Portland Gardens
In my room at the bed and breakfast there’s a poster about Portland Gardens. Yesterday I had some time to explore what the city has to offer.
First, I should mention that the day before I visited the Chinese Garden, which is right downtown, a block off the light rail. It felt a little silly to spend $7 to see a garden, but the fee was worth it. I was most impressed by the beautiful woodwork and furniture. They had some classic chinese chairs, with graceful lines, that you could actually sit in.
So back to yesterday. I took the light rail system west, under the nearby hills to Washington Park Station, “Washington Park Station is the only stop in the three-mile-long light rail tunnels through Portland’s West Hills. At 260 feet underground, it is the deepest transit station in North America, and the second deepest in the world. Passengers travel from the underground platform to the surface in four high-speed elevators.”
The elevators deposited me at one corner of Washington Park. I meandered through the Hoyt Arboretum, through huge old pine trees and blankets of ferns, feeling only slightly lost, until I found the Japanese Garden.
Again, an admission fee was paid and again it was worth the $7. The Japanese Garden was an improved version of the Chinese Garden. It contained wonderful ponds, waterfalls and carefully placed stone.
After a peaceful hour in the Japense Garden I headed across the road to the International Rose Test Garden. The air was filled with the smell of roses before you finished crossing the road. The garden contained so many varieties, and each one smelled different. My favorite smelling rose is still the double delight, a variety my mother grows with much pride.
When I escaped the conference yesterday the drizzle rain was just letting-up. For my Washington Park adventure the sky was blue, the sun was shining, as I boarded the bus back to the train station and back to the city proper, the clouds filled back in and the rain started. I couldn’t have had better timing.
Today I’ve rented a car to explore the historic columbia river gorge and Mt. Hood. More glorious Oregon landscape awaits.
