I don't often take the time to explore my own town. I wish I did, there's so much to see in Portland. We moved here during the latter half of lockdown, so I wasn't too keen on adventure at that time. But now that things have been opened back up for a while, I realized that I missed out on some of the early wonder and adventure that comes with moving to a new place.
A couple weeks ago, I was looking through local Meetup groups and realized there were three events I wanted to go through all on the same day. It was a Saturday, and it was supposed to be quite hot (up near 100° F). The events spanned all day, from morning until evening, and all of them involved three of my favorite things: meeting new people with similar interests, discovering new places, and getting out of my comfort zone.
The first was a Thai culture and food festival - I later learned that this was the first ever Thai festival in Portland! I was meant to meet up with a group of folks who moved here from the Southern US, but the other members never showed. I showed up right as the festival opened and started exploring on my own. I was a bit nervous at first, unable to choose between the numerous new foods and a bit embarrassed to ask for explanations. I ended up ordering a delightful fruity tea, and then ventured out to try a number of Thai street foods. I got to see a Wai Kru Ram Muay, a traditional Muay Thai pre-fight ritual, and heard speeches from the Thai Consulate. I had a truly lovely time learning about Thai culture and local Thai-owned businesses. Even though I explored this even on my own, I still had a great time. And it had served it's primary purpose - it got me out of the house and into a mindset of adventure.
Since all the events were relatively close by, I left my car at home and instead took the train in from the suburbs where I live. That meant I had to figure out how to fill my gap time either in walking distance or with the limitation of public transit schedules. I opted to meander down towards my next event and found myself with about an hour to spare before my next group met up. I decided to take a self-guided tour through the nearby Reed College campus. I had some fun trying to find a bathroom that I could use (no luck. I did have a lovely walk and I really enjoyed the trees, especially while on the Bouncy Bridge.
For the second event of the day, I met up with a fairly large group for a stroll through the Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden. This was a group of self-proclaimed geeky introverts, and I had a lovely time walking and talking with them (though the conversations were sometimes slow to start, as you might imagine). Afterwards, we went to a nearby bar and had drinks. I ordered "The BMF", a basil matcha fizz with lime and coconut milk - it was absolutely the perfect drink for a warm summer afternoon after a walk through a flower garden.
My final stop for the day was a small, unassuming Indian restaurant called Naan N Curry. The Meetup host for this group specifically chose this place because they specialized in Punjabi food - Punjab is one of the hottest regions in India and climate plays a big role in their regional cuisine. I had a lovely conversation with my table-mates and enjoyed some amazing new dishes. I highly recommend the Malai Kofta if you ever get a chance to visit!
After that very satisfying dinner, I parted ways with the group and made my way home on the train. Overall, I had a wonderful time meeting new people and discovering new places around Portland. I couldn't believe the vast spectrum of new experiences I was able to have in one day, just by opening myself up to exploration and following my curiosity. It was an exhausting day, but a fulfilling one. I'm already planning my next excursion to learn more about the town I live in, and I hope you'll consider doing the same.
Thanks so much for reading. I'd love to hear from you, please send your stories about exploring your town by clicking the link down below.
Safe travels,
Jase
