I’ve visited there once, thought it was nice, but didn’t have the time to get to know it very well.
The reason I ask is because I may be moving there for a job opportunity.
Hey, me too!
So cough yes, please tell us about Portland. Any info you can give about what the traffic, weather, cost of living, crime level, and cultural events are like will be appreciated.
I haven’t lived in Portland, but my parents came from there and so did their parents, so I’ve visited a lot. Portland has one of the best public transit systems in the country, lots of city parks and green areas, good restaurants, access to great hiking/biking in the Columbia River Gorge. They have an Historical Society that is a great resource for genealogy research.
The downside is that it’s very damp and can get uncomfortably hot and humid in the summer (those dang temperate rainforest climates), and there is an air pollution problem.
Portland has revitalized many of the economically depressed areas. One of my grandparents lived in the NE section, which years ago was a beautiful place full of mature trees and Craftsman houses. It went to hell eventually, but is now on the upswing.
The people in Portland are some of the nicest and most helpful folks you’ll run into. I’ve had strangers walk up to me and ask if they could help me get to where I was going. We were trying to get to Riverview Cemetery to visit the family plot on our last visit and a surly bus driver (the only asshole I’ve ever met in Portland) went past our stop and left us about a mile up the road. Some other people visiting a different cemetery offered us a ride back to where we needed to be.
When I tracked down my other grandparent’s house in the NW section, we hiked up and knocked on the door so the owner wouldn’t think we were prowlers, and he invited us in to see the place.
Hope this all helps.
I was there about a month and a half ago, though only for a couple of days. I was ready to move up there on the spot. Good transportation, the cost of living is more reasonable than the Seattle area (I love the Northwest) and some BEAUTIFUL places within easy reach. My great-aunt has lived there for years and years.
I know I’ll move there eventually. I just have to!
I do not live there but have friends who do. I have been there countless times, though.
Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is reminiscent of on-the-water towns like Vancouver, BC and San Francisco, California. Due to a climatic shift, Portland no longer has the 250+ days of rain per year it used to.
I seem to recall that the crime rate is pretty low and one thing that really stands out about Oregon in general, is the incredibly small amount of litter. There is a state-wide pride that just does not permit littering. Portland is also home to Powell’s Books, an institution unto itself. The seafood is superb and there are many Oregon wineries coming online now that their grape vines have begun to produce vintage worthy stock.
The coast of Oregon is some of the most scenic shoreline in the United States and Crater Lake is a stunning vista of an azure water filled volcanic caldera. Ashland has an excellent Shakespeare festival every year and there is good skiing on Mount Hood. Portland is rapidly becoming a venue for some of the larger rock and roll acts and there are many good pubs that feature music as well. I remember seeing Larry Coryell at the tiny Sunshine Inn many years ago.
Portland is one of the only other cities in the entire United States that I would even consider moving to. My friends moved there earlier this year and absolutely love the area. The job situation is a little gloomy, but then again, it is for the rest of the nation. Oregon has no state sales tax so things are a little cheaper too.
All in all, you could do a lot worse.
My impressions from spending ten days out there a couple years ago:
Very Clean.
Lots of vegetation and foliage.
Lots of hippies.
Good Weed.
Lots and lots of tittay bars.
Nice beach nearby.
I’ve lived in Oregon since 1988. The rain isn’t nearly as bad as rumors dictate. If you make it through the first winter, you’ll love it out here.
What’s Tittay? Is that like Sushi?
Kinda, but it’s not as …
nevermind.
I love visiting Portland and would move there in a heartbeat. I adore the neighbourhoods with their gorgeous old homes, the people there seem quite nice and Powell’s Books turns me into a gibbering idiot.
The only thing that I don’t like about it is the traffic. The driving there terrifies me. If I ever did get my wish to relocate there, I’d buy a bus pass. 
Don’t know how I missed mentioning these aspects. The wines of Oregon can compete with any in the world at this point.
I agree about the coast. It’s wild and rocky, but with enough wonderful beaches to make it great for recreation and beachcombing. My first trip as a child outside of Alaska was to Portland and we took a road trip to Bandon By The Sea, visited the Sea Lion Caves and hit all the beaches. Years later, I took my wife to Newport and had the terrific clam chowder at Moe’s.
Crater Lake is, I believe, one of the deepest lakes in the world and is spectacular summer or winter.
Portland drivers terrify you? Wow… that’s impressive. Maybe it’s because I’m from California, but driving in Portland is a piece of cake. This is the kind of town where traffic flows at 5 mph under the speed limit, not 10 over. Even then, limits are pretty low- 35 or 45 on arterials, 50 or 55 on the urban highways.
Driving 'round here does have its problems, though: drivers can be pretty absent-minded, getting from point A to point B if you don’t know the main streets can be surprisingly difficult (don’t even get me started on how many times I’ve ended up on some unimproved road while trying to get somewhere), and you can get ticketed for running a yellow light. (No, seriously.) But, all things considered, it doesn’t hold a candle to traffic in other parts of the world.
Other than the transportation, I pretty much have to second what the other posters have said: Portland’s beautiful (but rainy), the people are nice, the public transit rocks, and you’re 90 minutes away from the ocean and Mount Hood. And then there’s Powell’s.
Portland’s actually a really good city if you’re young- it’s very hip, can be quite cheap to live in, there are a lot of interesting sub-30 year olds, has some interesting bands, and generally has a laid-back atmosphere. Plus, I live here. That just makes it extra-cool.
Contrary to what’s been previously asserted, the summers in Portland are absolutely gorgeous. The humidity’s not a factor, either- it’s much more bearable than the East Coast, for instance.
All this isn’t to say that Portland has its downsides- it can be a pretty small town at times. There’s a lot of methheads and freaks, especially out on 82nd avenue (truly one of America’s great boulevards, if you ask me…) Also, it has a high unemployment rate, so I’d suggest you keep your voice down about whatever employment you might be finageling. Unless you’d like to give me a job, in which case, I’m all ears. 
M.
“Unemployable since May 2003”
I’ve lived here since '71. We have our good/bad just like any other city, but we also happen to have the incredibly good fortune to be situated in the awesomely beautiful Pacific Northwest. So you get burnt out on the city and it’s an hour and a half to either the beach or the mountains. There’s great skiing, hiking, rock climbing, flyfishing, whitewater, you name it. And as cities go, P-town probably has more positives than negs. Great restaurants, decent nightclubbing, lots of great neighborhood tavs, top-rate microbreweries, symphony, art, etc. And yes, lots of hippies, good weed, and an overabundance of “adult entertainment”.
About the rain…don’t let anyone kid you, it can rain here from September through mid-June, and I know people who have verifiable cases of Seasonal Adjustment Disorder. Has to do with light deprivation. The key is to be active outdoors as much as possible, and it means not minding getting wet. It’s an acquired thing.
Personally, I couldn’t imagine living anywhere else. The longer I’m here, the more I love it.
That said, jobs are not plentiful here and the cost of living is fairly steep, so make sure your offer is solid before you commit.
Among the other things said, Portland has a good symphony and good theater–everything from Shakespeare to avant-garde to Broadway. I have not been to the opera or the ballet, but I have friends that have and they seem satisfied at the overall quality.
The zoo is wonderful, as is the Children’s Museum and the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (which has a planatarium and an IMAX theater). Also in Washington Park (where the zoo is) is a Japanese Garden to rival any outside Japan itself, and a rose garden that is spectacular when in full bloom.
As mentioned, there are lots of college-aged people around (three colleges: Lewis and Clark, Portland State, and Reed), and so the music/club scene is pretty lively and diverse. All three campuses have lecture/movie/music events open to the public, as well as sports teams.
Portland is a common stop for most concert tours–rock and country both, as well as the old performers that just keep on touring. In the summer, the Blues Festival at Waterfront Park is not to be missed, and the Brewers’ Festival is another great event. Lots of good beer in Portland, and nice friendly pubs to drink in.
At this time of the year, you must expect rain, but don’t be surprised by the sun. Actually, as I write this, it is pouring down rain, but the sky one block over is a cheerful blue. Yes, rain and sunshine at the same time are not uncommon–so you will see a lot of great rainbows. In the winter, Portland may get one or two snowfalls–usually under a foot of snow, more likely just a few inches. However, no one in Portland knows how to drive in the snow, so drive at your own risk, and expect things to be shut down. The summer is consistantly in the '80’s (tempeture-wise), but it will get hotter, ususally for a few days at a time.
It also has a very nice downtown shopping area, which if you hate malls as much as i do, is a big plus!
If you move here, we’ll throw you your own Portland Dope-fest.
BTW, have you ever had a scotch egg?
Anything for a scotch egg, eh Czarcasm?
BTW, Bumbadaughter bakes them. I think next time we (and by ‘we’ I mean ‘you’) should fry them to get a good crisp on and them pop them in the oven.
Hey you!, I haven’t anything cogent to add. Moast of the high points have been hit. The job market here, for high-tech anyway, really does suck though, so check your prospective employer out very carefully.
CZARCASM !! You trying to kill poor hey you! before he/she even gets a chance to get stuck in traffic on I 5 just because they missed the Saint Helen’s turn off?
I don’t live there but it is easily one of my favorite cities. I have had mountains of fun ever time I have visited there. And the Portland Dopers are wild! The area is green and gorgeous. And the Columbia is a religious experience in and of itself. Powells was a a totally orgasmic experience.
Thanks for all the good input. Harsh traffic doesn’t scare me (never driven NY or Boston, but Chicago didn’t faze me). And regarding the job thing, the offer is from a friend of mine that I used to work with in Minneapolis, he knows me well and sees the position as custom-tailored specifically to me, and it’s basically the kind of position I thought I would have to wait all my life to get (if even then).
The only thing is… and it’s a tiny thing… I’ve never been an outdoorsy type of person, and Portland seems to cater to outdoorsy type people. Not that I’m against it or anything, it’s just never been my main gear.
You forgot the University of Portland.
I grew up in Portland, and now live in Los Angeles. My parents still live there, and I go up several times a year.
I think Portland is great. Powell’s has already been mentioned, but I must stress that that is the BEST ENGLISH LANGUAGE BOOKSTORE IN THE WORLD. It takes up an entire square city block.
I also think the Pearl District the area in NW Portland between the river and roughly 10th is one of the coolest neighborhoods in the country. It’s funny because when I was a kid in the 70’s there was really nothing going on there but now it has really taken off: lot’s of art galleries, cool restaurants, a whole foods, etc.
Downtown Portland is a great place to walk around, with cool public art, nice public spaces (such as Pioneer Courthouse Square.)
Portland also has a great music scene, and lots of excellent microbreweries. And of course the 76-77 World Champion Portland Trailblazers (they let us out of school to go to a parade downtown.)
Traffic can be a drag, but compared to Los Angeles, Boston and Chicago (other places I’ve lived) I’d say Portland is pretty managable.
The negatives? Well, it does rain a lot. And when it’s not rainy it is often kind of dreary and gray. BUT it rarely snows (probably once every 5 years) and it doesn’t get bone chilling cold the way Chicago does. Also, the size has its benefits but also its drawbacks. You will definitely notice in a hundred ways, that it is not a major city the way, say, Chicago is.
Overally though, I think you should count yourself lucky that you’re moving to such a cool city.