The magic is in the hole

At 10:15pm on Tuesday March 30th, my train left Emeryville, CA for Portland, OR. In addition to the beautiful landscape, I also noticed more nerds on this train than usual; passengers were reading comics, talking about javascript, and watching Battlestar Galactica on their laptops. This was not surprising, as the headquarters for Darkhorse Comics is a stone's throw away from Portland, but it was refreshing none-the-less.

On Wednesday March 31st, I explored the Portland neighborhood of Sellwood, which was a wonderful fusion of hippie and geek culture.

On Thursday April 1st, I went to Things From Another World, the comic book store owned and run by Darkhorse Comics in the neighboring town of Milwaukee, OR. Although well-stocked, browsing was made difficult by the fact that most of the comics were just like Laura Palmer; wrapped in plastic.

That night, my host and I enjoyed dinner and drinks at the Muddy Rudder, a pub with live music and a friendly atmosphere which reminded me of similar establishments in Vermont. In fact, I think it was at this point that I decided that Oregon just might be the Vermont of the West Coast.

On Friday April 2nd, my host and I met some of my friends at Slappy Cakes, a diner where we drank cocktails and made pancakes on a hibachi grill.

I had a drink called Whiskey For Breakfast.

Afterward, I decided to make my way downtown in search of the highly praised Voodoo Doughnut's. In retrospect, I shouldn't have walked most the two miles between the establishments because, by the time I got there, the cold drizzle had turned into cold rain (my most hated of all weather types) and I was so grumpy and tired that I was ready to call it a night. However, it was absolutely worth it for a chance to try their Cap'n Crunch doughnut.

Pic stolen from this guy.

When I tried to go back on Saturday to get some more for my train ride, the line for Voodoo Doughnuts was out the door and down the block. While I don't think their regular glazed doughnuts are as good as Krispy Kreme's, everything else they make is head-and-shoulders above any other doughnut I've ever tried. Definitely check that place out if you're ever in Portland (or Oregon, even).

I must say, I really enjoyed everything about Portland except for the weather. Give me four feet of snow and a -30 degree windchill before cold rain any day (honestly, dampness makes me feel much colder). Aside from that, though, eating cheaply and well in one of the world's most sustainable cities was pretty awesome, especially considering how friendly and grounded most of the people were. I'll definitely visit Portland again next time I'm in the Pacific Northwest.

At 4:45pm on Saturday April 3rd, I began my 47 hour train ride from Portland, OR to Chicago, IL, but that's a story for my next post.

I can't think of a good April Fools joke so let's just move on

I arrived in Emeryville, CA at 4:45pm on Saturday March 27th. My host and I spent my first evening in San Francisco catching up and drinking entirely too much wine. The next day, as we walked around Golden Gate Park, I discovered that the Bay Area was the perfect place to be hungover because no one else had any more energy or drive than I did.

A beach near Golden Gate Park.


The tulip garden in Golden Gate Park.


Golden Gate Park.


The Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park.

While I appreciated the reminder that the Boston/NYC attitude of "Hurry up! I've got places to be!" is needlessly stressful most of the time, something about San Francisco just didn't set right with me. I think this had to do with the fact that everyone managed to be happy and laid-back without also being friendly. Additionally, there are a crazy amount of homeless people; I assumed that there only seemed to be more than in Boston or New York City, as the warmer weather would make it very easy for homeless people to stay outside in San Francisco and therefore be more visible. Then I read the Wikipedia page on homelessness in America:

The city of San Francisco, California, due to its mild climate and its social programs that have provided cash payments for homeless individuals, is often considered the homelessness capital of the United States. The city's homeless population has been estimated at 7,000-10,000 people, of which approximately 3,000-5,000 refuse shelter. The city spends $200 million a year on homelessness related programs. It is believed that New York, which is 10 times as large in population, has only few hundred more chronically homeless individuals.

That's pretty intense. Another thing that disturbed me (and I'm not claiming that these two social issues are correlated) was the shocking lack of policing. Now, I'm not in favor of wasting police time and jail space on prostitutes and potheads, but violent crime's another matter. I balked when my cousin in San Francisco informed me that only 30% of their city's murder cases get closed, compared to the national average of 61% in 2007 (figures from here).

As an aside, this pic sums up my views on the Haight-Ashbury area:

I left the Bay Area for Portland, OR at 10:00pm on Tuesday March 30th, but that's a story for my next post.