ROADS PT.1

A few weeks ago, I set out on a journey up Interstate 5, travelling nearly 1000 miles through the Pacific Northwest. Embarking before dawn, passing through sleepy towns like Weed and Yreka, Shakespeare-obsessed Ashland, and Civil War territory, I arrived at my first stop just in time for rush hour. Welcome to Portland.

I wondered what Bill Walton thought the first time he entered the city as a rookie in 1974. A synthesis of grandiose nature and metropolitan sophistication at the very pinnacle of Western Civilization. A spectacle only possible through the intrepid clash of Bobby Anet diving head first into the trident of Poseidon, scattering pieces of genius across the Willamette Valley. Something along those lines. They certainly have good donuts.

I attempted to settle in, and a refreshing trip to the Portland Japanese Garden soon followed. Precise rock gardens and elegant ponds hide in the city’s west hills, respectful and free of impurities. Class.

Just when things seemed refined, I walked into Sushi Ichiban for dinner. Kaiten-zushi, or conveyor belt sushi, is an old favorite of mine. Sushi Ichiban has no conveyor belt, but instead, a toy train that takes plates around. This seemed very appropriate. It is so previous level, that by some circular bending of the space time continuum, it is possibly next level.

The truth about Portland, it seems, is somewhere in the middle of the extremes shown in these pictures. Maybe, it’s all of these things at once; the sum of eclectic parts. Laid back, but always innovating. Less than 48 hours later, just as I was feeling some sense of comfort after the initial 10 hour drive, I was back on the road.

(As seen on F5toRefresh)