Portland vs. Seattle
 

I can't believe how many people write good things about Portland. Portland is a dump. The entire east-side (east of the bridge) is like one huge ghetto. West-side Portland (west of the bridge) is decent, but traffic is horrendous especially when you get near Beaverton. I think Beaverton must have some of the worst traffic in the entire United States. And as far as parks and recreation go, there might be some parks, but they are a pain in the butt to get to (or find). And the parks are totally urban parks anyways, nothing special.

People talk about skiing at Mount Hood...yeah that's like 2 hours east of Portland, doesn't really count. Portland has no seacoast either, unless you wanna drive 2 hours west.

Now Seattle on the other hand is a very nice city. It has a much higher quality of life than Portland. The neighborhoods are much nicer. Seattle has a beautiful bay where you can see the Olympic Mountains in the distance. You can go on cruises on the bay to the islands. It has a beautiful view of Mount Rainier. The people are much more sophisticated than they are in Portland. The Space Needle is really cool. Pikes Place is a great market. The Seattle Aquarium is great. The Woodland Zoo is better than Portland's zoo. Seattle is also more scenic than Portland. Seattle has parks and recreation also.

Yes Seattle has bad traffic and is expensive, but it's expensive for a reason....it's freakin nice!!

Washington also has bigger mountains and more mountains than Oregon. Washington is more scenic and beautiful than Oregon. And Washington has a much better economy.

Are you sure your name isn't mad_dog instead of red_dog?

I have to smile as I read your comparison. I think most people here appreciate what both cities have to offer. The cities are different, but lots of us have friends and family in both and love both cities.

Now if you really want to trash a city, have you visited Bakersfield CA recently?

Orcas...my thoughts exactly:)

We loved Portland, but that was from a perspective of a tourist v. resident. Of all the things you complained about, you forgot the rain!

Most cities don't have super close oceans or mountains. And one the east coast, the ones that are close are NO WAY as nice as the ones closest to Portland.

red_dog - things could be much worse, believe me. Traffic is bad in a lot of places.

Portland is a big city with a small town feel--I like that. And, another big advantage Portland has to Seattle (my home town) is that it is only a one hour drive from Portland to the beautiful Oregon Coast and to the heart of the Columbia River Gorge.

I heard it rains in Seattle too.
I am surprised (as a new transplant to Portland) to hear that Seattle has no traffic.
I am glad you like Seattle better red-dog, this might mean you will stay away from Portland?

Anyone hear of Fresno?

Scarlett, How would you compare Fresno to Bakersfield? It has been so many years since I was in Fresno, but Bakersfield is quite fresh on my mind, and I'm looking for a memory-cleansing machine.

First post troll. Ignore.

I drove through Fresno a long time ago, only knew about it after :)
Bakersfield..we drove to Las Vegas a few times from LA..even had a relative that lived there a looong time ago..but only memories are being hot dry and carsick :)

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"Portland is a big city with a small town feel--I like that. And, another big advantage Portland has to Seattle (my home town) is that it is only a one hour drive from Portland to the beautiful Oregon Coast and to the heart of the Columbia River Gorge."


Portland has no "small town feel", unless you consider east-side to have that, and in that case it would be a big sprawling ghetto "small town".

The coast is 1.5 hours away if you speed, and like 2 hours away if you drive within the speed limit. Not one hour away.

The Columbia River Gorge is nice, but it's nothing compared to the San Juan Islands in Washington.

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"I heard it rains in Seattle too."

Of course it rains in Seattle, who said it didn't?

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"I am surprised (as a new transplant to Portland) to hear that Seattle has no traffic."

Did you read my post? I said Seattle has bad traffic, but so does west-side Portland (especially the Beaverton area).

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"I am glad you like Seattle better red-dog, this might mean you will stay away from Portland?"

Why would I want to visit a huge sprawling ghetto like Portland? No thanks.

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"Anyone hear of Fresno?"

This thread is about Portland and Seattle, not California.

So your point is . . . . ? We live in/near Seattle and go to Portland as a weekend getaway, just because it's a more humane city. we park our car. The skiing at Mt. Hood is so much better than the close-in skiing from Seattle. And Seattle doesn't have a seacoast either. Duh!!!!

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"First post troll. Ignore."

I'm just telling it like it is. If you consider that trolling, so be it.

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"And Seattle doesn't have a seacoast either. Duh!!!!"

Puget sound is saltwater and directly connected to the ocean. Duh!!!!

Bow wow! ((&)) Red_dog, perhaps you can post something that will generate a bit more controversy. It's really not hard. Try working the California angle. My rental car got keyed between Bakersfield and LA the other day! It seemed like the only programs on the radio in Bakersfield are Spanish language, Christian religious, Country western and rap. And then there was LA all sprawled out in every direction with a brown haze over the top. The tv commentators showed cleavage! I was thinking, "Like what's happening to America, dude?" by the time I got the heck out of dodge and returned to the verdant PNW. There! Now we've started something!

Saltwater isn't seacoast. There are no waves here. It is a ferry ride + 3 or 4 hours of driving to get to the Pacific coast from here---much more than from Portland. Puget Sound is NOT ocean.

Again, what's your point???? They are both nice cities. Why rant?

Puget Sound is ocean water. That's why Orca whales swim around in it.

You didn't answer my question. Why rant?

Don't get me wrong---Puget Sound is a nice place---it has islands, and Orcas (although in 18 years of living here and riding ferries daily, I've only seen them once), and ferries that go most everywhere. But it's not the Pacific Ocean. That's why it has a different name. . . . Give it up, Red Dog.

Have any of you clicked on red_dog's name? Only other post is asking questions about the midwest..so guess he/she isn't overly thrilled with Seattle.