Ah blessed Jesus- there is nothin’ and I mean nothin’ like a good roadtrip. Oh, to watch Seattle disappear in the rearview mirror…its a sight to behold- one that never fails to give me a bit of a thrill. With the miles speeding by, I always have that moment of madness, this seemingly inevitable flash of crazy where I think- “hmmm…maybe I wont come back, maybe Ill just keep on driving’”. That very well may happen…one day. This time, however, I had an agenda- places to go, people to see and well…ugh, classes to get back to. 

First stop: Portland, Oregon. Im ashamed to admit that I havent spent much time in this city because, honestly, all I ever hear is good things about it. Seems as though everyone loves Portland- they love the food, the thriving bicycle culture, the bars, the art…blahblahblah. Me? Ive always just passed through on my way to other destinations. On this trip however, I was committed to exploring this city inside out (mostly so I never had to hear about the deliciousness of Voodoo Donuts again- now I can just say “yep. been there.” and avoid the whole diatribe). I went, I explored, I walked and ate and visited and played and drank…and it was lovely. Portland is, admittedly, pretty damn stellar.

Powells Books. Thats it. Thats all that needs to be stated. Even if Portland was an absolute no good shithole (which its not), Powells Books by itself would make it a city worth seeing. This bookstore is gigantic. Just fucking huge and mind you, confusing as hell but still- its so good! Used books are mixed in with the new (love that) and there is nothing that one cant find…every book in the entire universe is there. No shit. Needless to say, I was in heaven and could have easily spent the entire weekend at Powells but…well, I got overwhelmed and thirsty so I left. 

Stayed the night in Portland at my pal Cally’s place. We were all up until at least 1am, eating, drinking and chatting. That night may have been my favorite of the entire trip- catchin’ up, drinking beer, just sitting around shootin’ the shit in the backyard. Later, a delicious dinner (Cally’s fantastic slaw, meat bbq’ed by Joe, roasted potatoes & veggies) was laid out, more booze was drank (we moved on to wine then to port) and damn, we just laughed and laughed. 

I want to name all the spots I ate at, the foods I tried but I can hardly remember. I suppose thats the sure sign of a good time eh? Just being able to be lost in the moment? Oh and also, I tried to look a couple of the eateries up and couldnt find their sites online (which makes me like them even more).

Continued on to Breitenbush Hot Springs for some crunchy, hippie, quiet, outdoors time. Soaked in the Hot Springs, read books, took long hikes and overall just purged my body of the copious amounts of alcohol I had consumed the night before. I love that place but realize I can only stay for short periods of time. After about a day or so, I tend to get restless and find myself beginning to crave things like caffeine, alcohol and folks that speak audibly. Soft voices, new agey nonsense and sarongs get old pretty damn quick. You know what doesnt get old? Being naked- the hot springs at Breitenbush are “clothing optional”.

So, that was my tiny roadtrip. I still have about 4 days left of my break so who knows? Maybe Ill venture off again. 

*All the photos (besides the one of the sign which is mine) were taken by Wes. Not only is the man a talented photographer but he’s also an awesome travel companion and well…a pretty stellar partner to boot.