USA Guide
The Pacific Northwest
Portland
With few major attractions and an unpretentious bohemian flavour, Portland makes for an excellent spot to slow down and relax in the wealth of good diners, microbreweries, clubs, bookstores, and coffeehouses. Though sporting grand Beaux Arts architecture, Portland has a small-city feel thanks to a walkable urban core of short city blocks and attractions that cluster close together.
The city was named after Portland, Maine, following a coin toss between its two East Coast founders in 1845 ("Boston" was the other option). Its location on the Willamette River, just 78 miles from the Pacific, made it a perfect lumber and trading port, and it grew quickly, replacing its clapboard houses with ornate facades and Gothic gables. As a reminder of those days, the town's quirky "Benson Bubblers" – four-headed drinking fountains that are prime fixtures on downtown streets – are constantly flowing.
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