Tram.

nanabee

yes, thin 39 is too young to be a crotchety old fart, how about a young, vibrant fart

Cries_Van_Notebook

There is nothing about me that even remotely suggests flatulence.

If anything, I am the vapors from a gin martini.

Thin

pdx

Good grief, a gin martini sounds good right now.
Found the links to Daisann's articles. Amazing how the addition of that "y" to Daisann prevented the search from finding her articles.
She is a lovely writer, isn't she? Great storyteller. http://travel.nytimes.com/gst/travel...st&cs=0&page=8
or
http://tinyurl.com/p8mx9w

stevefrench

Best part of that article was the rundown of "Portland Fashion" at the start. It's nice to read a blurb like that and not feel like Portlanders are being made out to be clueless tree-huggers in black socks, tevas, and flannel when we go out on the town. Because really, that's only 49% of the population, compaired to 80% a decade ago!