Generally, I publish my adventure posts eight to 12 weeks after I leave an area. And that will be true for my time in the Portland area as well. But I took so many more photos than I’ll have room to include on the posts, I thought I’d do a sneak peek today. A photo essay, if you will.

Portland, Oregon sits on the south side of the Columbia River. Use any bridge to go over the river and about half way across, you are in Washington. So, while I call this a pictorial of the Portland area, don’t be surprised by the photo from Washington.

Pet Rocks

I’ve been seeing painted rocks lately. Have you? Maybe it’s a new DIY thing. In my RV park, I found an M&M family and lots of single painted rocks. But this lily pond scene was my favorite. You may not get the full 3-D effect in a flat photo, but the frog and the ladybug on the lily pad are separate rocks. I arranged them like this. Other days, other people would come along and rearrange them.

Made me want to find some rocks and buy paint. And to think, in the 1970s one man made a fortune by selling rocks with googly eyes. I was young, but I still remember the pet rock craze. These are cuter.

For the Birds

One of the Portland tours was a Hop On – Hop Off Trolley. One of three places we hopped off was the the World Forestry Museum. Once a month, the place offers crafts. I assume they are intended to attract kids but as the woman was telling us about making bird feeders, I said, “I want to make one.”

She said they loved when adults participated. It was fun. I took mine back to the rig, hung it up and by the time I left it was empty. However, I am fairly certain my bird feeder fed no birds but instead made a crafty little squirrel plump. I found the feeder, which had been hanging on the outside of a bush, pulled into the branches of that bush. Very unlikely bird behavior.

Marshall House

You know the Marshall Plan? It was a foreign aid package to help European countries rebuild after the devastation of World War II. The plan is named after George C. Marshall, a statesmen and 5-star Army General who served under several presidents.  He advocated for the aid to Europe and was eventually awarded a Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts.

Even though the house along Officer’s Row in Vancouver, Washington was built in 1886, Marshall lived in the house from 1936 to 1938 and, because of his prestige, it has continued to be called the Marshall House. It was a fun place to visit one rainy cold Saturday.

A Plaza

Japanese American Historical Plaza was dedicated to the memory of those who were deported to inland internment camps during World War II. In the memorial garden, artwork tells the story of the Japanese people in the Northwest. A sculpture by Jim Gion, Songs of Innocence, Songs of Experience, serves as a gateway to the plaza, And the area is lined with 100 cherry trees.

We learned the fate of Portland Japanese on a walking tour. As our group approached the plaza, a diverse group of people were learning and practicing Tai Chi.

Dog Tired

After a long day of being a tourist, Solstice fell asleep with her head in her toy box. Then wanted to know why I wanted a photo of it.

Couldn’t Have Said It Better

Found this fun sign hanging in a shop in Troutdale, Oregon. Troutdale is outside Portland and near where I stayed. There is a fantastic funny story about how the town got its name but you have to wait for the official Portland adventure posts to read about it.

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