Hosteling

Portland – Happy Hawthorn Hostel House
April 7-8, 2009

As previously mentioned, we are hostel virgins so we were excited to experience the Hawthorn House in, well, the Hawthorn District of Portland - a very clean, well run and interesting two story, turn of the century home converted into a comfortable Hostel designated as a “Sustainable Living Center”. Complete with an eco roof, non-potable toilets, extensive recycling, discounts for bicycle riders and $1 all you can eat pancakes made on appliances run with 100% renewable energy!



Our first Hostel suite mates were Lucas and Katie a friendly 20- somethings couple from San Fran on a long weekend excursion to Portland. We were in bunks 1 & 2, they 3 & 4 and nobody snored at least I hope I didn’t. She is a school teacher and he has a degree in Ag Sciences with a strong interest in the fermentables – beer and wine. Don’t we all! I told them that our home base was Kauai where we had a house on a private beach called the Na Pali Coast and that we were very prolific traveling Bloggers with over 10 followers so far. Pretty good work if you can get it. Well ok, everything was true but the blurb about the Na Pali.

The next day we drove downtown and toured around most of the sites including several notable elements of landscape architecture that I was familiar with and wanted to show Patti including Forecourt Fountain Plaza by Lawrence Halprin. We also drove through the campus and saw a bunch of what had to be Landscape Architecture students in small groups looking at, discussing, sketching, photographing and measuring what else but trees. Dorks! The whole downtown area was in full spring blossom with Flowering Cherry trees everywhere.

I then set my internal coordinates on Vodoo Doughnuts. A famous hole in the wall doughnuts only bakery with a tiny showroom with a tatted up counter attendant blasting death metal rock and a single turning glass doughnut showcase full of the most imaginative and tasty looking doughy and nutty creations of art that I have ever witnessed. I had the one with vanilla creme icing and captian crunch topping and Patti had– yes, Patti had one two – the chocolate icing one with a rice crispy topping and peanut butter drizzles. We waddled back to our car, hopped on I-5 and headed toward Skidattle.