Back ground: I was not one of the “cool” kids. I had many friends and floated from group to group but I never had that crew. I didn’t sit in one spot, or hide out in the back field. I simply survived high school by roaming, moving and saying hi to those that would say hi back. I viewed myself as a band/theater geek. But no one asked me to the prom (however I was more than happy to go with my bestie), I tried to avoid the school bullies and I learned to just laugh at myself (especially before others could laugh at me).

So 20 years has come and gone. (I did go to my 10 year reunion, it was still weird). People still had their clicks but what was neat was at the 10 year reunion, one of the dudes that was always mean to me came up to me and apologized. It was really shocking but very nice of him to do. I totally respect him for that.
But I wanted to share the things I didn’t expect.

So why was I so happy? Well I suppose a few reasons...

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I’m a planner. He’s more of a spontaneous duckling. Who says planning is all the rage¹? So we didn’t book a hotel. We winged it.
We ended up taking the turn-off into Beaverton and found a place called Shiloh Inn. Looked chalet-ish, with a pool. But wouldn’t you know it – it was ALL booked up!¹
The front desk chicka suggested Peppertree Motel. This was casual, motel-style, low key. There was a little water feature in front & lots of guest parking.
pool with loungers and tables, fitness room and breakfast.
were clean and large enough, & included toiletries, a fridge and microwave. Our first 2 nights, we stayed in a king room which was great. It was on the non-parking side (& thus, quiet). Our last night was in another room with 2 doubles, a non-stop bathroom buzzing and faced the busy pool.
not a lot around within walking distance. A 15-minute walk will land you near a mini strip mall with a Latin market (with a bonus cafeteria section where you can order ready-made Mexican foods), pizza parlour, etc.
Not the greatest here. Yes I said it. Deal with it.
I typically drink strong homemade stovetop espresso in the morning². Americanos are my best bet. Even if on acidic side, it is usually drinkable.
→Coffee at Peppertree was umm… not quite right-tasting. But I got my quota of caffeine.
→COFFEE AT 23RD – drip was too acidic. Had to chuck it.
→Case Study Coffee – decided to switch to Americano. Better.
Funky cool inclusive streets with artisan shops, cafes, restaurants, knicks, knacks and paddy whacks. Reminds us of Vancouver’s Commercial Drive with a soupçon of Kits.
The Grotto (>1 hour)
Heavenly gardens showcasing a sheared cliff. No caves in sight.
Lan Su (<1 hour) is a gorgeous Ming Dynasty era garden, in partnership with the Chinese province of Jiangsu.
Washington Park (1-4 hours) contains various attractions such as Portland Japanese Garden, which is 12-acres of authentic J garden in 8 vignettes. Fair warning to the differently-mobiled. There are stairs and inclines heading up to the gardens. But plenty of seats to take a load off PRN.
Freaky But True Peculiarium Museum (<1 hour) Hmmm hard to describe this odd collection of riff raff except to say… it’s odd… riff raff-y… fascinating and not for kidlets or the feint of heart.
Portland Aerial Tram (<1 hour) transports one from city’s South Waterfront district and the main Oregon Health & Science University. As the tram rises 500 feet high, you get amazing views of the city. Semi-surreality takes over as you step off into the expansive movie set of what they call the OHSU campus. Not an intended tourist attraction, but check it out if you want.
Don’t forget to take a peek at South Waterfront area (<1 hour). It’s a lovely little bit of Porty greenery.
You MUST check out the best rack in Oregon: Nordstrom Rack (1-4 hours).
When I used my credit card, a receipt was emailed to me (if the merchant used FourSquare).
Portland is apparently the bike-friendliest city in Amurrica.

Biking is so popular, you can do it while you have a beer with a bunch of randos.
Footnotes:
1 Yes of course I pulled a “told you so… we should’ve booked something”. This was the 2nd (& last year of “winging it”.) Yes, honey, prepping is all the gd rave.
2 I use dark or medium roast like Kicking Horse’s Kickass or Grizzly Claw. I also like Ethical Bean Bold Dark Roast.
3 Recommended time to allot to this attraction, depending on your interests, mobility abilities, photography, if you’re going to chow down, transport, etc.
]]>When you first enter the place, it looks surprisingly large with high ceilings. However due to muted lighting and dark wood furniture, it is feels intimate.
Just off-centre, they have their wine/liquor larder. It looks like a huge wooden centrifuge from the industrial era*. This large pillar runs to the ceiling, with 360-degree shelving. There are stairs snaking around the side like a DNA helix. (Kells and I wanted to go explore but there was a pesky ‘stairs not in use’ sign… and we didn’t want to make a scene… At least not that evening.)
We were wineless that night. Kells had a Cosmo, extra tart. I had a beer**.
We ordered the Baked Brie to start. It was gift wrapped in
crispy phyllo, and accompanied by apricots, carmelized onions, walnuts, grapes and house crackers. The whole mess was delightful. Everything complemented each other perfectly. And the grapes were an amazement — halved and warmed, with salt. You may think ‘egads how odd!’ But trust us… your tastebuds will thank you.
For our mains, we couldn’t decide from Maine Lobster Mac and Cheese, seared Diver Scallops with grits (daily special) or Wild Mushroom Rigatoni. We were also eyeing the Veal and Pancetta Bolognese (I love me some parpadelle) and Pan Seared
Muscovy Duck Breast. Due to availability and what was popular we went with Scallops and Bolognese.
The Diver Scallops were beautifully seared, toothy but tender and slightly sweet on the inside. Though cooked perfectly, grits were a little flat in flavour. (Grits are hard to season). The Bolognese was rich with al dente flavourful parps.
Kells was here before and enjoyed the Lobster Mac and Cheese. This is also a
popular dish…Kells gives it 2 thumbs up. (But someone^ forgot her lactaid and we didn’t want to take a chance with someone’s^ gnarly digestive results if someone^ partook of the lactose-laden kryptonite.)
And we ended with Vanilla Bean Crème Brûlée. Holy caboodles!Beautifully torched top…sweet and smoky. The crème was mindblowing… flavourful, great mouthfeel, not super sickly sweet. An amazing way to end a good meal.
Staff: Our waitstaff Maddy was fabulous! She was s
uper friendly, genuine and knew when to come by to ask questions (ie: not when we just took a big bite).
Have you gone to Purple Cafe?
What delights have you ordered?
Tell us what you think below, in the Comments section!
End bitties
* did scientists have centrifuges in the industrial era? If they did, this is what my mind pictures.
**Wine is not sitting well with Kells’ system these days. This is a sad state of affairs for her. So, in blog-sisterhood, I didn’t get wine even though we were at a winebar.
^someone=Nals