Heading into Portland!
No idea what these are...but they look cool!
Our RV Park was right on the border of Vancouver, WA, so we got to do OR and WA in the same week. Here we are across the river from our RV Park in Vancouver, WA. Halfway across the river, you hit Portland.
Portland is famous for its food trucks, of which there are over 300! There are ALL Kinds of different cuisines. And the food is actually amazing...unlike the NYC roach coaches...yuk...
Here we are at The Grilled Cheese Grill. And it's in an old school bus. How cool is that!? They had 20 different varieties of grilled cheeses. Really cool. I've been telling Shawn forever that I don't get how there isn't a fast food grilled cheese chain. Who doesn't love grilled cheeses?!!
Our first night out. Cool bar.
Just a cool table haha.
LOVE these little booths. It's like my dream restaurant setting!
Some random guy that got in the photo haha.
Entrance to Chinatown
Right 2 Dream Too is a safe place for over 90 people to sleep each night.
World Homeless Day is Oct. 10. On that day last year, when official attention was on the Occupy Portland encampments at Chapman and Lownsdale Squares, Right 2 Dream Too quietly established itself at Northwest Fourth Avenue and Burnside Street as a tented camp for the homeless.
However, this self managed
rest area for people without housing is being labeled a “recreational
campground” by Dan Saltzman’s Bureau of Development Services and fined
over 1,000 dollars each month simply for existing.
One year later, on October, 10 2012,
The Dreamers, as they call themselves, marked the day by protesting outside City Hall about fines being imposed on the camp, testifying before the City Council then returning to the camp to sign another one-year lease with property owner Michael Wright. “Pennies, nickels, dimes, Dan Saltzman waive those fines” was the chant that about 50 camp residents, wearing zombie makeup, shouted over and over in front of City Hall in the morning.
About 90 people a night sleep undisturbed at the site, which has a security desk, a kitchen, a clothes closet, tents for men, women and couples, a smokers' corner and a computer.
During the course of the first year, according to co-founder Mubarak, 24 residents secured housing and 17 found work.
We don’t just sleep there, we help each other, was the message many of the campers brought to City Hall.
Back at the camp, party preparations were in full swing. On the menu -- barbecue hotdogs, chicken and hamburgers, vegan and regular. Also ratatouille, apple crisp and cake.And lots of soda and bottled water. The camp is a drug and alcohol- free zone. Campers quickly assembled a makeshift stage in an area normally occupied by tents. A large wooden pallet was covered with tarps and carpet scraps. It would serve as a podium for speeches, runway for the afternoon’s fashion show, and dance floor.
But first, Mubarak and Wright signed another one-year, rent–free lease.
Wright is an unusual philanthropist. His property is at the center of a long-running feud with the city. It had been home of Cindy’s Adult bookstore. In 2007, city officials forced Wright to shut the business down because of chronic code violations. So he leased the lot out as a tent city for homeless people. Annual rent: $1. The campers are responsible for paying the fines. “Our agreement is that the property will remain lien-free," Wright said.
On June 2, 2012 at 1pm we had a paint a door party with the Unions. About 10 people came out from different Unions, to show there Solidarity with Right 2 Dream Too.
Powell's Books is a chain of bookstores in Portland, Oregon. Powell's headquarters, dubbed Powell's City of Books, occupies a full city block. It contains over 68,000 square feet, about 1.6 acres of retail floor space. The inventory for its retail and online sales is over four million new, used, rare and out-of-print books. Powell's buys around 3000 used books a day.
Saw this sign one afternoon walking around downtown and thought it was really cool. I gotta say, Portland is just a cool town.
I don't know...they had a photo shoot in one of these on America's Next Top Model, haha. I look just like a model! Ha.
While in Portland, we went to another McMenniman's Brother's converted school - to bar/movie theater. This one was extra cool. The school really felt like...a school. And there were all these different themed "bar" areas.
For instance, the Detention Bar was the one that allowed smoking and served whiskey.
Here is the movie theater. We had a blast!
No idea what these are...but they look cool!
Our RV Park was right on the border of Vancouver, WA, so we got to do OR and WA in the same week. Here we are across the river from our RV Park in Vancouver, WA. Halfway across the river, you hit Portland.
Portland is famous for its food trucks, of which there are over 300! There are ALL Kinds of different cuisines. And the food is actually amazing...unlike the NYC roach coaches...yuk...
Here we are at The Grilled Cheese Grill. And it's in an old school bus. How cool is that!? They had 20 different varieties of grilled cheeses. Really cool. I've been telling Shawn forever that I don't get how there isn't a fast food grilled cheese chain. Who doesn't love grilled cheeses?!!
Our first night out. Cool bar.
Just a cool table haha.
LOVE these little booths. It's like my dream restaurant setting!
Some random guy that got in the photo haha.
Entrance to Chinatown
Right 2 Dream Too is a safe place for over 90 people to sleep each night.
World Homeless Day is Oct. 10. On that day last year, when official attention was on the Occupy Portland encampments at Chapman and Lownsdale Squares, Right 2 Dream Too quietly established itself at Northwest Fourth Avenue and Burnside Street as a tented camp for the homeless.
However, this self managed
rest area for people without housing is being labeled a “recreational
campground” by Dan Saltzman’s Bureau of Development Services and fined
over 1,000 dollars each month simply for existing.One year later, on October, 10 2012,
The Dreamers, as they call themselves, marked the day by protesting outside City Hall about fines being imposed on the camp, testifying before the City Council then returning to the camp to sign another one-year lease with property owner Michael Wright. “Pennies, nickels, dimes, Dan Saltzman waive those fines” was the chant that about 50 camp residents, wearing zombie makeup, shouted over and over in front of City Hall in the morning.
About 90 people a night sleep undisturbed at the site, which has a security desk, a kitchen, a clothes closet, tents for men, women and couples, a smokers' corner and a computer.
During the course of the first year, according to co-founder Mubarak, 24 residents secured housing and 17 found work.
We don’t just sleep there, we help each other, was the message many of the campers brought to City Hall.
Back at the camp, party preparations were in full swing. On the menu -- barbecue hotdogs, chicken and hamburgers, vegan and regular. Also ratatouille, apple crisp and cake.And lots of soda and bottled water. The camp is a drug and alcohol- free zone. Campers quickly assembled a makeshift stage in an area normally occupied by tents. A large wooden pallet was covered with tarps and carpet scraps. It would serve as a podium for speeches, runway for the afternoon’s fashion show, and dance floor.
But first, Mubarak and Wright signed another one-year, rent–free lease.
Wright is an unusual philanthropist. His property is at the center of a long-running feud with the city. It had been home of Cindy’s Adult bookstore. In 2007, city officials forced Wright to shut the business down because of chronic code violations. So he leased the lot out as a tent city for homeless people. Annual rent: $1. The campers are responsible for paying the fines. “Our agreement is that the property will remain lien-free," Wright said.
On June 2, 2012 at 1pm we had a paint a door party with the Unions. About 10 people came out from different Unions, to show there Solidarity with Right 2 Dream Too.
This place is insane. At first, I though, "big deal...a big bookstore"...but now I know what the fuss is all about. It is HUUUUGE. It's really hard to even describe. It goes on forever, and on 4 floors. It has to be 5 times bigger than the main NYPL.
Saw this sign one afternoon walking around downtown and thought it was really cool. I gotta say, Portland is just a cool town. I don't know...they had a photo shoot in one of these on America's Next Top Model, haha. I look just like a model! Ha.
While in Portland, we went to another McMenniman's Brother's converted school - to bar/movie theater. This one was extra cool. The school really felt like...a school. And there were all these different themed "bar" areas.
For instance, the Detention Bar was the one that allowed smoking and served whiskey.
Here is the movie theater. We had a blast!
This looks like quite an unusual city! It is a disgrace that we have to have "homeless cities". The richest nation on Earth and so many have nowhere to hang their hats or enough food to eat. It makes me sick.
ReplyDeleteI love the painting on the roof of the bus! Whose photos are all over the table tops?
Powell's City of Books. My fantasy dream! A store that takes up a whole city block that I could get completely lost in. Portland is looking like a pretty "cool"** place to live.
** synonyms for "COOL":
neat
nifty
the bomb :)
guay
de puta madre
dandy
glorious
keen
groovy
sweet!
genial
excellent
boss
swell
padre! (Mexican)
You get my drift, right?
Mom