by Tom Bastek
Last updated: 1:00 PM ET, Tue March 17, 2015
The largest city in the state of Oregon, Portland was incorporated in 1851 right near the end of the Oregon Trail. Known as the City of Roses for its many rose gardens, Portland is equally as famous for being one of the biggest craft beer cities in the country. Rated the 42nd highest place for quality of living, many computer and sports apparel companies make their home in Portland, including Intel and Nike. Here are a few places to keep you busy while you are in town to watch your team roll through the second and third rounds.
Oregon Museum of Science and Industry
What started as a collection of oddities spread throughout the hallways and corridors of many buildings around the city in 1903 eventually settled into its current home on the east bank of the Willamette River. The museum currently contains, "three auditoriums, including a large-screen theatre, planetarium, and exhibition halls with a variety of hands-on permanent exhibits focused on natural sciences, industry, and technology." They even have a submarine, the USS Blueback, which was opened for tours right not long after her appearance in the 1990 film, "The Hunt for Red October." Tickets are available piecemeal or as combinations to save a few dollars. Hours are Tuesday-Sunday, 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Portland Art Museum
The Portland Art Museum is the seventh oldest museum in the United States, founded in 1892. The institution contains more than 42,000 objects from the native peoples of North America, silver from the English, and a wide variety of graphic arts. Although over 90 percent of the museum's 112,000 square feet is dedicated to its permanent collection, they are well known for its ambitious special exhibitions. The museum includes the Jubitz Center for Modern and Contemporary Art, the Gilkey Center for Graphic Arts, and the Northwest Film Center. They are open from Tuesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with late nights on Thursday and Friday to 8 p.m.
Portland Saturday Market
One of the coolest open air markets in the country, the Portland Saturday Market is located in the historic Old Town/Chinatown neighborhood. They have over 250 booths to look through each week with a variety of arts and crafts all sold by local Pacific Northwest artisans. Check out crafts for the children, food, health and wellness, jewelry and more. There is live entertainment every Saturday as well. The market is open from March to Christmas from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Sunday.
Hair of the Dog Brewing Company
If there is one thing that Portland knows really well, it's beer. And although it is extremely tough to choose where to go to try some, because they do indeed have the largest amount of breweries and brewpubs per capita in the country, I will give you a good one where you can't go wrong. Back in 1993, when craft brews were just starting to make their way around the country, Hair of the Dog Brewing Company came along with the purpose of "providing beer lovers with new and unusual beer styles." This family-owned and operated brewery gives each beer its own name and identity, and produces upwards of 600 barrels a year. They were also one of the first breweries in America to specialize in production of high alcohol, bottle conditioned beers and the barrel aging process. They locally source when they can (99 percent in fact) and recycle their waste to local farmers for feed. They are open from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Tuesday through Saturday and till 8 p.m. on Sunday.
Food Carts
There are over 600 licensed food carts in Portland, giving it one of the most diverse street food scenes in the world. Some of the local favorites are Brunch Box, Grilled Cheese Grill, The Big Egg, Pyro Pizza, The Frying Scotsman, Viking Soul Food, Nong's Khao Man Gai, and Scoop.
Topics From This Article to Explore
