Family of 5 in Portland, Oregon: Day One

In the minivan, we left Seattle and stopped for lunch in Centralia.


Lunch

Burgerville

Burgerville looks like a regular roadside burger place. But step inside, start reading the posters, signs, and menu, and you'll soon realize it is a fast-food eatery promoting values: fresh, local, sustainable. I recall big posters that tell the stories of actual people who provide the potatoes, cheese, and recycling services, descriptions of vegetarian-fed beef, cage-free chickens, and information on where the berries, salmon, and nuts come from. With all these special ingredients, it is surprising that you can still get a small cheeseburger for about $1.50 and a double cheeseburger with a soda and fries for $5.50 to $6.50. Our total for five quite delicious burgers and four beverages was under $26.00. I'm glad to hear there are plans for more Burgervilles beyond the 39 current locations in Washington and Oregon.


3D Center of Art and Photography

3D Center of Art and Photography

We arrived in Portland midday, checked in to our La Quinta hotel, and drove to an area very near the Pearl District.

We found free street parking near our first stop, the 3D Center of Art and Photography. Its website says it is "the world's only art gallery, museum and theater dedicated to the art and science of 3D!" We are not usually 'into' art museums, but I figured the science part would interest all of us, and I was right.



Check out this video that shows exactly what the museum is all about:



Greeted warmly by a museum board member, we paid $15 and entered a single-story small-retail-shop-sized space divided into rooms by partial walls. Though two other groups of visitors subsequently entered (along with a subtle aroma of marijuana), it was not crowded and I'd say there were under 20 people inside. It is rather quiet, and kids under 10 might quickly grow restless.


In the course of one hour, we used devices requiring two hands to view black & white photos on the wall, used paper glasses to look through 3D color books, and used plastic glasses to watch two 3D movies.  We also read descriptions about how eyes and brain and camera lenses work together to create images, learned how anyone can create 3D photos with a regular camera and some free software, and marveled at the existence of pocket-sized cameras with two lenses that produce 3D digital photos.


Powell's City of Books
A bookstore of amazing proportions, and quite overwhelming. Free maps of Powell's are provided that diagram the many doorways, stairs, aisles, and subject rooms of this multi-story building. We selected the sections we each wanted to browse, then I accompanied the 12 year olds to the teen area, and hubby and our 15 year old went to the computer area (what a surprise. not.), then we all met up later and walked around the physics and other science books.


It is a must see just for the spectacle of it. The website proclaims it is "the largest used and new bookstore in the world". And the Washington Post called Powell's "perhaps the best bookstore in the world." Exciting!


Dinner

Bridgeport Brew Pub Bratwurst Plate

Bridgeport Brew Pub has a warm atmosphere, housed in an historic building with brick walls, and modern touches such as a metal staircase leading to the restrooms and additional seating. The brew pub has small outside signage, making it sort of hard to spot. See this wikipedia link for a photo so you'll know what to look for.


It was crowded on the Saturday night we were there with our kids, but we were seated quickly on wood stools at a high table near a wooden post with hooks for our coats and carry-alls. We shared the pretzel plate, and individually selected the Mediterranean plate with hummus and pita, a kids' menu pepperoni pizza (hand made, not frozen), a burger with bacon, a shepherd's pie, and the bratwurst plate with spaetzle. We all loved the food and eagerly tried each other's dishes. The service was friendly; our waiter had a tie-die tee shirt, and provided helpful recommendations with an upbeat, down-to-earth manner. He had to move around the table to speak with each of us, as it is noisy in that big room. The beer was tasty, and soda refills are free. Our total for the 5 of us, including tip was $85.25.


Comedy

Waiting for ComedySportz to start.

I wasn't sure an 8:00pm live ComedySportz show could really be 'family-friendly' as the website describes, but it truly was. There were quite a few kids even younger than ours who clearly had been there before and knew the routine. Upon entering, we sat among 8 or 9 rows of chairs of the stackable variety, in a small, spare space facing a stage. Soon, the cast was milling around, creating merriment with corny jokes and puns and props, and then the real show began with game after game of hilarity. Think "Whose Line is it Anyway", with even more physical humor. The announcer encourages the audience to offer ideas and root for either team, while a brilliantly funny computer whiz punctuates the competitions with images and words on video screens. Our kids still quote a few of the witty lines spontaneously blurted by the comedic performers. Candy, soda cans, and beer are available. We bought tickets online for $12 each. It was a memorably fun time, and we can't wait to attend more evenings of similar comedy stages, including Theatresports in our own Seattle!

Note: Another family of 5 we know recently visited Comedy Sportz and reported "The comedy show was well-done. We all enjoyed it. Although, I think C. (8th grader) has just seen his future career. We could have left him there. He was still repeating various lines and laughing all the way home."

Next: Day Two, Oregon Museum of Science and Industry

Sandy Nielsen
Sleeps5.com

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Portland, Oregon: 3 Days for Family with 3 Kids

Three boys and luggage, loaded in the Toyota minivan!

Spring Break is coming up. We live in Seattle, so a 3-day budget road trip to Portland, Oregon is easy. No airplane expense or hassles required.

The picture to the right shows the 11-year olds in the middle seats, ready to spot landmarks, and the 15-year old in the back, 'plugged-in'.


New tv comedy: Portlandia
I'm thinking about Portland lately because of the buzz around here regarding a new comedy tv show, Portlandia, co-created by Saturday Night Live's Fred Armisen. The 'ABOUT' page of the new show's website says Portland has "joyous eccentricities". Love that term!


Here is a clip where the creators explain their take on the city:




Spring Break
Last spring, we spent three nights in Portland, which is a three hour drive from Seattle. (I just noticed how many times I've typed the word 'three'. Three kids, three hours, three nights. A totally unplanned coincidence. Continuing on now...) Set along the wide Willamette River, Portland is beautiful, friendly, urban, laid back, and when we were there, rainy.


Getting there
During the trip planning stage, I did investigate taking the Amtrak train, but wow, for a family of 5 it is $300 round trip, a bit less for AAA members. Whereas, the cost of gas for the drive in our minivan, according to the AAA fuel cost calculator webpage is just $60 or so, round trip.

Added to either transportation mode, train or car, is the cost of many munchies. With kids in the 11-to-15 age range, we could easily go three hours without eating. But buying special snacks sure makes any trip more fun. The kids seem to remember vacations in relation to what they ate, and they especially like being able to pick out their own (special occasions only!) junk food item at a gas station mini-mart or truck stop.

(Helpful Hint: Do try truck stops when on a road trip. Hubby had the idea to buy gas at a large interstate truck stop -- boy, was it nice! It has larger, super clean bathrooms, and lots of munchies and good gas prices. It also had wide driveway entries and exits, and was close to the freeway for easy maneuvering. We've since tried a couple more truck stops while on other trips, and had similar positive experiences.)


Hotel for Family of 5

La Quinta room for 5, with a rollaway bed in the middle.

Our Portland hotel of choice was the La Quinta, near the Convention Center. It allows a family of 5 in one standard room, even allowing the entry of 2 adults and 3 children on the online reservation page. On Hotels.com we got a great deal, with 2 Queen beds, for $100 per night, including tax. The hotel can provide a rollaway, has free breakfast, free wireless internet, and free parking.

I agree with some online hotel reviews for this La Quinta that the interior hallways were a bit musty. But the room was not musty, the beds were comfy, and we didn't feel overly crowded. The kids enjoyed the pool all to themselves a couple times. They reported that the water could be warmer, but it was warm enough to jump in and stay in for lengthy swims. The wireless worked great. The staff was friendly.

Raincoats and umbrellas - glad to be out of the rain!

(If we had taken the train, we would not have needed free parking, and perhaps could have selected a hotel closer to downtown to decrease the duration of our public transportation trips. But the bus and light rail cars are so frequent, speedy, and clean that the rides to and from downtown were no trouble, and quite pleasant.)


One unfortunate thing: we were out and about so much each day that we never got to taste the hotel's complimentary fresh baked cookies in the evenings. We did eat breakfast each day, though! The breakfast room was small, but we had no problem getting a table with enough chairs. There were two make-it-yourself waffle makers, cereal, biscuits & gravy, oatmeal, hard boiled eggs, yogurt, apples, bananas, English muffins, bagels, coffee, juice, tea, and milk.

A Starbucks and a Red Robin restaurant, among others, are in walking distance. The La Quinta front desk provided a map of surrounding streets with marked restaurants and coffee shops.

Next: Day One, Pearl District: 3D museum, Powell's book store, Bridgeport Brewpub, Comedy Sportz.

Sandy Nielsen
Sleeps5.com

Valentine's Day around the Puget Sound

Seattle skyline on a rare clear day.

Granted it is dark and rainy at one in the afternoon here in Seattle, but still the beleaguered citizens of Pugetopia can find their romantic venues.  This particular blog may step away from our family-of-five tradition and instead embrace the originating couple.  Here are some of our favorites.

Hotels:  Try the Inn at Langley on Whidbey Island--understated elegance, excellent dining, beautiful views of the Sound, lovely spa, relax.   Next favorite is the Inn at the Market located among the hubub of Pike Place Market. Once inside, escape to your room and watch the ferries criss-cross the bay.

Restaurants:  Head early to Salvatore's (6100 Roosevelt Way NE), where they do not accept reservations, and wait in the little bar for a table at this Seattle Roosevelt neighborhood favorite.  Try the chicken involtini and the caprese salad--never misses.  If you are feeling flush and you remembered to make a reservation, head to Canlis (2576 Aurora Ave. N.), order any of the steaks or let your waitperson make suggestions.  If you are lucky Walt Wagner, or someone equally as accomplished, will be playing the piano in the background.  On very special occasions, we have even taken our children, who are always treated kindly here.

Romantic Parks (bundle up):  On top of Queen Anne Hill (211 W. Highland Drive) sits Kerry Park with its beautiful views of the city and the Space Needle. Or, drive along the waterfront on Alki Beach in West Seattle, there are a string of parks with views looking back at downtown Seattle, such as Belvedere Park. Or, try Louisa Boren Lookout Park nestled between houses in the Capitol Hill neighborhood (1555 15th Ave. NE) for beautiful views from high on a hill looking towards Lake Washington and the Cascade Mountains.

Take a Ferry Ride:  A favorite inexpensive date most every teenager from the Seattle area can remember is walking on one of the ferries that crosses Elliott Bay with a picnic basket dinner and riding back with the incredible views of the city.  Since 9/11 we now have to disembark and walk back on--only a minor inconvenience for the joy of the ride. Catch the Bremerton if you really like your date (long ride) or catch the Bainbridge for the shorter version.

Happy Valentine's Day from Sleeps 5

Holly
www.sleeps5.com

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