Day 8: Hail to thee, Portlandia (7/29)
SALEM -- Somewhere in the transfer between the taxi and the hotel room last night, my auto credit card disappeared. (I keep credit cards for separate functions.) After getting "no" from the cab company, I declared the card lost. But it wasn't a completely lost morning; another of the guests needed a jump on their vehicle, and once I figured out where the hood release was, I was happy to oblige. (Again, don't tell Avis.)
It was back to the park-and-ride and into the city, where Chad and I went separate ways. He went to the apparently-famous Voodoo Donuts, while I went to Providence Park, Portland's home for soccer -- specifically, the men's Timbers and the women's Thorns. And while I was only going to get my soccer-loving cousin a scarf, I saw one that referenced the old text-based computer game "Oregon Trail" and just had to get it.
I went back to our pre-arranged meeting site, Pioneer Square. While waiting, I listened to part of a city walking tour and then went to Starbucks for a little gnosh. Chad finally arrived back from Voodoo with a doughnut covered in Lucky Charms(!?). This time our train made it back to our station, and then we headed south to Salem.
I left Chad at the hotel to do some catch-up laundry, while I went into the city. My first stop was the state capitol, which has a statue instead of a dome on top. Normally the Oregon Pioneer statue is accessible by spiral staircase, but on days such as today with temperatures in the mid-90s, it was off-limits, presumably due to health considerations. Like West Virginia's capitol, Oregon's has burned down twice; however, Oregon spaced their fires a little further apart (1855 and 1935).
My next stop requires a bit of explanation: In my job at the DMV, I have to deal with specific data from my Oregon counterparts on a monthly basis. So I figured I'd get a look at their office building, which ended up being in an industrial office park near the airport. I guess I can't complain about working in a shopping mall.
After a stop-off to recycle some more cans, it was back to the hotel to start packing for the trip home. Once that was substantially complete, we went to the local post office so Chad optimize his carry-on -- by spending $29 to avoid $25 in baggage fees.
I then convinced Chad into dinner at this restaurant I saw during my drive around town: Elmer's. Chad eventually decided it was a bit like Shoney's, but perhaps a bit brighter. After I casually mentioned that we were eating dinner at 4:45 on a weekday, Chad said that "well, you brought me" and declared me officially old. So for the rest of the meal, I just started throwing out random old-people statements, causing him and sometimes me to break out into laughter. (I wonder what the actual old people eating there thought of us.)
First pitch for the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes was 6:30, and we arrived in plenty of time, although I was a bit wary about the handicapped spots being the first row behind the stadium wall -- perhaps easy pickings for a foul ball to bash a windshield. (Fortunately, no such un-luck.) As befitting their name, the temperature at first pitch was 97, and on the field, the Volcanoes were swallowed up early on, as Everett posted a four-run first. However, S-K's pitching kept the Aquasox at bay while the Volcanoes slowly chipped away at the lead, eventually winning in the bottom of the 10th, 5-4.
It was back to the park-and-ride and into the city, where Chad and I went separate ways. He went to the apparently-famous Voodoo Donuts, while I went to Providence Park, Portland's home for soccer -- specifically, the men's Timbers and the women's Thorns. And while I was only going to get my soccer-loving cousin a scarf, I saw one that referenced the old text-based computer game "Oregon Trail" and just had to get it.
I went back to our pre-arranged meeting site, Pioneer Square. While waiting, I listened to part of a city walking tour and then went to Starbucks for a little gnosh. Chad finally arrived back from Voodoo with a doughnut covered in Lucky Charms(!?). This time our train made it back to our station, and then we headed south to Salem.
I left Chad at the hotel to do some catch-up laundry, while I went into the city. My first stop was the state capitol, which has a statue instead of a dome on top. Normally the Oregon Pioneer statue is accessible by spiral staircase, but on days such as today with temperatures in the mid-90s, it was off-limits, presumably due to health considerations. Like West Virginia's capitol, Oregon's has burned down twice; however, Oregon spaced their fires a little further apart (1855 and 1935).
My next stop requires a bit of explanation: In my job at the DMV, I have to deal with specific data from my Oregon counterparts on a monthly basis. So I figured I'd get a look at their office building, which ended up being in an industrial office park near the airport. I guess I can't complain about working in a shopping mall.
After a stop-off to recycle some more cans, it was back to the hotel to start packing for the trip home. Once that was substantially complete, we went to the local post office so Chad optimize his carry-on -- by spending $29 to avoid $25 in baggage fees.
I then convinced Chad into dinner at this restaurant I saw during my drive around town: Elmer's. Chad eventually decided it was a bit like Shoney's, but perhaps a bit brighter. After I casually mentioned that we were eating dinner at 4:45 on a weekday, Chad said that "well, you brought me" and declared me officially old. So for the rest of the meal, I just started throwing out random old-people statements, causing him and sometimes me to break out into laughter. (I wonder what the actual old people eating there thought of us.)
First pitch for the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes was 6:30, and we arrived in plenty of time, although I was a bit wary about the handicapped spots being the first row behind the stadium wall -- perhaps easy pickings for a foul ball to bash a windshield. (Fortunately, no such un-luck.) As befitting their name, the temperature at first pitch was 97, and on the field, the Volcanoes were swallowed up early on, as Everett posted a four-run first. However, S-K's pitching kept the Aquasox at bay while the Volcanoes slowly chipped away at the lead, eventually winning in the bottom of the 10th, 5-4.